NYT Spelling Bee Answers for December 5, 2025
Game Summary
| Center Letter | E |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, b, c, i, m, n |
| # of Pangrams | 2 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 50 words |
| Total Points | 205 points |
| Genius Level | 144 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 | Σ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 3 | 2 | 4 | - | 2 | - | 11 |
| B | 5 | - | 2 | 1 | - | - | 8 |
| C | 2 | - | 3 | - | - | - | 5 |
| E | - | 2 | - | - | 1 | - | 3 |
| I | - | 2 | 3 | - | - | 1 | 6 |
| M | 8 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | 12 |
| N | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | - | 5 | Σ | 22 | 9 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 50 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AC×2 AM×6 AN×3 |
|---|---|
| B | BA×2 BE×5 BI×1 |
| C | CA×4 CI×1 |
| E | EM×2 EN×1 |
| I | IC×2 IM×2 IN×2 |
| M | MA×2 ME×5 MI×5 |
| N | NA×1 NE×1 NI×3 |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | ACM×1 ACN×1 AMB×2 AME×4 ANE×2 ANI×1 |
|---|---|
| B | BAB×1 BAN×1 BEA×3 BEC×1 BEE×1 BIE×1 |
| C | CAB×1 CAM×1 CAN×2 CIN×1 |
| E | EMC×1 EMI×1 ENE×1 |
| I | ICE×2 IMB×1 IMM×1 INA×1 INN×1 |
| M | MAC×1 MAN×1 MEA×2 MEC×1 MEM×1 MEN×1 MIC×1 MIE×1 MIM×1 MIN×2 |
| N | NAM×1 NEN×1 NIC×1 NIE×1 NIN×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) |
|---|---|---|
| am...... † | AM8 | A particular mood or atmosphere of an environment or surrounding influence. |
| am...... † | AM8 | Alternative spelling of ambiance |
| ac.. | AC4 | A high point: the highest point of any range, the most developed stage of any process, or the culmination of any field or historical period. |
| ac.. | AC4 | A skin condition, usually of the face, that is common in adolescents. It is characterised by red pimples, and is caused by the inflammation of sebaceous glands through bacterial infection. |
| am... | AM5 | Alternative form of amoeba |
| am.... | AM6 | plural of ameba, a variant of amoeba. |
| am.... | AM6 | Alternative form of amoebic |
| am.. | AM4 | At the end of religious prayers: so be it. |
| an.... | AN6 | A medical condition in which the capacity of the blood to transport oxygen to the tissues is reduced, either because of too few red blood cells, or because of too little hemoglobin, resulting in pallor and fatigue. |
| an.... | AN6 | Of, pertaining to, or suffering from anemia. |
| an... | AN5 | An artistic style originating in, and associated with, Japanese animation, and that has also been adopted by a comparatively low number of animated works from other countries. |
| ba.. | BA4 | A baby or infant; a very young human or animal. |
| ba.. | BA4 | A cause of misery or death. |
| be.. | BE4 | Any large piece of timber or iron long in proportion to its thickness, and prepared for use. |
| be.. | BE4 | Any plant of several genera of the taxonomic family Fabaceae that produces large edible seeds or edible seedpods. |
| be.... | BE6 | A cap that fits the head closely, usually knitted from wool. |
| be.... | BE6 | simple past tense of become |
| be.. | BE4 | past participle of be. |
| bi..... | BI7 | plural of biennium |
| ca.... | CA6 | A cabdriver, someone who drives a taxi. |
| ca.. | CA4 | simple past tense of come |
| ca.. | CA4 | A plant with simple stems, like bamboo or sugar cane, or the stem thereof The slender, flexible main stem of a plant such as bamboo, including many species in the grass family Gramineae |
| ca.... | CA6 | Of, or pertaining to, a dog or dogs. |
| ci.... | CI6 | A movie theatre, a movie house |
| em... | EM5 | Alternative form of MC in its senses as Master of ceremonies. A rapper. |
| em...... | EM8 | Someone of high rank, reputation or social status. |
| en... | EN5 | An injection of fluid into the large intestine by way of the rectum, usually for medical purposes. |
| ic.... | IC6 | A person who trades in ice; a person employed to deliver block ice. |
| ic.... | IC6 | plural of iceman |
| im.... | IM6 | To drink (used frequently of alcoholic beverages). |
| im....... | IM9 | The state or condition of being about to happen; imminent quality. |
| in... | IN5 | Lacking sense or meaning (often to the point of boredom or annoyance) |
| in... | IN5 | A navel that is formed of a hollow in the abdomen (as opposed to one that protrudes from the abdomen). |
| ma.. | MA4 | A heavy fighting club. |
| ma.. | MA4 | Longer hair growth on back of neck of an animal, especially a horse or lion |
| me.. | ME4 | To intend. To intend, to plan (to do); to have as one's intention. |
| me.... | ME6 | A mean (unkind or miserly) person; a killjoy. |
| me... | ME5 | Alternative form of Mecca; a place to which a group of people (for example shoppers) are drawn. |
| me.. | ME4 | Any unit of cultural information, such as a practice or idea, that is transmitted verbally or by repeated action from one mind to another in a comparable way to the transmission of genes. |
| me.... | ME6 | A perceived threat or danger. |
| mi.. | MI4 | plural of mouse |
| mi.. | MI4 | Demeanor; facial expression or attitude, especially one which is intended by its bearer. |
| mi.. | MI4 | A form of acting without words; pantomime. |
| mi... | MI5 | Finely chopped meat; minced meat. |
| mi.. | MI4 | That which belongs to me. Used predicatively. |
| na.. | NA4 | Any nounal word or phrase which indicates a particular person, place, class, or thing. |
| ne.. | NE4 | The Hawaiian goose, Branta sandvicensis, which was designated the state bird of Hawaii in 1957. |
| ni.. | NI4 | Pleasant, satisfactory. |
| ni... | NI5 | A daughter of one’s sibling, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law; either the daughter of one's brother ("fraternal niece"), or of one's sister ("sororal niece"). |
| ni.. | NI4 | NATO & ICAO phonetic alphabet code for the numeral 9. |
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.
- ambiance† (AM8)
- ambience† (AM8)
- acme (AC4)
- acne (AC4)
- ameba (AM5)
- amebae (AM6)
- amebic (AM6)
- amen (AM4)
- anemia (AN6)
- anemic (AN6)
- anime (AN5)
- babe (BA4)
- bane (BA4)
- beam (BE4)
- bean (BE4)
- beanie (BE6)
- became (BE6)
- been (BE4)
- biennia (BI7)
- cabbie (CA6)
- came (CA4)
- cane (CA4)
- canine (CA6)
- cinema (CI6)
- emcee (EM5)
- eminence (EM8)
- enema (EN5)
- iceman (IC6)
- icemen (IC6)
- imbibe (IM6)
- imminence (IM9)
- inane (IN5)
- innie (IN5)
- mace (MA4)
- mane (MA4)
- mean (ME4)
- meanie (ME6)
- mecca (ME5)
- meme (ME4)
- menace (ME6)
- mice (MI4)
- mien (MI4)
- mime (MI4)
- mince (MI5)
- mine (MI4)
- name (NA4)
- nene (NE4)
- nice (NI4)
- niece (NI5)
- nine (NI4)
Answer Definitions
- ambiance† (noun): A particular mood or atmosphere of an environment or surrounding influence.
- ambience† (noun): Alternative spelling of ambiance
- acme (noun): A high point: the highest point of any range, the most developed stage of any process, or the culmination of any field or historical period.
- acne (noun): A skin condition, usually of the face, that is common in adolescents. It is characterised by red pimples, and is caused by the inflammation of sebaceous glands through bacterial infection.
- ameba (noun): Alternative form of amoeba
- amebae (noun): plural of ameba, a variant of amoeba.
- amebic (adjective): Alternative form of amoebic
- amen (adverb): At the end of religious prayers: so be it.
- anemia (noun): A medical condition in which the capacity of the blood to transport oxygen to the tissues is reduced, either because of too few red blood cells, or because of too little hemoglobin, resulting in pallor and fatigue.
- anemic (adjective): Of, pertaining to, or suffering from anemia.
- anime (noun): An artistic style originating in, and associated with, Japanese animation, and that has also been adopted by a comparatively low number of animated works from other countries.
- babe (noun): A baby or infant; a very young human or animal.
- bane (noun): A cause of misery or death.
- beam (noun): Any large piece of timber or iron long in proportion to its thickness, and prepared for use.
- bean (noun): Any plant of several genera of the taxonomic family Fabaceae that produces large edible seeds or edible seedpods.
- beanie (noun): A cap that fits the head closely, usually knitted from wool.
- became (verb): simple past tense of become
- been (verb): past participle of be.
- biennia (noun): plural of biennium
- cabbie (noun): A cabdriver, someone who drives a taxi.
- came (verb): simple past tense of come
- cane (noun): A plant with simple stems, like bamboo or sugar cane, or the stem thereof The slender, flexible main stem of a plant such as bamboo, including many species in the grass family Gramineae
- canine (adjective): Of, or pertaining to, a dog or dogs.
- cinema (noun): A movie theatre, a movie house
- emcee (noun): Alternative form of MC in its senses as Master of ceremonies. A rapper.
- eminence (noun): Someone of high rank, reputation or social status.
- enema (noun): An injection of fluid into the large intestine by way of the rectum, usually for medical purposes.
- iceman (noun): A person who trades in ice; a person employed to deliver block ice.
- icemen (noun): plural of iceman
- imbibe (verb): To drink (used frequently of alcoholic beverages).
- imminence (noun): The state or condition of being about to happen; imminent quality.
- inane (adjective): Lacking sense or meaning (often to the point of boredom or annoyance)
- innie (noun): A navel that is formed of a hollow in the abdomen (as opposed to one that protrudes from the abdomen).
- mace (noun): A heavy fighting club.
- mane (noun): Longer hair growth on back of neck of an animal, especially a horse or lion
- mean (verb): To intend. To intend, to plan (to do); to have as one's intention.
- meanie (noun): A mean (unkind or miserly) person; a killjoy.
- mecca (noun): Alternative form of Mecca; a place to which a group of people (for example shoppers) are drawn.
- meme (noun): Any unit of cultural information, such as a practice or idea, that is transmitted verbally or by repeated action from one mind to another in a comparable way to the transmission of genes.
- menace (noun): A perceived threat or danger.
- mice (noun): plural of mouse
- mien (noun): Demeanor; facial expression or attitude, especially one which is intended by its bearer.
- mime (noun): A form of acting without words; pantomime.
- mince (noun): Finely chopped meat; minced meat.
- mine (pronoun): That which belongs to me. Used predicatively.
- name (noun): Any nounal word or phrase which indicates a particular person, place, class, or thing.
- nene (noun): The Hawaiian goose, Branta sandvicensis, which was designated the state bird of Hawaii in 1957.
- nice (adjective): Pleasant, satisfactory.
- niece (noun): A daughter of one’s sibling, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law; either the daughter of one's brother ("fraternal niece"), or of one's sister ("sororal niece").
- nine (numeral): NATO & ICAO phonetic alphabet code for the numeral 9.