NYT Spelling Bee Answers for July 20, 2026
Game Summary
| Center Letter | I |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | h, l, m, n, o, t |
| # of Pangrams | 2 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 38 words |
| Total Points | 136 points |
| Genius Level | 95 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| I | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| L | 6 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | 9 |
| M | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| N | - | 1 | 1 | - | - | 1 | 3 |
| O | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| T | 5 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | 7 | Σ | 22 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 38 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| H | HI×3 |
|---|---|
| I | IN×1 |
| L | LI×7 LO×2 |
| M | MI×8 MO×4 |
| N | NI×1 NO×2 |
| O | OL×1 OM×1 ON×1 |
| T | TH×1 TI×4 TO×2 |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| H | HIL×2 HIN×1 |
|---|---|
| I | INT×1 |
| L | LIL×1 LIM×3 LIN×1 LIO×1 LIT×1 LOI×1 LOT×1 |
| M | MIL×3 MIN×4 MIT×1 MOI×1 MON×1 MOO×1 MOT×1 |
| N | NIN×1 NON×1 NOT×1 |
| O | OLI×1 OMI×1 ONI×1 |
| T | THI×1 TIL×3 TIN×1 TOI×1 TOM×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) |
|---|---|---|
| mi....... † | MI9 | The ordinal form of the number one million. |
| mo...... † | MO8 | A large, single block of stone which is a natural feature; or a block of stone or other similar material used in architecture and sculpture, especially one carved into a monument in ancient times. |
| hi.. | HI4 | An elevated landmass smaller than a mountain. |
| hi.. | HI4 | The handle of a sword, consisting of grip, guard, and pommel, designed to facilitate use of the blade and afford protection to the hand. |
| hi.. | HI4 | A clue. |
| in.. | IN4 | To or towards the inside of. |
| li.. | LI4 | To do something rhythmically, with animation and quickness, usually of music. |
| li... | LI5 | A restriction; a bound beyond which one may not go. |
| li.. | LI4 | To draw or paint; to delineate. |
| li.. | LI4 | Clipping of limousine. |
| li.. | LI4 | Clinging fuzzy fluff that clings to fabric or accumulates in one's pockets or navel etc. |
| li.. | LI4 | A big cat, Panthera leo, native to Africa, India and formerly much of Europe. |
| li... | LI5 | Clipping of lithographic. |
| lo.. | LO4 | The part of the body (of humans and quadrupeds) at each side of the backbone, between the ribs and hips |
| lo.... | LO6 | A low- to medium-viscosity topical preparation intended for application to unbroken skin. |
| mi.. | MI4 | A grinding apparatus for substances such as grains, seeds, etc. |
| mi..... | MI7 | The cardinal number 1,000,000: 10; a thousand thousand. |
| mi.. | MI4 | Miniature, tiny, small. |
| mi... | MI5 | A half note, drawn as a semibreve with a stem. |
| mi.... | MI6 | A loyal servant of another, usually a more powerful being. |
| mi.. | MI4 | A building or institution where money (originally, only coins) is produced under government licence. |
| mi.. | MI4 | A mitten |
| mo.. | MO4 | To toil, to work hard. |
| mo..... | MO7 | Lit by moonlight. |
| mo.... | MO6 | A state of progression from one place to another. |
| ni... | NI5 | The ordinal form of the number nine. |
| no....... | NO9 | 10. |
| no.... | NO6 | Mental apprehension of whatever may be known, thought, or imagined; idea, concept. |
| ol.. | OL4 | A rich, thick, Spanish stew consisting of meat and vegetables. |
| om.. | OM4 | To leave out or exclude. |
| on... | ON5 | A monocotyledonous plant (Allium cepa), allied to garlic, used as vegetable and spice. |
| th.. | TH4 | Having little thickness or extent from one surface to its opposite. |
| ti.. | TI4 | Until; to, up to; as late as (a given time). |
| ti.. | TI4 | To slope or incline (something); to slant. |
| ti... | TI5 | Agricultural labour; husbandry. |
| ti.. | TI4 | A slight coloring. |
| to.. | TO4 | Labour, work, especially of a grueling nature. |
| to.... | TO6 | Alternative spelling of tom-tit |
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.
- millionth† (MI9)
- monolith† (MO8)
- hill (HI4)
- hilt (HI4)
- hint (HI4)
- into (IN4)
- lilt (LI4)
- limit (LI5)
- limn (LI4)
- limo (LI4)
- lint (LI4)
- lion (LI4)
- litho (LI5)
- loin (LO4)
- lotion (LO6)
- mill (MI4)
- million (MI7)
- mini (MI4)
- minim (MI5)
- minion (MI6)
- mint (MI4)
- mitt (MI4)
- moil (MO4)
- moonlit (MO7)
- motion (MO6)
- ninth (NI5)
- nonillion (NO9)
- notion (NO6)
- olio (OL4)
- omit (OM4)
- onion (ON5)
- thin (TH4)
- till (TI4)
- tilt (TI4)
- tilth (TI5)
- tint (TI4)
- toil (TO4)
- tomtit (TO6)
Answer Definitions
- millionth† (adjective): The ordinal form of the number one million.
- monolith† (noun): A large, single block of stone which is a natural feature; or a block of stone or other similar material used in architecture and sculpture, especially one carved into a monument in ancient times.
- hill (noun): An elevated landmass smaller than a mountain.
- hilt (noun): The handle of a sword, consisting of grip, guard, and pommel, designed to facilitate use of the blade and afford protection to the hand.
- hint (noun): A clue.
- into (preposition): To or towards the inside of.
- lilt (verb): To do something rhythmically, with animation and quickness, usually of music.
- limit (noun): A restriction; a bound beyond which one may not go.
- limn (verb): To draw or paint; to delineate.
- limo (noun): Clipping of limousine.
- lint (noun): Clinging fuzzy fluff that clings to fabric or accumulates in one's pockets or navel etc.
- lion (noun): A big cat, Panthera leo, native to Africa, India and formerly much of Europe.
- litho (adjective): Clipping of lithographic.
- loin (noun): The part of the body (of humans and quadrupeds) at each side of the backbone, between the ribs and hips
- lotion (noun): A low- to medium-viscosity topical preparation intended for application to unbroken skin.
- mill (noun): A grinding apparatus for substances such as grains, seeds, etc.
- million (numeral): The cardinal number 1,000,000: 10; a thousand thousand.
- mini (adjective): Miniature, tiny, small.
- minim (noun): A half note, drawn as a semibreve with a stem.
- minion (noun): A loyal servant of another, usually a more powerful being.
- mint (noun): A building or institution where money (originally, only coins) is produced under government licence.
- mitt (noun): A mitten
- moil (verb): To toil, to work hard.
- moonlit (adjective): Lit by moonlight.
- motion (noun): A state of progression from one place to another.
- ninth (adjective): The ordinal form of the number nine.
- nonillion (numeral): 10.
- notion (noun): Mental apprehension of whatever may be known, thought, or imagined; idea, concept.
- olio (noun): A rich, thick, Spanish stew consisting of meat and vegetables.
- omit (verb): To leave out or exclude.
- onion (noun): A monocotyledonous plant (Allium cepa), allied to garlic, used as vegetable and spice.
- thin (adjective): Having little thickness or extent from one surface to its opposite.
- till (preposition): Until; to, up to; as late as (a given time).
- tilt (verb): To slope or incline (something); to slant.
- tilth (noun): Agricultural labour; husbandry.
- tint (noun): A slight coloring.
- toil (noun): Labour, work, especially of a grueling nature.
- tomtit (noun): Alternative spelling of tom-tit