Yesterday's NYT Spelling Bee Answers & Hint - Solution for February 18
By | Last edited Feb 18, 2026
Mat C.
Managing Editor
Mat is a certified word nerd who's spent 10+ years crafting documentation and content systems at Shopify that actually make sense. When he's not obsessively ensuring our Wordle, Strands, and Connections hints are spot-on, he's probably solving tomorrow's puzzle just for fun.
Need help with yesterday's NYT Spelling Bee puzzle for Feb 18, 2026? Our interactive solver provides progressive hints and reveals all valid words, including pangrams. Use the reveal toggles to gradually uncover letters without spoiling all the fun!
Master the addictive daily word puzzle and reach Queen Bee status with proven strategies
What is NYT Spelling Bee and How to Play?
Spelling Bee is an addictive daily word puzzle from The New York Times. Players create words from 7 letters arranged in a honeycomb, with one mandatory center letter. The goal? Find as many words as possible and discover the pangram to maximize your score and reach Queen Bee status.
Steps for Solving the Puzzle
Create Valid Words
Form words using the 7 available letters. Every word must include the center (yellow) letter, be at least 4 letters long, and appear in the accepted word list.
Hunt for the Pangram
Find the pangram - a word using all 7 letters at least once. It's worth bonus points and essential for reaching higher ranks. Some puzzles have multiple pangrams.
Climb the Ranks
Progress through ranking levels from Beginner to Queen Bee by finding more words. Track your progress as you advance through Good Start, Solid, Nice, Great, Amazing, and Genius.
Game Rules
Letters: 7 letters total (1 center, 6 outer)
Center Letter: Required in every word
Minimum Length: 4 letters per word
Letter Reuse: Letters can be used multiple times
Valid Words: Common English words only
No: Proper nouns, hyphenated words, obscenities
Scoring System
4-letter words: 1 point each
5+ letter words: 1 point per letter
Pangrams: Length + 7 bonus points
Example: 7-letter pangram = 14 points total
Ranking System
Rankings are based on percentage of total possible points:
Status
Percent (%)
Beginner
0
Good Start
2
Moving Up
5
Good
8
Solid
15
Nice
25
Great
40
Amazing
50
Genius
70
Queen Bee
100
Queen Bee is an Easter Egg, rarely seen! It's not listed in the rankings sheet, but it means you've found all of the possible words in that puzzle.
Special Terms
BINGO: Creating words that start with each of the 7 letters at least once
No S Rule: Editor Sam Ezersky excludes letter S to prevent easy pluralization (rare exceptions for special occasions)
Hivemind: The Spelling Bee community that shares hints and discusses puzzles. Join the discussion on Reddit's r/NYTSpellingBee
Frequently Asked Questions
Limited free play is available, but full access requires an NYT Games subscription ($5/month or $40/year). The free version allows you to play up to the Solid rank (approximately 15% of total points), which gives you a good taste of the puzzle before deciding if you want to subscribe for full access.
A new Spelling Bee puzzle releases at 3:00 AM EST daily. Unlike some other NYT puzzles that release at midnight in your local time zone, Spelling Bee releases at the same time worldwide, so players everywhere get the puzzle simultaneously.
The number of words varies significantly from puzzle to puzzle, typically ranging from 20-80+ words. The average puzzle contains around 40-50 words total, but some puzzles can have many more depending on the letter combination and available word possibilities.
Every puzzle has at least one pangram, but some puzzles have 2-3 pangrams. Finding all pangrams in a puzzle can significantly boost your score since each pangram earns you length points plus 7 bonus points.
Reaching Great rank (40% of total points) is considered a solid performance, while Amazing rank (50%) is very good. Genius rank (70%) is excellent and shows you've found most of the words. The ultimate achievement is Queen Bee (100%), which means you found every single word in the puzzle.
To reach Queen Bee, you must find every single word in the puzzle, achieving 100% of the total possible points. This is the hidden rank that only appears when you've completed the puzzle entirely. It requires patience, strategy, and often the help of word lists or hints.
Yes, letters can be reused unlimited times within a single word. This is one of the key differences from other word games - you can use the same letter multiple times in the same word, which opens up many more word possibilities.
Editor Sam Ezersky excludes the letter S from most puzzles to prevent easy pluralization. Without S, players can't simply add -S to words to create plurals, making the puzzle more challenging and interesting. There are rare exceptions for special occasion puzzles.
Spelling Bee uses a curated word list that focuses on common English words rather than obscure terms. The list is maintained by the NYT Games team and includes words that most players would recognize, making the puzzle accessible while still challenging.
Only the daily puzzle is officially available through the New York Times Games website. Unlike some other puzzle games, Spelling Bee doesn't offer an archive of past puzzles, so you'll need to solve each day's puzzle when it's available.
No, hyphenated words are not allowed in Spelling Bee. Only single, unhyphenated words are accepted. This means compound words like "well-being" or "self-aware" won't work, even if they use the available letters.
No, abbreviations do not count in Spelling Bee. Only complete words are accepted. This means acronyms, initialisms, or shortened forms of words won't be recognized, even if they use the available letters.
The minimum word length in Spelling Bee is 4 letters, and all words must include the center letter. This means 3-letter words are not accepted, even if they include the center letter.
Reaching Queen Bee rank means you've found all words in the puzzle. This is the only way to confirm you've discovered every possible word. The Queen Bee rank is hidden until you achieve it, making it a special achievement for dedicated players.
Yes, the game provides a spoiler-free sharing format that shows your rank and progress without revealing the actual words you found. This lets you share your achievement with friends and family on social media without giving away solutions.
Stuck on a puzzle? Use our Spelling Bee Solver to find all valid words for any set of letters.
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