| 100% | TAUTENED | 8 | Like a rope in tug of war |
| 62% | TAUT | 4 | Like a rope during a tug-of-war |
| 61% | TAUT | 4 | Like a rope during a tug-of-war match |
| 59% | TAUT | 4 | Like a tug-of-war rope |
| 55% | TUG | 3 | ___ of war, sport in which teams pull opposite ends of a rope |
| 53% | PULL | 4 | Participate in tug of war |
| 53% | ROPE | 4 | Equipment in tug of war |
| 50% | ROPE | 4 | What's tugged in tug of war |
| 49% | WEEDY | 5 | Like a garden in need of tending |
| 49% | SOOTY | 5 | Like a chimney in need of cleaning |
| 49% | STRAY | 5 | Like a kitten in need of adoption? |
| 49% | ICY | 3 | Like a freezer in need of defrosting |
| 49% | JAMMED | 6 | Like a printer in need of clearing |
| 49% | DUSTY | 5 | Like a bookshelf in need of cleaning |
| 49% | ROUGH | 5 | Like a draft in need of editing |
| 49% | SLOW | 4 | Like a tortoise, in terms of speed |
| 49% | THIN | 4 | Like a wafer, in terms of thickness |
| 48% | TREED | 5 | Like a cat in need of a firefighter, stereotypically |
| 48% | MONEYPIT | 8 | Like a house in need of frequent, costly repairs |
| 48% | TUG | 3 | ___ of war (game with a rope) |
| 47% | ICY | 3 | Like a windshield in need of scraping in the winter |
| 47% | PULLS | 5 | Participates in a game of tug-of-war |
| 47% | TUG | 3 | ___ of war (sport involving pulling a rope) |
| 47% | PACK | 4 | Like a group of mini crosswords in this game |
| 47% | THATCHED | 8 | Like a roof covered in straw instead of tiles |
| 47% | ISOLATED | 8 | Like a secluded cabin in the middle of nowhere |
| 46% | RECUT | 5 | Like the 1997 Special Edition of “Star Wars: A New Hope,” in which Greedo shoots first |
| 46% | ATTHETOP | 8 | Like a winner of a mountain marathon, in two senses |
| 46% | EERIE | 5 | Like a wolf's howl in the dead of night |
| 46% | CLUTCH | 6 | Like a winning play in the final seconds of overtime |