Thursday, August 20, 2026

Answers to yesterday's Bee

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The official answers for today's puzzle are:

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Number of Pangrams: 1

Maximum Puzzle Score: 262

Number of Answers: 47

Points Needed for Genius: 183

Genius requires between 24 and 39 words. You need at least an 8-letter word to reach genius. If you don't get the pangram, you need 74% of the total points to reach genius. If you get the pangram, you only need 68% of the remaining points to reach genius.

Other days with this pangram:

The button below will reveal a chart with the number of words by each letter. Red bars indicate that there is a pangram(s) starting with that letter.


How does this puzzle compare to other puzzles?

Today's score of 262 was in the 85th percentile of all puzzles.
The last time there was a score this high was on August 14, 2026.
The highest score ever was 537 on January 22, 2021.
The lowest score ever was 47 on March 27, 2023.

This puzzle's 47 possible answers rank it in the 67th percentile of all puzzles.
The last time there were more answers than this was on August 16, 2026.
The highest number of answers was 81 on June 08, 2019.
The lowest number of answers was 16 on March 27, 2023.

It takes an 8-letter word for genius.
The last time this happened was on August 14, 2026.

Today's puzzle has an average word length of 6.2.
For all Bees, the average word length has been 5.3.



Haven't I seen these letters before?

Hover over a letter to see its first and most recent appearance in the Bee!



Haven't I seen these words before?

The most common words in the Bee are:

  • noon 248
  • loll 228
  • toot 221
  • nana 207
  • naan 207
  • tilt 160
  • till 160
  • nene 160
  • mamma 160
  • mama 160
  • lilt 160
  • tint 157
  • onion 153
  • acai 150
  • acacia 150
  • toon 148
  • onto 148
  • olio 140
  • anon 139
  • anal 139
  • tact 130
  • dodo 130
  • papa 129
  • baba 129
  • mitt 128
  • lulu 126
  • lull 126
  • loon 124
  • poop 122
  • calla 122
  • call 122
  • booboo 122
  • boob 122
  • cocci 121
  • tartar 119
  • tart 119
  • ratatat 119
  • moon 119
  • mono 119
  • tattoo 118
  • attar 118
  • tutu 116
  • cancan 115
  • momma 114
  • aria 114
  • ammo 114
  • ally 114
  • allay 114
  • meme 113
  • roar 112


How long are words in the Bee?

There have been 122,057 answers ever accepted in the Bee - with 11,120 unique words.
Below are the distributions of the lengths of these words.



Valid dictionary words not in today's official answers

You may be wondering why these words aren't here*:

  • gigot
  • gittin
  • gitting
  • guitguit
  • ingoting
  • inti
  • niton
  • nutting
  • otto
  • outquoting
  • quintin
  • quoit
  • quoiting
  • tignon
  • tigon
  • ting
  • tining
  • titi
  • toit
  • toiting
  • totting
  • touton
  • tung
  • tunning
  • ungot
  • unquoting

*Because the New York Times considers them obscure or offensive.

gout

Etymology 1

noun
  1. An extremely painful inflammation of joints, especially of the big toe, caused by a metabolic defect resulting in the accumulation of uric acid in the blood and the deposition of urates around the joints.
  2. (usually followed by of) A spurt or splotch.
  3. A disease of wheat and cornstalks, caused by insect larvae.
verb
  1. To spurt.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. Taste; relish

gutting

verb
  1. To eviscerate.
  2. To remove or destroy the most important parts of.
noun
  1. (chiefly in the plural) The remains after gutting a fish.
adjective
  1. Disheartening, crushing.

igniting

verb
  1. To set fire to (something), to light (something)
  2. To spark off (something), to trigger
  3. To commence burning.
  4. To subject to the action of intense heat; to heat strongly; often said of incombustible or infusible substances.

ignition

noun
  1. The act of igniting.
  2. The initiation of combustion.
  3. A system for activating combustion in a combustion engine.
  4. Receptacle for a key used to start the engine in a vehicle.

ingot

noun
  1. A solid block of more or less pure metal, often but not necessarily bricklike in shape and trapezoidal in cross-section, the result of pouring out and cooling molten metal, often immediately after smelting from raw ore or alloying from constituents.
verb
  1. To form (scraps of metal) into ingots.

into

preposition
  1. To or towards the inside of.
  2. To or towards the region of.
  3. Against, especially with force or violence.
  4. Indicates transition into another form or substance.
  5. After the start of.
  6. Interested in or attracted to.
  7. Expressing the operation of multiplication.
  8. Expressing the operation of division, with the denominator given first. Usually with "goes".
  9. Investigating the subject (of).

intoning

verb
  1. To give tone or variety of tone to; to vocalize.
  2. To utter with a musical or prolonged note or tone; to speak or recite with singing voice; to chant.
  3. To utter a tone; utter a protracted sound.
noun
  1. Intonation

intuit

verb
  1. To know intuitively or by immediate perception.

intuiting

verb
  1. To know intuitively or by immediate perception.
noun
  1. Intuition

intuition

noun
  1. Immediate cognition without the use of conscious rational processes.
  2. A perceptive insight gained by the use of this faculty.

noting

verb
  1. To notice with care; to observe; to remark; to heed.
  2. To record in writing; to make a memorandum of.
  3. To denote; to designate.
  4. To annotate.
  5. To set down in musical characters.
  6. To record on the back of (a bill, draft, etc.) a refusal of acceptance, as the ground of a protest, which is done officially by a notary.
pronoun
  1. Not any thing; no thing.
  2. An absence of anything, including empty space, brightness, darkness, matter, or a vacuum.
noun
  1. A note; a written remark.

notion

No Definition Found.

onto

adjective
  1. (of a function) Assuming each of the values in its codomain; having its range equal to its codomain.
preposition
  1. Upon; on top of.
  2. Aware of.
  3. Being an onto function with a codomain of (see below).

outgo

noun
  1. The act or process of going out.
  2. A quantity of a substance or thing that has flowed out; an outflow.
  3. An expenditure, cost or outlay.
verb
  1. To go out, to set forth.
  2. To go further; to exceed or surpass; go beyond.
  3. To overtake; to travel faster than.
  4. To outdo; exceed; surpass.
  5. To come to an end.

outgoing

verb
  1. To go out, to set forth.
  2. To go further; to exceed or surpass; go beyond.
  3. To overtake; to travel faster than.
  4. To outdo; exceed; surpass.
  5. To come to an end.
noun
  1. The act of leaving or going out; exit, departure.
  2. (chiefly in the plural) Money that leaves one's possession; expenditure, outlay, expense.
  3. The extreme limit; the place of ending.
adjective
  1. Extraverted: talkative, friendly, and social, especially with respect to meeting new people easily and comfortably.
  2. Going out, on its way out.
  3. Being replaced in office (while still in office but after election has determined that he/she will be replaced).

outgun

verb
  1. To defeat in terms of firepower.

outgunning

verb
  1. To defeat in terms of firepower.

outing

verb
  1. To eject; to expel.
  2. To reveal (a person) as LGBT+ (gay, trans, etc).
  3. To reveal (a person or organization) as having a certain secret, such as a being a secret agent or undercover detective.
  4. To reveal (a secret).
  5. To come or go out; to get out or away; to become public or apparent.
noun
  1. A pleasure trip or excursion.
  2. An appearance to perform in public, for example in a drama, film, on a musical album, as a sports contestant etc.
  3. The practice of publicly revealing that a person is homosexual or transgender without that person's consent.

quint

noun
  1. An interval of one fifth.
  2. The E string of a violin.
  3. In piquet, a sequence of five playing cards of the same suit; equivalent to a straight flush in poker
  4. A quin or quintuplet.
  5. A vehicle used by firefighters that combines the capabilities of a fire engine and a fire truck, having the ability to provide vertical access as well as pump water to fight a fire.
  6. Quinte; the fifth fencer in parrying or attacking position.

quit

Etymology 1

verb
  1. To pay (a debt, fine etc.).
  2. To repay (someone) for (something).
  3. To repay, pay back (a good deed, injury etc.).
  4. To conduct or acquit (oneself); to behave (in a specified way).
  5. To carry through; to go through to the end.
  6. To set at rest; to free, as from anything harmful or oppressive; to relieve; to clear; to liberate.
  7. To release from obligation, accusation, penalty, etc.; to absolve; to acquit.
  8. To abandon, renounce (a thing).
  9. To leave (a place).
  10. To resign from (a job, office, position, etc.).
  11. To stop, give up (an activity) (usually + gerund or verbal noun).
  12. To close (an application).
adjective
  1. (usually followed by of) Released from obligation, penalty, etc; free, clear, or rid.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. Any of numerous species of small passerine birds native to tropical America.

quitting

No Definition Found.

quoting

verb
  1. To repeat the exact words of (a person).
  2. To repeat (the exact words of a person).
  3. To prepare a summary of work to be done and set a price.
  4. (Commerce) To name the current price, notably of a financial security.
  5. To indicate verbally or by equivalent means the start of a quotation.
  6. To observe, to take account of.
noun
  1. A quoted statement; a quote.

tinging

Etymology 1

verb
  1. To add a small amount of colour; to tint; (by extension) to add a small amount of some other thing.
  2. To affect or alter slightly, particularly due to the actual or metaphorical influence of some element or thing.
  3. To change slightly in shade due to the addition of colour; (by extension) to change slightly in quality due to the addition of some other thing.

Etymology 2

verb
  1. To make a high sharp sound like a small bell being struck.

tinning

verb
  1. To place into a tin in order to preserve.
  2. To cover with tin.
  3. To coat with solder in preparation for soldering.
noun
  1. A covering or lining of tin.

tint

noun
  1. A slight coloring.
  2. A pale or faint tinge of any color; especially, a variation of a color obtained by adding white (contrast shade)
  3. A color considered with reference to other very similar colors.
  4. A shaded effect in engraving, produced by the juxtaposition of many fine parallel lines.
verb
  1. To shade, to color.

tinting

verb
  1. To shade, to color.
noun
  1. The application of a tint or shade of color.

togging

verb
  1. To dress (often with up or out).

tong

Etymology 1

noun
  1. An instrument or tool used for manipulating things in a fire without touching them with the hands.
verb
  1. To use tongs.
  2. To grab, manipulate or transport something using tongs.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A Chinese secret society or gang.

Etymology 3

noun
  1. The flexible muscular organ in the mouth that is used to move food around, for tasting and that is moved into various positions to modify the flow of air from the lungs in order to produce different sounds in speech.
  2. This organ, as taken from animals used for food (especially cows).−
  3. (metonym) A language.
  4. Speakers of a language, collectively.
  5. Voice (the distinctive sound of a person's speech); accent (distinctive manner of pronouncing a language).
  6. Manner of speaking, often habitually.
  7. (metonym) A person speaking in a specified manner (most often plural).
  8. The power of articulate utterance; speech generally.
  9. Discourse; fluency of speech or expression.
  10. Discourse; fluency of speech or expression.
  11. Honourable discourse; eulogy.
  12. (often in the plural) Glossolalia.
  13. In a shoe, the flap of material that goes between the laces and the foot (so called because it resembles a tongue in the mouth).
  14. Any large or long physical protrusion on an automotive or machine part or any other part that fits into a long groove on another part.
  15. A projection, or slender appendage or fixture.
  16. A long, narrow strip of land, projecting from the mainland into a sea or lake.
  17. The pole of a vehicle; especially, the pole of an ox cart, to the end of which the oxen are yoked.
  18. The clapper of a bell.
  19. An individual point of flame from a fire.
  20. A small sole (type of fish).
  21. A short piece of rope spliced into the upper part of standing backstays, etc.; also, the upper main piece of a mast composed of several pieces.
  22. A reed.
  23. A division of formation; A layer or member of a formation that pinches out in one direction.

tonging

No Definition Found.

tonguing

No Definition Found.

toning

verb
  1. To give a particular tone to
  2. To change the colour of
  3. To make (something) firmer
  4. To harmonize, especially in colour
  5. To utter with an affected tone.
noun
  1. Use of colour; tone.

toon

Etymology 1

noun
  1. A cartoon, especially an animated television show.
  2. A player's avatar or visible character in a massively multiplayer online role-playing game.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A southeast Asian and Australian tree (Toona ciliata or Toona australis) of the mahogany family with fragrant dark red wood and flowers that yield a dye.
  2. The wood of this tree.

Etymology 3

noun
  1. A town.

Etymology 4

noun
  1. A melody.
  2. A song, or short musical composition.
  3. The act of tuning or maintenance.
  4. The state or condition of being correctly tuned.
  5. Temper; frame of mind.
  6. A sound; a note; a tone.
  7. Order; harmony; concord.

toot

Etymology 1

noun
  1. The noise of a horn or whistle.
  2. (by extension) A fart; flatus.
  3. Cocaine.
  4. A portion of cocaine that a person snorts.
  5. A spree of drunkness.
  6. (pronounced /tʊt/) Rubbish; tat.
  7. A message on the social networking software Mastodon.
verb
  1. To stand out, or be prominent.
  2. To peep; to look narrowly.
  3. To see; to spy.
  4. To flatulate.
  5. To make the sound of a horn or whistle.
  6. To cause a horn or whistle to make its sound.
  7. To go on a drinking binge.
  8. To snort (a recreational drug).
  9. To post a message on a Mastodon instance (a self-hosted version of the networking software).

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A toilet.

tooting

verb
  1. To stand out, or be prominent.
  2. To peep; to look narrowly.
  3. To see; to spy.
  4. To flatulate.
  5. To make the sound of a horn or whistle.
  6. To cause a horn or whistle to make its sound.
  7. To go on a drinking binge.
  8. To snort (a recreational drug).
  9. To post a message on a Mastodon instance (a self-hosted version of the networking software).
noun
  1. The sound of a toot.

toting

No Definition Found.

tout

Etymology 1

noun
  1. Someone advertising for customers in an aggressive way.
  2. A person, at a racecourse, who offers supposedly inside information on which horse is likely to win.
  3. A spy for a smuggler, thief, or similar.
  4. An informer in the Irish Republican Army.
verb
  1. To flaunt, to publicize/publicise; to boast or brag; to promote.
  2. To look upon or watch.
  3. To spy out information about (a horse, a racing stable, etc.).
  4. To give a tip on (a racehorse) to a person, with the expectation of sharing in any winnings.
  5. To spy out the movements of racehorses at their trials, or to get by stealth or other improper means the secrets of the stable, for betting purposes.
  6. To act as a tout; to give a tip on a racehorse.
  7. To look for, try to obtain; used with for.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. In the game of solo, a proposal to win all eight tricks.

touting

verb
  1. To flaunt, to publicize/publicise; to boast or brag; to promote.
  2. To look upon or watch.
  3. To spy out information about (a horse, a racing stable, etc.).
  4. To give a tip on (a racehorse) to a person, with the expectation of sharing in any winnings.
  5. To spy out the movements of racehorses at their trials, or to get by stealth or other improper means the secrets of the stable, for betting purposes.
  6. To act as a tout; to give a tip on a racehorse.
  7. To look for, try to obtain; used with for.
noun
  1. The act of one who touts.

tugging

verb
  1. To pull or drag with great effort
  2. To pull hard repeatedly
  3. To tow by tugboat
noun
  1. The action of something that tugs; a pull.

tuition

No Definition Found.

tuning

verb
  1. To adjust (a musical instrument) so that it produces the correct pitches.
  2. To adjust or modify (esp. a mechanical or electrical device) so that it functions optimally.
  3. To adjust the frequency on a radio or TV set, so as to receive the desired channel.
  4. (e.g. of senses or faculties) To adapt to or direct towards a particular target.
  5. To make more precise, intense, or effective; to put into a proper state or disposition.
  6. To attune; to adapt in style of music; to make harmonious.
  7. To give a certain tone or character to.
  8. To sing with melody or harmony.
  9. To cheek; to be impudent towards.
noun
  1. Action of the verb to tune.

tutti

noun
  1. A passage in which all members of an orchestra are playing
adjective
  1. All together; with all playing at once.
adverb
  1. All together. Indicates that the remainder of a group should join in playing after a solo or other passage with a reduced number of voices.

tutting

verb
  1. To make a tut tut sound of disapproval.
verb
  1. To work by the piece; to carry out tut-work.
noun
  1. The act of making a tut sound in disapproval.

tutu

Etymology 1

noun
  1. A ballet skirt made of layered stiff but light netting.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. Any of the genus Coriaria of shrubs and trees found in New Zealand.

unit

noun
  1. A particular, minute unit of mass, defined differently for different substances, but so that varying substances of the same general type have the property that one international unit of the one has the same effect on the human body as one international unit of the other.
noun
  1. Oneness, singularity, seen as a component of a whole number; a magnitude of one.
  2. A standard measure of a quantity.
  3. The number one.
  4. An organized group comprising people and/or equipment.
  5. A member of a military organization.
  6. Any military element whose structure is prescribed by competent authority, such as a table of organization and equipment; specifically, part of an organization.
  7. An organization title of a subdivision of a group in a task force.
  8. A standard or basic quantity into which an item of supply is divided, issued or detailed. In this meaning, also called unit of issue.
  9. With regard to Reserve Components of the Armed Forces, denotes a Selected Reserve unit organized, equipped, and trained for mobilization to serve on active duty as a unit or to augment or be augmented by another unit. Headquarters and support functions without wartime missions are not considered units.
  10. The identity element, neutral element.
  11. An element having an inverse, an invertible element; an associate of the unity.
  12. In an adjunction, a natural transformation from the identity functor of the domain of the left adjoint functor to the composition of the right adjoint functor with the left adjoint functor.
  13. A volume of rock or ice of identifiable origin and age range that is defined by the distinctive and dominant, easily mapped and recognizable petrographic, lithologic or paleontologic features (facies) that characterize it.
  14. An item which may be sold singly.
  15. A unit of alcohol.
  16. One kilowatt-hour (as recorded on an electricity meter).
  17. A measure of housing equivalent to the living quarters of one household; an apartment where a group of apartments is contained in one or more multi-storied buildings or a group of dwellings is in one or more single storey buildings, usually arranged around a driveway.
  18. A gold coin of the reign of James I, worth twenty shillings.
  19. A work unit.
  20. A physically large person.
adjective
  1. For each unit.
  2. Having a size or magnitude of one.

uniting

verb
  1. To bring together as one.
  2. To come together as one.
noun
  1. The act by which things are united; the formation of a union.

unto

preposition
  1. Up to, indicating a motion towards a thing and then stopping at it.
  2. To, indicating an indirect object.
conjunction
  1. Up to the time or degree that; until.

untuning

No Definition Found.