NYT Spelling Bee Answers for October 16, 2025
Game Summary
| Center Letter | T |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, e, l, n, u, x |
| # of Pangrams | 1 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 66 words |
| Total Points | 316 points |
| Genius Level | 221 points |
| Bingo? | No |
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 | Σ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 2 | - | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | 7 |
| E | - | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | 10 |
| L | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | 12 |
| N | 2 | 1 | 3 | - | - | - | - | 6 |
| T | 13 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 2 | - | 1 | 27 |
| U | - | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | 4 |
| X | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | Σ | 20 | 15 | 16 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 66 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AN×4 AT×2 AU×1 |
|---|---|
| E | EA×1 EL×1 EN×1 EX×7 |
| L | LA×6 LE×2 LU×4 |
| N | NA×2 NE×4 |
| T | TA×9 TE×12 TU×6 |
| U | UL×1 UN×3 |
| X |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | ANT×4 ATT×2 AUN×1 |
|---|---|
| E | EAT×1 ELA×1 ENT×1 EXA×1 EXE×1 EXT×3 EXU×2 |
| L | LAN×1 LAT×5 LEA×1 LEN×1 LUN×2 LUT×2 |
| N | NAT×2 NEA×2 NET×1 NEX×1 |
| T | TAL×3 TAT×2 TAU×3 TAX×1 TEA×2 TEE×1 TEL×4 TEN×3 TEX×2 TUL×1 TUN×3 TUT×2 |
| U | ULU×1 UNE×1 UNL×1 UNT×1 |
| X |
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) |
|---|---|---|
| ex...... † | EX8 | Very happy, especially at someone else's defeat or failure. |
| an.. | AN4 | A price or cost, as in up the ante. |
| an....... | AN9 | occurring or existing before birth |
| an..... | AN7 | A feeler organ on the head of an insect, crab, or other animal. |
| an...... | AN8 | plural of antenna |
| at....... | AT9 | To reduce in size, force, value, amount, or degree. |
| at.... | AT6 | To bring into musical accord. |
| au.. | AU4 | The sister or sister-in-law of one’s parent. |
| ea... | EA5 | past participle of eat |
| el... | EL5 | To make joyful or proud. |
| en..... | EN7 | An informal alliance or friendly understanding between two states. |
| ex... | EX5 | To honor; to hold in high esteem; to praise or worship. |
| ex.... | EX6 | A stage direction for more than one actor to leave the stage. |
| ex.... | EX6 | Still in existence; not having disappeared. |
| ex.... | EX6 | A range of values or locations. |
| ex....... | EX9 | Of a person: emaciated, wasted, weakened; of the body or part of it: atrophied, shrunken, withered. |
| ex... | EX5 | To rejoice; to be very happy, especially in triumph. |
| la..... | LA7 | Any member of the genus Lantana of perennial verbenas with aromatic flower clusters. |
| la.. | LA4 | Near the end of a period of time. |
| la... | LA5 | To grow late; become later. |
| la.... | LA6 | Existing or present but concealed or inactive. |
| la... | LA5 | A clear liquid believed to be a component of a humour or other bodily fluid (esp. plasma and lymph). |
| la... | LA5 | A drink of coffee made from espresso and steamed milk, generally topped with foam. |
| le... | LE5 | simple past tense and past participle of lean |
| le.. | LE4 | Alternative letter-case form of Lent |
| lu.... | LU6 | Shaped like a crescent. |
| lu..... | LU7 | A small opening in a vaulted roof of a circular or crescent shape. |
| lu.. | LU4 | A fretted stringed instrument of European origin, similar to the guitar, having a bowl-shaped body or soundbox; any of a wide variety of chordophones with a pear-shaped body and a neck whose upper surface is in the same plane as the soundboard, with strings along the neck and parallel to the soundboard. |
| lu.... | LU6 | Of or pertaining to the corpus luteum |
| na... | NA5 | Of or relating to birth. |
| na.... | NA6 | floating or swimming (in water) |
| ne.. | NE4 | Clean, tidy; free from dirt or impurities. |
| ne.... | NE6 | To make (someone or something) neat; to arrange (people or things) in an orderly, tidy way; to tidy. |
| ne.... | NE6 | Any plant whose foliage is covered with stinging, mildly poisonous hairs, causing an instant rash. Especially, most species of herb genus Urtica, the stinging nettles: Most, but not all, subspecies of Urtica dioica (common nettle), Urtica incisa (Australian nettle); Wood nettle (Laportea canadensis); Bull nettles and spurge nettles of genus Cnidoscolus: Cnidoscolus stimulosus, bull nettle, spurge nettle, Cnidoscolus texanus, Texas bull nettle, Cnidoscolus urens, bull nettle, Nettle trees or tree nettles: Various species of the genus Dendrocnide: Urera baccifera (scratchbush), Urtica ferox (tree nettle); rock nettle (Eucnide); small-leaved nettle (Dendrocnide photinophylla). |
| ne.. | NE4 | Nearest in place or position, having nothing similar intervening; adjoining. |
| ta.. | TA4 | An account of an asserted fact or circumstance; a rumour; a report, especially an idle or malicious story; a piece of gossip or slander; a lie. |
| ta.... | TA6 | A marked natural ability or skill. |
| ta.. | TA4 | Having a vertical extent greater than the average. For example, somebody with a height of over 6 feet would generally be considered to be tall. |
| ta.... | TA6 | To chatter; to gossip. |
| ta........ | TA10 | telltale; giveaway |
| ta... | TA5 | to make fun of (someone); to goad (a person) into responding, often in an aggressive manner. |
| ta.. | TA4 | Under tension, like a stretched bowstring, rope, or sail; tight. |
| ta.... | TA6 | To make taut; to taut. |
| ta.. | TA4 | plural of taxon |
| te.. | TE4 | Any of various small freshwater ducks of the genus Anas that are brightly coloured and have short necks. |
| te.. | TE4 | The projection of a mammary gland from which, on female mammals, milk is secreted. |
| te.. | TE4 | Synonym of teenager: a person between 13 and 19 years old. |
| te...... | TE8 | Alternative form of Teletext |
| te... | TE5 | A network of teletypes. |
| te.. | TE4 | To count, reckon, or enumerate. |
| te...... | TE8 | One who divulges private information with intent to hurt others. |
| te.... | TE6 | One who holds a lease (a tenancy). |
| te... | TE5 | An opinion, belief, or principle that is held as absolute truth by someone or especially an organization. |
| te.. | TE4 | A pavilion or portable lodge consisting of skins, canvas, or some strong cloth, stretched and sustained by poles, used for sheltering people from the weather. |
| te.. | TE4 | A writing consisting of multiple glyphs, characters, symbols or sentences. |
| te..... | TE7 | Of or pertaining to text. Of or pertaining to textuality. Of or pertaining to text as opposed to other document elements. |
| tu... | TU5 | A kind of silk lace or light netting, used for clothing, veils, etc. |
| tu.. | TU4 | Any of several species of fish of the genus Thunnus in the family Scombridae. |
| tu.. | TU4 | A melody. |
| tu.... | TU6 | An underground or underwater passage. |
| tu... | TU5 | A student of a tutor. |
| tu.. | TU4 | A ballet skirt made of layered stiff but light netting. |
| ul..... | UL7 | to howl loudly or prolongedly in lamentation or joy |
| un..... | UN7 | Not eaten |
| un... | UN5 | Not let (not in temporary possession in return for rent) |
| un.... | UN6 | To cause (something) to be out of tune; to make incapable of harmony, or of harmonious action. |
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.
- exultant† (EX8)
- ante (AN4)
- antenatal (AN9)
- antenna (AN7)
- antennae (AN8)
- attenuate (AT9)
- attune (AT6)
- aunt (AU4)
- eaten (EA5)
- elate (EL5)
- entente (EN7)
- exalt (EX5)
- exeunt (EX6)
- extant (EX6)
- extent (EX6)
- extenuate (EX9)
- exult (EX5)
- lantana (LA7)
- late (LA4)
- laten (LA5)
- latent (LA6)
- latex (LA5)
- latte (LA5)
- leant (LE5)
- lent (LE4)
- lunate (LU6)
- lunette (LU7)
- lute (LU4)
- luteal (LU6)
- natal (NA5)
- natant (NA6)
- neat (NE4)
- neaten (NE6)
- nettle (NE6)
- next (NE4)
- tale (TA4)
- talent (TA6)
- tall (TA4)
- tattle (TA6)
- tattletale (TA10)
- taunt (TA5)
- taut (TA4)
- tauten (TA6)
- taxa (TA4)
- teal (TE4)
- teat (TE4)
- teen (TE4)
- teletext (TE8)
- telex (TE5)
- tell (TE4)
- telltale (TE8)
- tenant (TE6)
- tenet (TE5)
- tent (TE4)
- text (TE4)
- textual (TE7)
- tulle (TU5)
- tuna (TU4)
- tune (TU4)
- tunnel (TU6)
- tutee (TU5)
- tutu (TU4)
- ululate (UL7)
- uneaten (UN7)
- unlet (UN5)
- untune (UN6)
Answer Definitions
- exultant† (adjective): Very happy, especially at someone else's defeat or failure.
- ante (noun): A price or cost, as in up the ante.
- antenatal (adjective): occurring or existing before birth
- antenna (noun): A feeler organ on the head of an insect, crab, or other animal.
- antennae (noun): plural of antenna
- attenuate (verb): To reduce in size, force, value, amount, or degree.
- attune (verb): To bring into musical accord.
- aunt (noun): The sister or sister-in-law of one’s parent.
- eaten (verb): past participle of eat
- elate (verb): To make joyful or proud.
- entente (noun): An informal alliance or friendly understanding between two states.
- exalt (verb): To honor; to hold in high esteem; to praise or worship.
- exeunt (noun): A stage direction for more than one actor to leave the stage.
- extant (adjective): Still in existence; not having disappeared.
- extent (noun): A range of values or locations.
- extenuate (adjective): Of a person: emaciated, wasted, weakened; of the body or part of it: atrophied, shrunken, withered.
- exult (verb): To rejoice; to be very happy, especially in triumph.
- lantana (noun): Any member of the genus Lantana of perennial verbenas with aromatic flower clusters.
- late (adjective): Near the end of a period of time.
- laten (verb): To grow late; become later.
- latent (adjective): Existing or present but concealed or inactive.
- latex (noun): A clear liquid believed to be a component of a humour or other bodily fluid (esp. plasma and lymph).
- latte (noun): A drink of coffee made from espresso and steamed milk, generally topped with foam.
- leant (verb): simple past tense and past participle of lean
- lent (noun): Alternative letter-case form of Lent
- lunate (adjective): Shaped like a crescent.
- lunette (noun): A small opening in a vaulted roof of a circular or crescent shape.
- lute (noun): A fretted stringed instrument of European origin, similar to the guitar, having a bowl-shaped body or soundbox; any of a wide variety of chordophones with a pear-shaped body and a neck whose upper surface is in the same plane as the soundboard, with strings along the neck and parallel to the soundboard.
- luteal (adjective): Of or pertaining to the corpus luteum
- natal (adjective): Of or relating to birth.
- natant (adjective): floating or swimming (in water)
- neat (adjective): Clean, tidy; free from dirt or impurities.
- neaten (verb): To make (someone or something) neat; to arrange (people or things) in an orderly, tidy way; to tidy.
- nettle (noun): Any plant whose foliage is covered with stinging, mildly poisonous hairs, causing an instant rash. Especially, most species of herb genus Urtica, the stinging nettles: Most, but not all, subspecies of Urtica dioica (common nettle), Urtica incisa (Australian nettle); Wood nettle (Laportea canadensis); Bull nettles and spurge nettles of genus Cnidoscolus: Cnidoscolus stimulosus, bull nettle, spurge nettle, Cnidoscolus texanus, Texas bull nettle, Cnidoscolus urens, bull nettle, Nettle trees or tree nettles: Various species of the genus Dendrocnide: Urera baccifera (scratchbush), Urtica ferox (tree nettle); rock nettle (Eucnide); small-leaved nettle (Dendrocnide photinophylla).
- next (adjective): Nearest in place or position, having nothing similar intervening; adjoining.
- tale (noun): An account of an asserted fact or circumstance; a rumour; a report, especially an idle or malicious story; a piece of gossip or slander; a lie.
- talent (noun): A marked natural ability or skill.
- tall (adjective): Having a vertical extent greater than the average. For example, somebody with a height of over 6 feet would generally be considered to be tall.
- tattle (verb): To chatter; to gossip.
- tattletale (adjective): telltale; giveaway
- taunt (verb): to make fun of (someone); to goad (a person) into responding, often in an aggressive manner.
- taut (adjective): Under tension, like a stretched bowstring, rope, or sail; tight.
- tauten (verb): To make taut; to taut.
- taxa (noun): plural of taxon
- teal (noun): Any of various small freshwater ducks of the genus Anas that are brightly coloured and have short necks.
- teat (noun): The projection of a mammary gland from which, on female mammals, milk is secreted.
- teen (noun): Synonym of teenager: a person between 13 and 19 years old.
- teletext (noun): Alternative form of Teletext
- telex (noun): A network of teletypes.
- tell (verb): To count, reckon, or enumerate.
- telltale (noun): One who divulges private information with intent to hurt others.
- tenant (noun): One who holds a lease (a tenancy).
- tenet (noun): An opinion, belief, or principle that is held as absolute truth by someone or especially an organization.
- tent (noun): A pavilion or portable lodge consisting of skins, canvas, or some strong cloth, stretched and sustained by poles, used for sheltering people from the weather.
- text (noun): A writing consisting of multiple glyphs, characters, symbols or sentences.
- textual (adjective): Of or pertaining to text. Of or pertaining to textuality. Of or pertaining to text as opposed to other document elements.
- tulle (noun): A kind of silk lace or light netting, used for clothing, veils, etc.
- tuna (noun): Any of several species of fish of the genus Thunnus in the family Scombridae.
- tune (noun): A melody.
- tunnel (noun): An underground or underwater passage.
- tutee (noun): A student of a tutor.
- tutu (noun): A ballet skirt made of layered stiff but light netting.
- ululate (verb): to howl loudly or prolongedly in lamentation or joy
- uneaten (adjective): Not eaten
- unlet (adjective): Not let (not in temporary possession in return for rent)
- untune (verb): To cause (something) to be out of tune; to make incapable of harmony, or of harmonious action.