NYT Spelling Bee Answers for December 12, 2024
Game Summary
| Center Letter | O |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, i, m, n, t, z |
| # of Pangrams | 2 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 47 words |
| Total Points | 257 points |
| Genius Level | 180 points |
| Bingo? | Yes |
Table of Contents
As you scroll down this page, the clues get progressively more revealing. So scroll slowly!
- Spelling Bee Grid
- Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
- Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
- Extra Letter Hints (Incrementally Revealing) 🤯
- Today's Complete Solution
- Answer Definitions
If you're just here for a list of NYT Spelling Bee answers, Jump down to the answers ↓ (Spoiler Alert!).
Spelling Bee Grid
The following table shows the standard Spelling Bee summary grid, which lists word lengths across the top and letters down the left-hand side. The cell where the word lengths and letters intersect displays the number of words in today's puzzle with the corresponding first letter and word length.
| 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Σ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | - | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | 12 |
| I | 2 | - | - | - | - | 1 | 4 | - | - | 7 |
| M | 5 | 3 | 3 | - | - | 1 | - | - | 1 | 13 |
| N | 1 | - | 2 | - | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 5 |
| O | 2 | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| T | 2 | - | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5 |
| Z | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | Σ | 16 | 7 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 47 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AM×5 AN×5 AT×2 |
|---|---|
| I | IM×1 IN×4 IO×2 |
| M | MA×2 MI×2 MO×9 |
| N | NA×1 NO×4 |
| O | OM×1 ON×2 OT×1 |
| T | TA×1 TO×4 |
| Z | ZO×1 |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | AMA×1 AMI×1 AMM×2 AMN×1 ANI×2 ANN×1 ANO×2 ATO×2 |
|---|---|
| I | IMI×1 INI×1 INT×3 ION×1 IOT×1 |
| M | MAM×1 MAT×1 MIN×2 MOA×2 MOM×1 MON×2 MOO×2 MOT×2 |
| N | NAT×1 NOM×1 NOO×1 NOT×2 |
| O | OMI×1 ONI×1 ONT×1 OTT×1 |
| T | TAT×1 TOM×2 TOO×2 |
| Z | ZOO×1 |
Extra Letter Hints (Incrementally Revealing)
The table below lists all of the solutions to today's puzzle, but they're concealed. You can click the plus button (+) to reveal additional letters, one-by-one.
Concealed definitions are provided as additional clues. You can toggle concealment of the definitions by clicking on the concealer bar or the text that appears when the definition is visible.
Pangrams are marked with a dagger symbol (†).
| Word | 2L Ref | Definition (click to reveal) |
|---|---|---|
| at......... † | AT11 | The act or an instance of atomizing. |
| mi.......... † | MI12 | The act of lowering something to its smallest value or extent. |
| am.... | AM6 | a tall, strong, athletic woman |
| am... | AM5 | Relating to an amine. |
| am.. | AM4 | Ammunition. |
| am..... | AM7 | A gaseous compound of hydrogen and nitrogen, NH3, with a pungent smell and taste. |
| am... | AM5 | amniocentesis |
| an....... | AN9 | The act of animating, or giving life or spirit. |
| an... | AN5 | A negatively charged ion. |
| an........ | AN10 | A critical or explanatory commentary or analysis. |
| an.... | AN6 | To smear or rub over with oil or an unctuous substance; also, to spread over, as oil. |
| an.. | AN4 | Straight away; at once. |
| at.. | AT4 | The smallest possible amount of matter which still retains its identity as a chemical element, now known to consist of a nucleus surrounded by electrons. |
| im....... | IM9 | The act of imitating. |
| in........ | IN10 | The act of initiating, or the process of being initiated or introduced |
| in........ | IN10 | The act of intimating. |
| in.. | IN4 | To or towards the inside of. |
| in........ | IN10 | The rise and fall of the voice in speaking. |
| io........ | IO10 | Any process that leads to the dissociation of a neutral atom or molecule into charged particles ions; the state of being ionized. |
| io.. | IO4 | The ninth letter of the Greek alphabet. |
| ma.... | MA6 | Alternative letter-case form of Mammon (wealth, material avarice). |
| ma... | MA5 | Thin, unleavened bread in Jewish cuisine. |
| mi.... | MI6 | A loyal servant of another, usually a more powerful being. |
| mo.. | MO4 | a low, mournful cry of pain, sorrow or pleasure |
| mo.. | MO4 | A deep, wide defensive ditch, normally filled with water, surrounding a fortified habitation. |
| mo... | MO5 | mother |
| mo.. | MO4 | Clipping of mononucleosis. |
| mo....... | MO9 | Excessive interest or concentration on a singular object or subject. |
| mo.. | MO4 | Alternative letter-case form of Moon (“the Earth's only permanent natural satellite”). |
| mo.. | MO4 | Subject to discussion (originally at a moot); arguable, debatable, unsolved or impossible to solve. |
| mo.... | MO6 | A state of progression from one place to another. |
| mo... | MO5 | A sentence, phrase, or word, forming part of an heraldic achievement. |
| na.... | NA6 | A historically constituted, stable community of people, formed based on a common language, territory, economic life, ethnicity and/or psychological make-up manifested in a common culture. |
| no........ | NO10 | An act or instance of nominating. |
| no.. | NO4 | The time of day when the sun is in its zenith; twelve o'clock in the day, midday. |
| no...... | NO8 | The act, process, method, or an instance of representing by a system or set of marks, signs, figures, or characters. |
| no.... | NO6 | Mental apprehension of whatever may be known, thought, or imagined; idea, concept. |
| om.. | OM4 | To leave out or exclude. |
| on... | ON5 | A monocotyledonous plant (Allium cepa), allied to garlic, used as vegetable and spice. |
| on.. | ON4 | Upon; on top of. |
| ot..... | OT7 | An upholstered sofa, without arms or a back, sometimes with a compartment for storing linen etc. |
| ta.... | TA6 | An image made in the skin with ink and a needle. |
| to.... | TO6 | A widely cultivated plant, Solanum lycopersicum, having edible fruit. |
| to.... | TO6 | Alternative spelling of tom-tit |
| to.. | TO4 | A cartoon, especially an animated television show. |
| to.. | TO4 | The noise of a horn or whistle. |
| zo.. | ZO4 | A humming noise from something moving very fast. |
Today's Complete Solution
The words that follow are a complete listing of all acceptable words in today's New York Time Spelling Bee puzzle.
Next to the answer word you'll see the two-letter reference (2L Ref) in parentheses. We added that 2L Ref for easier translation of the spoiler-avoidant language you see on the Spelling Bee Forum and Twitter. The 2L Ref signifies a word's two start letters followed by the total number of letters in the word.
- atomization† (AT11)
- minimization† (MI12)
- amazon (AM6)
- amino (AM5)
- ammo (AM4)
- ammonia (AM7)
- amnio (AM5)
- animation (AN9)
- anion (AN5)
- annotation (AN10)
- anoint (AN6)
- anon (AN4)
- atom (AT4)
- imitation (IM9)
- initiation (IN10)
- intimation (IN10)
- into (IN4)
- intonation (IN10)
- ionization (IO10)
- iota (IO4)
- mammon (MA6)
- matzo (MA5)
- minion (MI6)
- moan (MO4)
- moat (MO4)
- momma (MO5)
- mono (MO4)
- monomania (MO9)
- moon (MO4)
- moot (MO4)
- motion (MO6)
- motto (MO5)
- nation (NA6)
- nomination (NO10)
- noon (NO4)
- notation (NO8)
- notion (NO6)
- omit (OM4)
- onion (ON5)
- onto (ON4)
- ottoman (OT7)
- tattoo (TA6)
- tomato (TO6)
- tomtit (TO6)
- toon (TO4)
- toot (TO4)
- zoom (ZO4)
Answer Definitions
- atomization† (noun): The act or an instance of atomizing.
- minimization† (noun): The act of lowering something to its smallest value or extent.
- amazon (noun): a tall, strong, athletic woman
- amino (adjective): Relating to an amine.
- ammo (noun): Ammunition.
- ammonia (noun): A gaseous compound of hydrogen and nitrogen, NH3, with a pungent smell and taste.
- amnio (noun): amniocentesis
- animation (noun): The act of animating, or giving life or spirit.
- anion (noun): A negatively charged ion.
- annotation (noun): A critical or explanatory commentary or analysis.
- anoint (verb): To smear or rub over with oil or an unctuous substance; also, to spread over, as oil.
- anon (adverb): Straight away; at once.
- atom (noun): The smallest possible amount of matter which still retains its identity as a chemical element, now known to consist of a nucleus surrounded by electrons.
- imitation (noun): The act of imitating.
- initiation (noun): The act of initiating, or the process of being initiated or introduced
- intimation (noun): The act of intimating.
- into (preposition): To or towards the inside of.
- intonation (noun): The rise and fall of the voice in speaking.
- ionization (noun): Any process that leads to the dissociation of a neutral atom or molecule into charged particles ions; the state of being ionized.
- iota (noun): The ninth letter of the Greek alphabet.
- mammon (proper noun): Alternative letter-case form of Mammon (wealth, material avarice).
- matzo (noun): Thin, unleavened bread in Jewish cuisine.
- minion (noun): A loyal servant of another, usually a more powerful being.
- moan (noun): a low, mournful cry of pain, sorrow or pleasure
- moat (noun): A deep, wide defensive ditch, normally filled with water, surrounding a fortified habitation.
- momma (noun): mother
- mono (noun): Clipping of mononucleosis.
- monomania (noun): Excessive interest or concentration on a singular object or subject.
- moon (proper noun): Alternative letter-case form of Moon (“the Earth's only permanent natural satellite”).
- moot (adjective): Subject to discussion (originally at a moot); arguable, debatable, unsolved or impossible to solve.
- motion (noun): A state of progression from one place to another.
- motto (noun): A sentence, phrase, or word, forming part of an heraldic achievement.
- nation (noun): A historically constituted, stable community of people, formed based on a common language, territory, economic life, ethnicity and/or psychological make-up manifested in a common culture.
- nomination (noun): An act or instance of nominating.
- noon (noun): The time of day when the sun is in its zenith; twelve o'clock in the day, midday.
- notation (noun): The act, process, method, or an instance of representing by a system or set of marks, signs, figures, or characters.
- notion (noun): Mental apprehension of whatever may be known, thought, or imagined; idea, concept.
- omit (verb): To leave out or exclude.
- onion (noun): A monocotyledonous plant (Allium cepa), allied to garlic, used as vegetable and spice.
- onto (preposition): Upon; on top of.
- ottoman (noun): An upholstered sofa, without arms or a back, sometimes with a compartment for storing linen etc.
- tattoo (noun): An image made in the skin with ink and a needle.
- tomato (noun): A widely cultivated plant, Solanum lycopersicum, having edible fruit.
- tomtit (noun): Alternative spelling of tom-tit
- toon (noun): A cartoon, especially an animated television show.
- toot (noun): The noise of a horn or whistle.
- zoom (noun): A humming noise from something moving very fast.