NYT Spelling Bee Answers for October 17, 2025
Game Summary
| Center Letter | L |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | b, e, i, m, o, z |
| # of Pangrams | 2 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 38 words |
| Total Points | 139 points |
| Genius Level | 97 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B | 7 | 5 | 1 | - | - | - | - | 13 |
| E | - | - | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 2 |
| I | - | - | - | - | 1 | - | 1 | 2 |
| L | 7 | 2 | - | 1 | - | - | - | 10 |
| M | 5 | 1 | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 8 |
| O | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| Z | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | Σ | 21 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 3 | - | 1 | 38 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| B | BE×4 BI×3 BL×2 BO×4 |
|---|---|
| E | EM×2 |
| I | IM×2 |
| L | LI×6 LO×4 |
| M | ME×1 MI×2 MO×5 |
| O | OL×3 |
| Z |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| B | BEL×3 BEZ×1 BIB×1 BIL×2 BLO×2 BOB×1 BOI×1 BOL×2 |
|---|---|
| E | EMB×2 |
| I | IMM×2 |
| L | LIB×2 LIM×4 LOB×2 LOL×1 LOO×1 |
| M | MEL×1 MIL×2 MOB×2 MOI×1 MOL×2 |
| O | OLE×1 OLI×1 OLL×1 |
| Z |
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) |
|---|---|---|
| im........ † | IM10 | To render motionless; to stop moving or stop from moving. |
| mo...... † | MO8 | To make something mobile. |
| be... | BE5 | To lie around; encompass. |
| be.. | BE4 | A percussive instrument made of metal or other hard material, typically but not always in the shape of an inverted cup with a flared rim, which resonates when struck. |
| be... | BE5 | An attractive woman. |
| be... | BE5 | The sloping edge or face on a cutting tool. |
| bi... | BI5 | Alternative letter-case form of Bible (“a specific version, edition, translation, or copy of the Christian religious text”) |
| bi.. | BI4 | A bitter brownish-yellow or greenish-yellow secretion produced by the liver, stored in the gall bladder, and discharged into the duodenum where it aids the process of digestion. |
| bi.. | BI4 | Any of various bladed or pointed hand weapons, originally designating an Anglo-Saxon sword, and later a weapon of infantry, especially in the 14th and 15th centuries, commonly consisting of a broad, heavy, double-edged, hook-shaped blade, with a short pike at the back and another at the top, attached to the end of a long staff. |
| bl.. | BL4 | A shapeless or amorphous mass; a vague shape or amount, especially of a liquid or semisolid substance; a clump, group or collection that lacks definite shape. |
| bl... | BL5 | A blossom; the flower of a plant; an expanded bud. |
| bo.... | BO6 | A furry ball attached on top of a hat. |
| bo.. | BO4 | A localized accumulation of pus in the skin, resulting from infection. |
| bo.. | BO4 | The rounded seed-bearing capsule of a cotton or flax plant. |
| bo.. | BO4 | A long, heavy, single-edged machete. |
| em...... | EM8 | To steal or misappropriate money that one has been trusted with, especially to steal money from the organisation for which one works. |
| em.... | EM6 | A representative symbol, such as a trademark or logo. |
| im...... | IM8 | not mobile, not movable |
| li... | LI5 | A written or pictorial false statement which unjustly seeks to damage someone's reputation. |
| li..... | LI7 | The party against which a libel (hostile handbill) has been filed by a libelant. |
| li.. | LI4 | A major appendage of human or animal, used for locomotion (such as an arm, leg or wing). |
| li... | LI5 | The place where innocent souls exist temporarily until they can enter heaven, notably those of the saints who died before the advent of Christ (limbus patruum) and those of unbaptized but innocent children (limbus infantum). |
| li.. | LI4 | Any inorganic material containing calcium, usually calcium oxide (quicklime) or calcium hydroxide (slaked lime). |
| li.. | LI4 | Clipping of limousine. |
| lo.. | LO4 | Any projection or division, especially one of a somewhat rounded form. |
| lo.. | LO4 | A wolf. |
| lo.. | LO4 | To act lazily or indolently while reclining; to lean; to lie at ease. |
| lo.. | LO4 | A utensil; tool; a weapon; an article in general. |
| me... | ME5 | A battle fought at close range; hand-to-hand combat; brawling. |
| mi.. | MI4 | The international mile: a unit of length precisely equal to 1.609344 kilometers established by treaty among Anglophone nations in 1959, divided into 5,280 feet or 1,760 yards. |
| mi.. | MI4 | A grinding apparatus for substances such as grains, seeds, etc. |
| mo.... | MO6 | Capable of being moved, especially on wheels. |
| mo.. | MO4 | To toil, to work hard. |
| mo.. | MO4 | A pigmented spot on the skin, a naevus, slightly raised, and sometimes hairy. |
| mo.. | MO4 | A female companion of a gangster, especially a former or current prostitute. |
| ol.. | OL4 | A type of energy-absorbing landing gear strut in which sudden compression or extension of the strut causes a gas-filled chamber to push or pull a piston which forces oil through a small orifice, resulting in absorption of energy through viscous effects. |
| ol.. | OL4 | A rich, thick, Spanish stew consisting of meat and vegetables. |
| ol... | OL5 | An aerial maneuver in which one catches air by leaping off the ground with the skateboard and into the air. |
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.
- immobilize† (IM10)
- mobilize† (MO8)
- belie (BE5)
- bell (BE4)
- belle (BE5)
- bezel (BE5)
- bible (BI5)
- bile (BI4)
- bill (BI4)
- blob (BL4)
- bloom (BL5)
- bobble (BO6)
- boil (BO4)
- boll (BO4)
- bolo (BO4)
- embezzle (EM8)
- emblem (EM6)
- immobile (IM8)
- libel (LI5)
- libelee (LI7)
- limb (LI4)
- limbo (LI5)
- lime (LI4)
- limo (LI4)
- lobe (LO4)
- lobo (LO4)
- loll (LO4)
- loom (LO4)
- melee (ME5)
- mile (MI4)
- mill (MI4)
- mobile (MO6)
- moil (MO4)
- mole (MO4)
- moll (MO4)
- oleo (OL4)
- olio (OL4)
- ollie (OL5)
Answer Definitions
- immobilize† (verb): To render motionless; to stop moving or stop from moving.
- mobilize† (verb): To make something mobile.
- belie (verb): To lie around; encompass.
- bell (noun): A percussive instrument made of metal or other hard material, typically but not always in the shape of an inverted cup with a flared rim, which resonates when struck.
- belle (noun): An attractive woman.
- bezel (noun): The sloping edge or face on a cutting tool.
- bible (noun): Alternative letter-case form of Bible (“a specific version, edition, translation, or copy of the Christian religious text”)
- bile (noun): A bitter brownish-yellow or greenish-yellow secretion produced by the liver, stored in the gall bladder, and discharged into the duodenum where it aids the process of digestion.
- bill (noun): Any of various bladed or pointed hand weapons, originally designating an Anglo-Saxon sword, and later a weapon of infantry, especially in the 14th and 15th centuries, commonly consisting of a broad, heavy, double-edged, hook-shaped blade, with a short pike at the back and another at the top, attached to the end of a long staff.
- blob (noun): A shapeless or amorphous mass; a vague shape or amount, especially of a liquid or semisolid substance; a clump, group or collection that lacks definite shape.
- bloom (noun): A blossom; the flower of a plant; an expanded bud.
- bobble (noun): A furry ball attached on top of a hat.
- boil (noun): A localized accumulation of pus in the skin, resulting from infection.
- boll (noun): The rounded seed-bearing capsule of a cotton or flax plant.
- bolo (noun): A long, heavy, single-edged machete.
- embezzle (verb): To steal or misappropriate money that one has been trusted with, especially to steal money from the organisation for which one works.
- emblem (noun): A representative symbol, such as a trademark or logo.
- immobile (adjective): not mobile, not movable
- libel (noun): A written or pictorial false statement which unjustly seeks to damage someone's reputation.
- libelee (noun): The party against which a libel (hostile handbill) has been filed by a libelant.
- limb (noun): A major appendage of human or animal, used for locomotion (such as an arm, leg or wing).
- limbo (noun): The place where innocent souls exist temporarily until they can enter heaven, notably those of the saints who died before the advent of Christ (limbus patruum) and those of unbaptized but innocent children (limbus infantum).
- lime (noun): Any inorganic material containing calcium, usually calcium oxide (quicklime) or calcium hydroxide (slaked lime).
- limo (noun): Clipping of limousine.
- lobe (noun): Any projection or division, especially one of a somewhat rounded form.
- lobo (noun): A wolf.
- loll (verb): To act lazily or indolently while reclining; to lean; to lie at ease.
- loom (noun): A utensil; tool; a weapon; an article in general.
- melee (noun): A battle fought at close range; hand-to-hand combat; brawling.
- mile (noun): The international mile: a unit of length precisely equal to 1.609344 kilometers established by treaty among Anglophone nations in 1959, divided into 5,280 feet or 1,760 yards.
- mill (noun): A grinding apparatus for substances such as grains, seeds, etc.
- mobile (adjective): Capable of being moved, especially on wheels.
- moil (verb): To toil, to work hard.
- mole (noun): A pigmented spot on the skin, a naevus, slightly raised, and sometimes hairy.
- moll (noun): A female companion of a gangster, especially a former or current prostitute.
- oleo (noun): A type of energy-absorbing landing gear strut in which sudden compression or extension of the strut causes a gas-filled chamber to push or pull a piston which forces oil through a small orifice, resulting in absorption of energy through viscous effects.
- olio (noun): A rich, thick, Spanish stew consisting of meat and vegetables.
- ollie (noun): An aerial maneuver in which one catches air by leaping off the ground with the skateboard and into the air.