Thursday, July 24, 2025

Answers to yesterday's Bee

Jump to answers for


The official answers for today's puzzle are:

Click on the arrow to show the definition.
Click outside the pop-up to close it.



Number of Pangrams: 1

Maximum Puzzle Score: 206

Number of Answers: 48

Points Needed for Genius: 144

Genius requires between 22 and 41 words. You need at least a 7-letter word to reach genius. If you don't get the pangram, you need 76% of the total points to reach genius. If you get the pangram, you only need 67% of the remaining points to reach genius.

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 206 was in the 67th percentile of all puzzles.
The last time there was a score this high was on July 23, 2025.
The highest score ever was 537 on January 22, 2021.
The lowest score ever was 47 on March 27, 2023.

This puzzle's 48 possible answers rank it in the 72nd percentile of all puzzles.
The last time there were more answers than this was on July 21, 2025.
The highest number of answers was 81 on June 8, 2019.
The lowest number of answers was 16 on March 27, 2023.

It takes a 7-letter word for genius.
The last time this happened was on July 23, 2025.

Today's puzzle has an average word length of 5.3.
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 205
  • loll 200
  • toot 193
  • naan 175
  • nana 175
  • lilt 143
  • till 143
  • tilt 143
  • tint 138
  • nene 135
  • mama 134
  • mamma 134
  • acacia 129
  • acai 129
  • onto 127
  • toon 127
  • onion 123
  • anal 119
  • anon 119
  • olio 116
  • boob 113
  • booboo 113
  • dodo 113
  • poop 112
  • tact 112
  • papa 111
  • baba 110
  • call 108
  • calla 108
  • lull 108
  • lulu 108
  • mitt 107
  • ratatat 106
  • tart 106
  • tartar 106
  • attar 105
  • tatty 105
  • tattoo 104
  • allay 103
  • ally 103
  • ammo 103
  • cocci 103
  • momma 103
  • mono 103
  • moon 103
  • tutu 103
  • epee 100
  • loon 100
  • peep 100
  • roar 99


How long are words in the Bee?

There have been 104,489 answers ever accepted in the Bee - with 10,688 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*:

  • aalii
  • affinal
  • alan
  • alanin
  • alanyl
  • alba
  • albinal
  • alfa
  • alif
  • aliya
  • allyl
  • anil
  • anilin
  • baal
  • bally
  • biali
  • bilby
  • binal
  • blaff
  • blain
  • bliny
  • falbala
  • fallal
  • fila
  • flabbily
  • iffily
  • ilia
  • ilial
  • infall
  • inly
  • labially
  • lall
  • lallan
  • layin
  • liana
  • liblab
  • linin
  • linn
  • linny
  • liny
  • nala
  • nibbly
  • nill
  • nyala
  • yill

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

ably

adverb
  1. In an able manner; with great ability.

affably

No Definition Found.

alfalfa

noun
  1. A plant, principally of Medicago sativa, grown as a pasture crop.
  2. A type or breed of this plant.

alibi

noun
  1. 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
verb
  1. To provide an alibi for.
  2. To provide an excuse for.

allay

noun
  1. Alleviation; abatement; check.
  2. An alloy.
verb
  1. To make quiet or put at rest; to pacify or appease; to quell; to calm.
  2. To alleviate; to abate; to mitigate.
  3. To subside, abate, become peaceful.
  4. To mix (metals); to mix with a baser metal; to alloy; to deteriorate.
  5. (by extension) To make worse by the introduction of inferior elements.

ally

Etymology 1

noun
  1. A person, group, or state (etc) which is associated with another for a common cause; one united to another by treaty or common purpose; a confederate.
  2. A person, group, concept (etc) which is associated with another as a helper; a supporter; an auxiliary.
  3. Anything akin to something else by structure, etc.
  4. A closely related species, usually within the same family.
  5. A relative; a kinsman.
verb
  1. To unite, or form a connection between, as between families by marriage, or between princes and states by treaty, league, or confederacy.
  2. To connect or form a relation between by similitude, resemblance, friendship, or love.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A narrow street or passageway, especially one through the middle of a block giving access to the rear of lots or buildings.
  2. The area between the outfielders.
  3. An establishment where bowling is played.
  4. An elongated wooden strip of floor along which a bowling ball is rolled.
  5. The extra area between the sidelines or tramlines on a tennis court that is used for doubles matches.
  6. A walk or passage in a garden or park, bordered by rows of trees or bushes.
  7. A passageway between rows of pews in a church.
  8. (perspective drawing) Any passage having the entrance represented as wider than the exit, so as to give the appearance of length.
  9. The space between two rows of compositors' stands in a printing office.
noun
  1. A glass marble or taw.

anal

noun
  1. Any of the anal scales of a reptile.
  2. Anal sex.
adjective
  1. Of, related to, intended for or involving the anus.
  2. Of the stage in psychosexual development when the child's interest is alleged to be concentrated on the anal region.
  3. Of a person, compulsive and stubborn, obsessed with neatness and accuracy, supposedly from not having progressed beyond the anal stage.
  4. (of a vein) Proximate to the thorax.

anally

No Definition Found.

annal

noun
  1. The record of a single event or item.

bail

Etymology 1

noun
  1. Security, usually a sum of money, exchanged for the release of an arrested person as a guarantee of that person's appearance for trial.
  2. Release from imprisonment on payment of such money.
  3. The person providing such payment.
  4. A bucket or scoop used for removing water from a boat etc.
  5. A person who bails water out of a boat.
  6. Custody; keeping.
verb
  1. To secure the release of an arrested person by providing bail.
  2. To release a person under such guarantee.
  3. To hand over personal property to be held temporarily by another as a bailment.
  4. To remove (water) from a boat by scooping it out.
  5. To remove water from (a boat) by scooping it out.
  6. To set free; to deliver; to release.

Etymology 2

verb
  1. To exit quickly.
  2. To fail to meet a commitment.

Etymology 3

noun
  1. A hoop, ring or handle (especially of a kettle or bucket).
  2. A stall for a cow (or other animal) (usually tethered with a semi-circular hoop).
  3. A hinged bar as a restraint for animals, or on a typewriter.
  4. A frame to restrain a cow during milking or feeding.
  5. A hoop, ring, or other object used to connect a pendant to a necklace.
  6. One of the two wooden crosspieces that rest on top of the stumps to form a wicket.
  7. (furniture) Normally curved handle suspended between sockets as a drawer pull. This may also be on a kettle or pail.
verb
  1. To secure the head of a cow during milking.

Etymology 4

verb
  1. To confine.
  2. To secure (a cow) by placing its head in a bail for milking.
  3. To keep (a traveller) detained in order to rob them; to corner (a wild animal); loosely, to detain, hold up. (Usually with up.)

bailiff

noun
  1. (law enforcement) An officer of the court, particularly:
  2. A public administrator, particularly:
  3. A private administrator, particularly
  4. Any debt collector, regardless of his or her official status.

ball

Etymology 1

noun
  1. A solid or hollow sphere, or roughly spherical mass.
  2. A round or ellipsoidal object.
  3. (mildly, usually in the plural) A testicle.
  4. A leather-covered cushion, fastened to a handle called a ballstock; formerly used by printers for inking the form, then superseded by the roller.
  5. A large pill, a form in which medicine was given to horses; a bolus.
verb
  1. To form or wind into a ball.
  2. To heat in a furnace and form into balls for rolling.
  3. To have sexual intercourse with.
  4. To gather balls which cling to the feet, as of damp snow or clay; to gather into balls.
  5. (usually in present participle) To be hip or cool.
  6. To play basketball.
  7. To punish by affixing a ball and chain
interjection
  1. An appeal by the crowd for holding the ball against a tackled player. This is heard almost any time an opposition player is tackled, without regard to whether the rules about "prior opportunity" to dispose of the ball are fulfilled.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A formal dance.
  2. A very enjoyable time.

banal

adjective
  1. Common in a boring way, to the point of being predictable; containing nothing new or fresh.
  2. (history) Relating to a type of feudal jurisdiction or service.

banally

No Definition Found.

bialy

noun
  1. A flat bread roll topped with onion flakes. Instead of a hole like a bagel, it has a depression in the middle.

bilabial

noun
  1. A speech sound articulated with both lips.
adjective
  1. Articulated with both lips.

bill

Etymology 1

noun
  1. 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.
  2. A cutting instrument, with hook-shaped point, and fitted with a handle, used in pruning, etc.; a billhook.
  3. Somebody armed with a bill; a billman.
  4. A pickaxe, or mattock.
  5. The extremity of the arm of an anchor; the point of or beyond the fluke (also called the peak).
verb
  1. To dig, chop, etc., with a bill.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. The beak of a bird, especially when small or flattish; sometimes also used with reference to a platypus, turtle, or other animal.
  2. A beak-like projection, especially a promontory.
  3. Of a cap or hat: the brim or peak, serving as a shade to keep sun off the face and out of the eyes.
verb
  1. To peck
  2. To stroke bill against bill, with reference to doves; to caress in fondness

Etymology 3

noun
  1. A written list or inventory. (Now obsolete except in specific senses or set phrases; bill of lading, bill of goods, etc.)
  2. A document, originally sealed; a formal statement or official memorandum. (Now obsolete except with certain qualifying words; bill of health, bill of sale etc.)
  3. A draft of a law, presented to a legislature for enactment; a proposed or projected law.
  4. A declaration made in writing, stating some wrong the complainant has suffered from the defendant, or a fault committed by some person against a law.
  5. A piece of paper money; a banknote.
  6. A written note of goods sold, services rendered, or work done, with the price or charge; an invoice.
  7. A paper, written or printed, and posted up or given away, to advertise something, as a lecture, a play, or the sale of goods
  8. A writing binding the signer or signers to pay a certain sum at a future day or on demand, with or without interest, as may be stated in the document; a bill of exchange. In the United States, it is usually called a note, a note of hand, or a promissory note.
  9. A set of items presented together.
verb
  1. To advertise by a bill or public notice.
  2. To charge; to send a bill to.

Etymology 4

noun
  1. The bell, or boom, of the bittern.

billy

noun
  1. A billy club.
  2. A billy goat.
  3. A good friend.
  4. A tin used by bushmen to boil tea; a billycan; a billypot.
  5. A condom (from the E-Rotic song "Willy, Use a Billy... Boy")
  6. A slubbing or roving machine.

blab

noun
  1. One who blabs; a babbler; a telltale; a gossip or gossiper.
  2. Gossip; prattle.
verb
  1. To tell tales; to gossip without reserve or discretion.

blabby

No Definition Found.

blin

Etymology 1

noun
  1. Cessation; end.
verb
  1. To cease (from); to stop; to desist, to let up.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A blintz.

blini

noun
  1. A small pancake, of Russian origin, made from buckwheat flour; traditionally served with melted butter, sour cream and caviar or smoked salmon.

fail

Etymology 1

noun
  1. Poor quality; substandard workmanship.
  2. A failure (condition of being unsuccessful)
  3. A failure (something incapable of success)
  4. A failure, especially of a financial transaction (a termination of an action).
  5. A failing grade in an academic examination.
verb
  1. To be unsuccessful.
  2. Not to achieve a particular stated goal. (Usage note: The direct object of this word is usually an infinitive.)
  3. To neglect.
  4. Of a machine, etc.: to cease to operate correctly.
  5. To be wanting to, to be insufficient for, to disappoint, to desert.
  6. To receive one or more non-passing grades in academic pursuits.
  7. To give a student a non-passing grade in an academic endeavour.
  8. To miss attaining; to lose.
  9. To be wanting; to fall short; to be or become deficient in any measure or degree up to total absence.
  10. To be affected with want; to come short; to lack; to be deficient or unprovided; used with of.
  11. To fall away; to become diminished; to decline; to decay; to sink.
  12. To deteriorate in respect to vigour, activity, resources, etc.; to become weaker.
  13. To perish; to die; used of a person.
  14. To err in judgment; to be mistaken.
  15. To become unable to meet one's engagements; especially, to be unable to pay one's debts or discharge one's business obligation; to become bankrupt or insolvent.
adjective
  1. That is a failure.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A piece of turf cut from grassland.

fall

Etymology 1

noun
  1. The act of moving to a lower position under the effect of gravity.
  2. A reduction in quantity, pitch, etc.
  3. The time of the year when the leaves typically fall from the trees; autumn; the season of the year between the autumnal equinox and the winter solstice.
  4. A loss of greatness or status.
  5. That which falls or cascades.
  6. A crucial event or circumstance.
  7. A hairpiece for women consisting of long strands of hair on a woven backing, intended primarily to cover hair loss.
  8. Blame or punishment for a failure or misdeed.
  9. The part of the rope of a tackle to which the power is applied in hoisting (usu. plural).
  10. An old Scots unit of measure equal to six ells.
  11. A short, flexible piece of leather forming part of a bullwhip, placed between the thong and the cracker.
  12. The lid, on a piano, that covers the keyboard
verb
  1. (heading) To be moved downwards.
  2. To move downwards.
  3. To happen, to change negatively.
  4. To be allotted to; to arrive through chance, fate, or inheritance.
  5. To diminish; to lessen or lower.
  6. To bring forth.
  7. To issue forth into life; to be brought forth; said of the young of certain animals.
  8. To descend in character or reputation; to become degraded; to sink into vice, error, or sin.
  9. To become ensnared or entrapped; to be worse off than before.
  10. To assume a look of shame or disappointment; to become or appear dejected; said of the face.
  11. To happen; to come to pass; to chance or light (upon).
  12. To begin with haste, ardour, or vehemence; to rush or hurry.
  13. To be dropped or uttered carelessly.
  14. (of a fabric) To hang down (under the influence of gravity).

Etymology 2

noun
  1. The chasing of a hunted whale.

fallibly

No Definition Found.

filial

adjective
  1. Pertaining to or befitting a son or daughter.
  2. Respectful of the duties and attitudes of a son or daughter toward their parents.
  3. Of a generation or generations descending from a specific previous one.

filially

No Definition Found.

fill

Etymology 1

verb
  1. To occupy fully, to take up all of.
  2. To add contents to (a container, cavity or the like) so that it is full.
  3. To enter (something), making it full.
  4. To become full.
  5. To become pervaded with something.
  6. To satisfy or obey (an order, request or requirement).
  7. To install someone, or be installed, in (a position or office), eliminating a vacancy.
  8. To treat (a tooth) by adding a dental filling to it.
  9. To fill or supply fully with food; to feed; to satisfy.
  10. To trim (a yard) so that the wind blows on the after side of the sails.
  11. (of a male) To have sexual intercourse with (a female).

Etymology 2

noun
  1. (after a possessive) A sufficient or more than sufficient amount.
  2. An amount that fills a container.
  3. The filling of a container or area.
  4. Inexpensive material used to occupy empty spaces, especially in construction.
  5. Soil and/or human-created debris discovered within a cavity or cut in the layers and exposed by excavation; fill soil.
  6. An embankment, as in railroad construction, to fill a hollow or ravine; also, the place which is to be filled.
  7. A short passage, riff, or rhythmic sound that helps to keep the listener's attention during a break between the phrases of a melody.

Etymology 3

noun
  1. One of the thills or shafts of a carriage.

filly

noun
  1. A young female horse.
  2. A young attractive female.

final

noun
  1. A final examination; a test or examination given at the end of a term or class; the test that concludes a class.
  2. The last round, game or match in a contest, after which the winner is determined.
  3. A contest that narrows a field of contestants (finalists) to ranked positions, usually in numbered places (1st place/prize, 2nd place/prize, etc.) or a winner and numbered runners-up (1st runner-up, etc.).
  4. The final part of a syllable, the combination of medial and rime in phonetics and phonology.
  5. The tonic or keynote of a Gregorian mode, and hence the final note of any conventional melody played in that mode.
adjective
  1. Last; ultimate.
  2. Conclusive; decisive.
  3. Respecting an end or object to be gained; respecting the purpose or ultimate end in view.
  4. (grammar) Expressing purpose; as in the term final clause.
  5. Word-final, occurring at the end of a word.

finally

adverb
  1. At the end or conclusion; ultimately.
  2. (sequence) To finish (with); lastly (in the present).
  3. (manner) Definitively, comprehensively.

finial

noun
  1. The knot or bunch of foliage, or foliated ornament, that forms the upper extremity of a pinnacle in Gothic architecture.
  2. Any decorative fitting at the peak of a gable, or on the top of a flagpole, fence post or staircase newel post.

flab

noun
  1. Soft, loose flesh on a person's body; fat.

flabby

adjective
  1. Yielding to the touch, and easily moved or shaken; hanging loose by its own weight; lacking firmness; flaccid.
  2. (of wine) Having a slight lack of acidity; having mild sweetness.
  3. (of writing, etc.) overwrought.
  4. Which forms a surjection from the domain to every open subset of the codomain.

flail

noun
  1. A tool used for threshing, consisting of a long handle with a shorter stick attached with a short piece of chain, thong or similar material.
  2. A weapon which has the (usually spherical) striking part attached to the handle with a flexible joint such as a chain.
verb
  1. To beat using a flail or similar implement.
  2. To wave or swing vigorously
  3. To thresh.
  4. To move like a flail.

flan

Etymology 1

noun
  1. Baked tart with sweet or savoury filling in an open-topped pastry case. (Compare quiche.)
  2. (Belize) A dessert of congealed custard, often topped with caramel, especially popular in Spanish-speaking countries.
  3. A coin die. (Compare planchet.)

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A fan of the U.S. TV series Firefly.

flay

Etymology 1

noun
  1. A fright; a scare.
  2. Fear; a source of fear; a formidable matter; a fearsome or repellent-looking individual.
verb
  1. To cause to fly; put to flight; drive off (by frightening).
  2. To frighten; scare; terrify.
  3. To be fear-stricken.

Etymology 2

verb
  1. To strip skin off
  2. To lash

flyby

noun
  1. A flight past a celestial object in order to make observations.
  2. A low-level ceremonial flight, typically in connection with an airshow or a military parade.
  3. A brief visit.

illy

No Definition Found.

infallibly

No Definition Found.

infill

Etymology 1

noun
  1. That which fills in a space, hole or gap.
  2. The redecoration of a fingernail or toenail after it has grown, to prevent an unsightly gap.
verb
  1. To fill in a space, hole or gap.
  2. To rededicate land in an urban environment to new construction.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. Infiltration, the act of going into a place.

inlay

noun
  1. The material placed within a different material in the form of a decoration.
  2. A filling for a tooth, made of ceramic or gold to fit the cavity and shape of tooth and cemented into place.
  3. The piece of paper or the booklet inside the case of a CD or DVD
verb
  1. To place (pieces of a foreign material) within another material to form a decorative design.
  2. To place an inlay in a tooth.

labia

noun
  1. The folds of tissue at the opening of the vulva, at either side of the vagina.
noun
  1. A liplike structure; especially one of the two pairs of folds of skin either side of the vulva.
  2. The lip of a labiate corolla.
  3. The lip against which pressured air is driven to produce sound in a recorder and in a pipe organ with flue pipes.

labial

noun
  1. A consonant articulated by the lips.
  2. An organ pipe having a lip that influences its sound.
  3. Any of the scales bordering the mouth opening of a reptile.
adjective
  1. Of or pertaining to the lips or labia.
  2. Articulated by the lips, as the consonants b, m and w.
  3. Of an incisor or canine, on the side facing the lips. See mesial.
  4. Furnished with lips.

lain

Etymology 1

verb
  1. To rest in a horizontal position on a surface.
  2. To be placed or situated.
  3. To abide; to remain for a longer or shorter time; to be in a certain state or condition.
  4. Used with in: to be or exist; to belong or pertain; to have an abiding place; to consist.
  5. Used with with: to have sexual relations with.
  6. Used with on/upon: to be incumbent (on); to be the responsibility of a person.
  7. To lodge; to sleep.
  8. To be still or quiet, like one lying down to rest.
  9. To be sustainable; to be capable of being maintained.

Etymology 2

verb
  1. To conceal, keep quiet about.

lanai

noun
  1. (Florida) A Hawaiian-style roofed patio.

lily

noun
  1. Any of several flowers in the genus Lilium of the family Liliaceae, which includes a great many ornamental species.
  2. Any of several species of herbaceous flower which may or may not resemble the genus Lilium in some way, and which are not closely related to it or each other.
  3. The flower used as a heraldic charge; also commonly used to describe the fleur-de-lis.
  4. The end of a compass needle that should point north, traditionally often ornamented with the figure of a lily or fleur-de-lis.
  5. (usually in the plural) A royal spade in auction bridge.
  6. The thirtieth Lenormand card, representing calmness and maturity.
adjective
  1. White (as a racial epithet).

nail

Etymology 1

noun
  1. The thin, horny plate at the ends of fingers and toes on humans and some other animals.
  2. The basal thickened portion of the anterior wings of certain hemiptera.
  3. The terminal horny plate on the beak of ducks, and other allied birds.
  4. The claw of a bird or other animal.
  5. A spike-shaped metal fastener used for joining wood or similar materials. The nail is generally driven through two or more layers of material by means of impacts from a hammer or other device. It is then held in place by friction.
  6. A round pedestal on which merchants once carried out their business, such as the four nails outside The Exchange, Bristol.
  7. An archaic English unit of length equivalent to 1/20 of an ell or 1/16 of a yard (2 1/4 inches or 5.715 cm).

Etymology 2

verb
  1. To fix (an object) to another object using a nail.
  2. To drive a nail.
  3. To stud or boss with nails, or as if with nails.
  4. To catch.
  5. To expose as a sham.
  6. To accomplish (a task) completely and successfully.
  7. To hit (a target) effectively with some weapon.
  8. Of a male, to engage in sexual intercourse with.
  9. To spike, as a cannon.
  10. To nail down: to make certain, or confirm.