NYT Spelling Bee Answers for October 3, 2026
Today's NYT Spelling Bee uses center letter I with outer letters A, B, C, H, L, N. The puzzle contains 46 words worth 233 points, including 2 pangrams. The longest word is 12 letters. To reach Genius you need 163 points; Queen Bee requires all 233 points. Today is a bingo — every letter starts at least one word. Compared with the eight-year average of about 183 points per puzzle, this is a larger-than-average day.
Game Summary
| Center Letter | I |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, b, c, h, l, n |
| # of Pangrams | 2 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 46 words |
| Total Points | 233 points |
| Genius Level | 163 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 | 1 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| B | 3 | 1 | - | 1 | 2 | - | - | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| C | 4 | 8 | 3 | - | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | - | 19 |
| H | 2 | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| I | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 |
| L | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7 |
| N | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 | Σ | 14 | 15 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 46 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AB×1 AC×2 AL×1 |
|---|---|
| B | BA×4 BI×3 BL×2 |
| C | CA×2 CH×11 CI×2 CL×4 |
| H | HA×1 HI×2 |
| I | IL×1 IN×1 |
| L | LA×6 LI×1 |
| N | NA×1 NI×1 |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | ABA×1 ACA×2 ALI×1 |
|---|---|
| B | BAC×3 BAI×1 BIB×1 BIL×2 BLI×2 |
| C | CAB×1 CAN×1 CHA×2 CHI×9 CIL×1 CIN×1 CLI×4 |
| H | HAI×1 HIB×1 HIL×1 |
| I | ILI×1 INC×1 |
| L | LAB×2 LAI×3 LAN×1 LIL×1 |
| N | NAI×1 NIA×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) |
|---|---|---|
| ba......... † | BA11 | Any wild, orgiastic party or celebration. |
| ba.......... † | BA12 | Alternative letter-case form of Bacchanalian |
| ab... | AB5 | plural form of an ancient bead calculator. |
| ac.... | AC6 | A shrub or tree of the tribe Acacieae. |
| ac.. | AC4 | Any of several South American palms, of the genus Euterpe, having a dark purple drupe. |
| al... | AL5 | The plea or mode of defense under which a person on trial for a crime proves or attempts to prove being in another place when the alleged act was committed. |
| ba..... | BA7 | plural of bacillus |
| ba.. | BA4 | Security, usually a sum of money, exchanged for the release of an arrested person as a guarantee of that person's appearance for trial. |
| bi...... | BI8 | Of or relating to the Bible. |
| bi...... | BI8 | Articulated with both lips. |
| 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 | To cease (from); to stop; to desist, to let up. |
| bl... | BL5 | A small pancake, of Russian origin, made from buckwheat flour; traditionally served with melted butter, sour cream and caviar or smoked salmon. |
| ca... | CA5 | A small dwelling characteristic of the frontier, especially when built from logs with simple tools and not constructed by professional builders, but by those who meant to live in it. |
| ca...... | CA8 | An organism which eats others of its own species or kind, especially a human who eats human flesh. |
| ch.. | CH4 | A female gypsy. |
| ch... | CH5 | A series of interconnected rings or links usually made of metal. |
| ch.. | CH4 | A Mexican sage grown for its edible seeds, Salvia hispanica. |
| ch.. | CH4 | Elegant, stylish. |
| ch... | CH5 | A Latin-American girl; a Latina. |
| ch.... | CH6 | Affectedly trendy; chic and stylish in a pretentious way. |
| ch... | CH5 | The pungent, spicy fresh or dried fruit of any of several cultivated varieties of capsicum peppers, used in cooking. |
| ch... | CH5 | A moderate, but uncomfortable and penetrating coldness. |
| ch.. | CH4 | The bottom of a face, the typically jutting jawline below the mouth. |
| ch... | CH5 | Synonym of porcelain, a hard white translucent ceramic made from kaolin, now sometimes distinguished in reference to tableware as fine or good china. |
| ch........ | CH10 | Either of two small, crepuscular rodents of the genus Chinchilla, native to the Andes, prized for their very soft fur and often kept as pets. |
| ci... | CI5 | plural of cilium |
| ci... | CI5 | A simple saddle girth used in Mexico. |
| cl.... | CL6 | To clasp; to interlock. |
| cl.... | CL6 | A medical facility, such as a hospital, especially one for the treatment and diagnosis of outpatients. |
| cl...... | CL8 | Dealing with the practical management of patients, in practice at the point of care; as contrasted with other health care venues (see clinical medicine for more explanation). |
| cl....... | CL9 | Any healthcare practitioner working at the point of care, in clinical practice (e.g., physicians in clinical medicine, nurses in nursing practice, or allied health providers in practice). |
| ha.. | HA4 | Balls or pieces of ice falling as precipitation, often in connection with a thunderstorm. |
| hi..... | HI7 | A portable brazier, powered by charcoal, used for cooking. |
| hi.. | HI4 | An elevated landmass smaller than a mountain. |
| il... | IL5 | Relating to the ilium. |
| in.. | IN4 | A unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot, or exactly 2.54 centimetres. |
| la... | LA5 | The folds of tissue at the opening of the vulva, at either side of the vagina. |
| la.... | LA6 | Of or pertaining to the lips or labia. |
| la.. | LA4 | A layperson, as opposed to a member of the clergy. |
| la.... | LA6 | Of or pertaining to a layperson, layman, laywoman, or laypeople (laity). |
| la.. | LA4 | past participle of lie (“to be oriented in a horizontal position, situated”) |
| la... | LA5 | A Hawaiian-style roofed patio. |
| li... | LI5 | A large shrub of the genus Syringa, especially Syringa vulgaris, bearing white, pale-pink, or purple flowers. |
| na.. | NA4 | The thin, horny plate at the ends of fingers and toes on humans and some other animals. |
| ni.... | NI6 | A water-soluble vitamin, a component of vitamin B complex, found in meat, yeast, and dairy products; it is essential to metabolism. |
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.
- bacchanalia† (BA11)
- bacchanalian† (BA12)
- abaci (AB5)
- acacia (AC6)
- acai (AC4)
- alibi (AL5)
- bacilli (BA7)
- bail (BA4)
- biblical (BI8)
- bilabial (BI8)
- bill (BI4)
- blin (BL4)
- blini (BL5)
- cabin (CA5)
- cannibal (CA8)
- chai (CH4)
- chain (CH5)
- chia (CH4)
- chic (CH4)
- chica (CH5)
- chichi (CH6)
- chili (CH5)
- chill (CH5)
- chin (CH4)
- china (CH5)
- chinchilla (CH10)
- cilia (CI5)
- cinch (CI5)
- clinch (CL6)
- clinic (CL6)
- clinical (CL8)
- clinician (CL9)
- hail (HA4)
- hibachi (HI7)
- hill (HI4)
- iliac (IL5)
- inch (IN4)
- labia (LA5)
- labial (LA6)
- laic (LA4)
- laical (LA6)
- lain (LA4)
- lanai (LA5)
- lilac (LI5)
- nail (NA4)
- niacin (NI6)
Answer Definitions
- bacchanalia† (noun): Any wild, orgiastic party or celebration.
- bacchanalian† (adjective): Alternative letter-case form of Bacchanalian
- abaci (noun): plural form of an ancient bead calculator.
- acacia (noun): A shrub or tree of the tribe Acacieae.
- acai (noun): Any of several South American palms, of the genus Euterpe, having a dark purple drupe.
- alibi (noun): The plea or mode of defense under which a person on trial for a crime proves or attempts to prove being in another place when the alleged act was committed.
- bacilli (noun): plural of bacillus
- bail (noun): Security, usually a sum of money, exchanged for the release of an arrested person as a guarantee of that person's appearance for trial.
- biblical (adjective): Of or relating to the Bible.
- bilabial (adjective): Articulated with both lips.
- 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.
- blin (verb): To cease (from); to stop; to desist, to let up.
- blini (noun): A small pancake, of Russian origin, made from buckwheat flour; traditionally served with melted butter, sour cream and caviar or smoked salmon.
- cabin (noun): A small dwelling characteristic of the frontier, especially when built from logs with simple tools and not constructed by professional builders, but by those who meant to live in it.
- cannibal (noun): An organism which eats others of its own species or kind, especially a human who eats human flesh.
- chai (noun): A female gypsy.
- chain (noun): A series of interconnected rings or links usually made of metal.
- chia (noun): A Mexican sage grown for its edible seeds, Salvia hispanica.
- chic (adjective): Elegant, stylish.
- chica (noun): A Latin-American girl; a Latina.
- chichi (adjective): Affectedly trendy; chic and stylish in a pretentious way.
- chili (noun): The pungent, spicy fresh or dried fruit of any of several cultivated varieties of capsicum peppers, used in cooking.
- chill (noun): A moderate, but uncomfortable and penetrating coldness.
- chin (noun): The bottom of a face, the typically jutting jawline below the mouth.
- china (noun): Synonym of porcelain, a hard white translucent ceramic made from kaolin, now sometimes distinguished in reference to tableware as fine or good china.
- chinchilla (noun): Either of two small, crepuscular rodents of the genus Chinchilla, native to the Andes, prized for their very soft fur and often kept as pets.
- cilia (noun): plural of cilium
- cinch (noun): A simple saddle girth used in Mexico.
- clinch (verb): To clasp; to interlock.
- clinic (noun): A medical facility, such as a hospital, especially one for the treatment and diagnosis of outpatients.
- clinical (adjective): Dealing with the practical management of patients, in practice at the point of care; as contrasted with other health care venues (see clinical medicine for more explanation).
- clinician (noun): Any healthcare practitioner working at the point of care, in clinical practice (e.g., physicians in clinical medicine, nurses in nursing practice, or allied health providers in practice).
- hail (noun): Balls or pieces of ice falling as precipitation, often in connection with a thunderstorm.
- hibachi (noun): A portable brazier, powered by charcoal, used for cooking.
- hill (noun): An elevated landmass smaller than a mountain.
- iliac (adjective): Relating to the ilium.
- inch (noun): A unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot, or exactly 2.54 centimetres.
- labia (noun): The folds of tissue at the opening of the vulva, at either side of the vagina.
- labial (adjective): Of or pertaining to the lips or labia.
- laic (noun): A layperson, as opposed to a member of the clergy.
- laical (adjective): Of or pertaining to a layperson, layman, laywoman, or laypeople (laity).
- lain (verb): past participle of lie (“to be oriented in a horizontal position, situated”)
- lanai (noun): A Hawaiian-style roofed patio.
- lilac (noun): A large shrub of the genus Syringa, especially Syringa vulgaris, bearing white, pale-pink, or purple flowers.
- nail (noun): The thin, horny plate at the ends of fingers and toes on humans and some other animals.
- niacin (noun): A water-soluble vitamin, a component of vitamin B complex, found in meat, yeast, and dairy products; it is essential to metabolism.