Spelling Bee NYT: Answers For Today's Puzzle

Spelling Bee FAQs

What is NYT Spelling Bee?

Spelling Bee is a daily word puzzle with seven letters in a honeycomb: one center letter (yellow) and six outer letters. Form as many valid words as possible using only those letters.

What is a pangram in Spelling Bee?

A pangram uses all seven letters at least once and earns a 7-point bonus on top of the word score. Most puzzles have one pangram; some have two.

How does Spelling Bee scoring work?

4-letter words: 1 point. 5-letter: 5 pts. 6-letter: 6 pts. 7-letter: 7 pts. Longer words add 7 points per extra letter. Pangrams add +7 to the base score.

What is the center letter in Spelling Bee?

The center letter must appear in every word you submit. You may use it multiple times; you cannot omit it.

What is the minimum word length in Spelling Bee?

Words must be at least four letters long.

Can you repeat letters in Spelling Bee?

Yes. Any of the seven letters may be used multiple times in one word, as long as you only use puzzle letters.

Does Spelling Bee allow proper nouns?

No. Proper nouns, hyphenated words, and contractions are not accepted.

When does the NYT Spelling Bee update?

A new puzzle publishes at midnight Eastern time. Yesterday's puzzle stays playable on NYT; this answers page switches to the new day.

What is Genius in Spelling Bee?

Genius means you've reached 70% of the maximum possible score for that puzzle. The point threshold varies by puzzle.

What is Queen Bee in Spelling Bee?

Queen Bee means you've found every valid word—100% of the answers.

How many words are usually in a Spelling Bee puzzle?

Most puzzles have roughly 20–45 words. Letter sets with rich pangrams can exceed 50.

How do I find the pangram?

Look for words using all seven letters. Try common suffixes (-ING, -ED, -ER) and prefixes on shorter stems.

Is there a time limit in Spelling Bee?

No. You can pause and return any time before the daily reset.

Can I play past Spelling Bee puzzles?

On the NYT site, only today's and yesterday's puzzles are available.

Why wasn't my word accepted in Spelling Bee?

The word may be missing from the puzzle dictionary, be a proper noun, use invalid letters, or be shorter than four letters.

Do you need a NYT subscription to play Spelling Bee?

Spelling Bee is part of NYT Games. Limited free plays are available; full access requires a subscription.

What's the difference between Spelling Bee and Wordle?

Wordle is one hidden five-letter word in six guesses. Spelling Bee asks for many words from seven letters with no guess limit.