Glossary | Spelling Bee Answers Solver
So you're getting into the NYT Spelling Bee? Awesome! Players have their own lingo for this addictive word game. Here’s a breakdown of the terms you'll hear buzzing around, especially on the Wordplay blog and among fans:
The Solutions: The full list of acceptable words for a puzzle is the solution set. The total points available when you find them all is also sometimes called the Queen Bee score.
- The Ranks (Your Progress): Starting from the bottom, you hit Beginner (0 points), then Good Start (about 2% of the max), Moving Up (~5%), Good (~8%), Solid (~15%), Nice (~25%), Great (~40%), Amazing (~50% – a handy trick: double this score to get close to the max!), Genius (~70%), and finally, the ultimate goal: Queen Bee or QB (finding every single word!).
- The Puzzle Itself: The set of seven letters you play with is called the hive. One of these is the crucial center letter, which must be in every word you find.
- Word Gems: The star find is the pangram – a word using all seven hive letters at least once. Every puzzle has at least one. A super rare perfect pangram uses each letter exactly once. Sometimes you get complementary pangrams – multiple pangrams using the exact same seven unique letters, which always appear together no matter the center letter. A bingo (shoutout to commenter qatburger!) is a satisfying puzzle where you find at least one word starting with every letter in the hive. A debut is a word appearing for the very first time in a puzzle's solutions.
- Word Quirks: Watch out for disallowed words – ones players know have been rejected before. Compounds (like 'bluebird') are allowed, but the game's definition of what counts is famously... let's say idiosyncratic. Plurals (plural) are also included, but the rules around them have specific nuances players often discuss.
- The Community: Die-hard fans call themselves the Hivemind, especially active on Twitter sharing hints and gripes. On the Wordplay blog, you'll find passionate commenters dissecting every puzzle. Ever get stuck and just start mashing keys hoping something sticks? Yeah, we've all been there.
- The People & Mascot: Sam Ezersky edits the daily online puzzle we all know. The original print version (found in the NYT Magazine, sometimes called the Sunday Bee or print version) was created by Frank Longo (it has slightly different rules, like 5-letter minimums). William Shunn is the creator behind the popular Spelling Bee Solver tool. And who could forget Beeatrice, the adorable bee mascot? She pops up with a mortarboard when you hit Genius and dons a crown for Queen Bee!
The Solutions: The full list of acceptable words for a puzzle is the solution set. The total points available when you find them all is also sometimes called the Queen Bee score.