The Unofficial Hive

NYT Spelling Bee answers & analysis

ACMNTYI

Thursday, February 26, 2026

Words
51
Points
238
Genius
166
Pangram
1

Official answers

Show the 51 answersHide answers

Pangram highlighted. Click a word for its definition.

  • acacia

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 22 recorded puzzles.

  • acai

    noun — The fruit of these trees, harvested for its juice.

    noun — Any of several South American palms, of the genus Euterpe, having a dark purple drupe.

    Appeared in 22 recorded puzzles.

  • amity

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • anima

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • anti

    adjective — Opposed to something.

    noun — A person opposed to a concept or principle.

    preposition — Alternative form of anti-

    adjective — That has a torsion angle between 90° and 180°

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • antic

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • attain

    verb — To gain (an object or desired result).

    verb — To reach or come to, by progression or motion; to arrive at (a place, time, state, etc.).

    verb — To reach in excellence or degree.

    verb — To come or arrive, by motion, growth, bodily exertion, or efforts toward a place, object, state, etc.

    verb — To get at the knowledge of.

    verb — To reach a person after being behind them.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • attic

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 16 recorded puzzles.

  • cacti

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 16 recorded puzzles.

  • caiman

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • cami

    noun — A camisole.

    Appeared in 11 recorded puzzles.

  • cantina

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • catmint

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 2 recorded puzzles.

  • city

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

  • cynic

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

  • imam

    noun — (usually capitalized) A Shi'ite Muslim leader.

    noun — One who leads the salat prayers in a mosque.

    Appeared in 20 recorded puzzles.

  • inanity

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • incant

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • intact

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • intimacy

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • itty

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 7 recorded puzzles.

  • maim

    noun — A serious wound

    verb — To wound seriously; to cause permanent loss of function of a limb or part of the body.

    Appeared in 20 recorded puzzles.

  • main

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • maintain

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 7 recorded puzzles.

  • mania

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • maniac

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • manic

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • mica

    noun — Any of a group of hydrous aluminosilicate minerals characterized by highly perfect cleavage, so that they readily separate into very thin leaves, more or less elastic.

    Appeared in 11 recorded puzzles.

  • mimic

    noun — A person who practices mimicry, or mime.

    verb — To imitate, especially in order to ridicule.

    adjective — Pertaining to mimicry; imitative.

    noun — An imitation.

    verb — To take on the appearance of another, for protection or camouflage.

    adjective — Mock, pretended.

    Appeared in 14 recorded puzzles.

  • mini

    adjective — Miniature, tiny, small.

    noun — A miniskirt.

    noun — A minicomputer.

    Appeared in 19 recorded puzzles.

  • minicam

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • minim

    noun — A half note, drawn as a semibreve with a stem.

    noun — Anything very minute; applied to animalcula and the like.

    noun — A unit of volume, in the Imperial and U.S. customary systems, 1/60 fluid drachm. Approximately equal to 1 drop, 62 μL or 0.9 grain (weight) of water.

    noun — A short vertical stroke used in handwriting.

    noun — A little man or being; a dwarf.

    noun — A small fish; a minnow.

    Appeared in 19 recorded puzzles.

  • minima

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • mint

    adjective — (with condition) Like new.

    noun — Any plant in the genus Mentha in the family Lamiaceae, typically aromatic with square stems.

    noun — A mint-flavored candy, often eaten to sweeten the smell of the breath.

    noun — The flavouring of the plant, either a sweet, a jelly or sauce.

    noun — A large amount of money. A vast sum or amount, etc.

    noun — A building or institution where money (originally, only coins) is produced under government licence.

    Appeared in 11 recorded puzzles.

  • minty

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • mitt

    noun — An oversized, protective glove such as an oven mitt or a baseball mitt.

    noun — A mitten

    noun — (especially in plural) A hand.

    Appeared in 17 recorded puzzles.

  • niacin

    noun — A water-soluble vitamin, a component of vitamin B complex, found in meat, yeast, and dairy products; it is essential to metabolism.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • ninny

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 6 recorded puzzles.

  • tacit

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 16 recorded puzzles.

  • tactic

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 16 recorded puzzles.

  • tactician

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • taint

    verb — To contaminate or corrupt (something) with an external agent, either physically or morally.

    noun — A mark of disgrace, especially on one's character; blemish

    noun — A contamination, decay or putrefaction, especially in food

    verb — To spoil (food) by contamination.

    noun — Infection; corruption; deprivation

    noun — A marker indicating that a variable is unsafe and should be subjected to additional security checks.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • tannic

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • tannin

    noun — Tannic acid or any of its derivatives.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • tatami

    noun — Straw matting, in a standard size, used as a floor covering in Japanese houses

    Appeared in 12 recorded puzzles.

  • tinct

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • tinny

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • tint

    verb — To shade, to color.

    noun — A slight coloring.

    noun — A pale or faint tinge of any color; especially, a variation of a color obtained by adding white (contrast shade)

    noun — A color considered with reference to other very similar colors.

    noun — A shaded effect in engraving, produced by the juxtaposition of many fine parallel lines.

    Appeared in 16 recorded puzzles.

  • tiny

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • titan

    noun — Something or someone of very large stature, greatness, or godliness.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • titanic

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

Hints, no spoilers

Words by first two letters

  • ac×2
  • am×1
  • an×3
  • at×2
  • ca×5
  • ci×1
  • cy×1
  • im×1
  • in×4
  • it×1
  • ma×6
  • mi×9
  • ni×2
  • ta×7
  • ti×6

Words by first letter and length

456789Σ
a 242··· 8
c 2212·· 7
i 2·211· 6
m 65211· 15
n ·11··· 2
t 2541·1 13
Σ 141712521 51

The numbers

Genius today takes 166 points of 238 available. The average answer runs 5.4 letters.

Total points vs. all 380 recorded puzzles
66th percentile
Word count vs. all recorded puzzles
62nd percentile

Word lengths, today vs. 17231 recorded answers

414 today34.6% all-time517 today22.8% all-time612 today19.9% all-time75 today12.1% all-time82 today6.3% all-time91 today2.6% all-time101.2% all-time110.3% all-time120.1% all-time130.0% all-time

History

Today's letters, last seen

LetterLast in a puzzleLast as center
a Wednesday, February 25, 2026 Monday, February 16, 2026
c Tuesday, February 24, 2026 Sunday, January 18, 2026
i ● Tuesday, February 24, 2026 Sunday, February 8, 2026
m Saturday, February 21, 2026 Saturday, February 21, 2026
n Tuesday, February 24, 2026 Wednesday, February 18, 2026
t Tuesday, February 24, 2026 Monday, February 9, 2026
y Wednesday, February 25, 2026 Saturday, February 7, 2026

Most common answers, all recorded puzzles

  1. noon 41
  2. naan 30
  3. nana 30
  4. onion 28
  5. toot 28
  6. loll 27
  7. mama 25
  8. mamma 25
  9. cocoon 23
  10. nene 23
  11. acacia 22
  12. acai 22
  13. bill 22
  14. loon 22
  15. aria 21
  16. onto 21
  17. toon 21
  18. cancan 21
  19. canna 21
  20. neon 21
  21. none 21
  22. olio 21
  23. lilt 20
  24. till 20
  25. tilt 20

Valid words the Bee rejected

Dictionary words the Bee never takes

Legitimate words (per the ENABLE list) that fit the letters but aren't official answers — usually judged too obscure.