Thursday, August 21, 2025

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: 156

Number of Answers: 28

Points Needed for Genius: 109

Genius requires between 14 and 23 words. You need at least an 8-letter word to reach genius. If you don't get the pangram, you need 77% 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 156 was in the 43rd percentile of all puzzles.
The last time there was a score this low was on August 20, 2025.
The highest score ever was 537 on January 22, 2021.
The lowest score ever was 47 on March 27, 2023.

This puzzle's 28 possible answers rank it in the 20th percentile of all puzzles.
The last time there were fewer answers than this was on August 14, 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 an 8-letter word for genius.
The last time this happened was on August 19, 2025.

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 210
  • loll 202
  • toot 194
  • naan 177
  • nana 177
  • lilt 144
  • till 144
  • tilt 144
  • nene 138
  • tint 138
  • mama 135
  • mamma 135
  • acacia 131
  • acai 131
  • onto 129
  • toon 129
  • onion 125
  • anon 120
  • anal 119
  • olio 116
  • dodo 115
  • tact 115
  • boob 113
  • booboo 113
  • papa 112
  • poop 112
  • baba 111
  • lull 111
  • lulu 111
  • call 108
  • calla 108
  • mitt 108
  • mono 106
  • moon 106
  • ratatat 106
  • tart 106
  • tartar 106
  • tutu 106
  • attar 105
  • tatty 105
  • ammo 104
  • cocci 104
  • momma 104
  • tattoo 104
  • allay 103
  • ally 103
  • loon 102
  • epee 100
  • peep 100
  • roar 99


How long are words in the Bee?

There have been 105,705 answers ever accepted in the Bee - with 10,720 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*:

  • dindling
  • gingili
  • gingilli
  • glim
  • gliming
  • immingling
  • lidding
  • lignin
  • liming
  • ling
  • linin
  • linn
  • lipin
  • milding
  • miling
  • minimill
  • minipill
  • nill
  • nilling
  • pili
  • pindling

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

diddling

verb
  1. To cheat; to swindle.
  2. To have sex with.
  3. To masturbate (especially of women).
  4. To waste time.
  5. To totter, like a child learning to walk; to daddle.
  6. To manipulate a value at the level of individual bits (binary digits).

dill

Etymology 1

noun
  1. Anethum graveolens (the type species of the genus Anethum), a herb, the seeds of which are moderately warming, pungent, and aromatic, formerly used as a soothing medicine for children; also known as dillseed.
  2. A cucumber pickled with dill flavoring
  3. A fool.
verb
  1. To cook or flavor with dill

Etymology 2

verb
  1. To still; to assuage; to calm; to soothe, as one in pain.

dimpling

verb
  1. To create a dimple in.
  2. To create a dimple in one's face by smiling.
  3. To form dimples; to sink into depressions or little inequalities.
noun
  1. The formation of a dimple.

giggling

verb
  1. To laugh gently or in a high-pitched voice; to laugh in a silly or giddy way.
noun
  1. The act of producing giggles; high-pitched laughter

gild

Etymology 1

verb
  1. To cover with a thin layer of gold; to cover with gold leaf.
  2. To adorn.
  3. To decorate with a golden surface appearance.
  4. To give a bright or pleasing aspect to.
  5. To make appear drunk.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A group or association mainly of tradespeople made up of merchants, craftspeople, or artisans for mutual aid, particularly in the Middle Ages.
  2. A corporation.
  3. A group of diverse species that share common characteristics or habits.
  4. An organized group of players who regularly play together in a multiplayer game.

gilding

verb
  1. To cover with a thin layer of gold; to cover with gold leaf.
  2. To adorn.
  3. To decorate with a golden surface appearance.
  4. To give a bright or pleasing aspect to.
  5. To make appear drunk.
noun
  1. The art of applying gold leaf to a surface.
  2. Gold leaf.
  3. A coating of gold or gold-coloured paint, etc.

gill

Etymology 1

noun
  1. (animal anatomy) a breathing organ of fish and other aquatic animals
  2. (of a fish) a gill slit or gill cover
  3. One of the radial folds on the underside of the cap of a mushroom, on the surface of which the spore-producing organs are borne
  4. (animal anatomy) the fleshy flap that hangs below the beak of a fowl; a wattle
  5. The flesh under or about the chin; a wattle
  6. (spinning) one of the combs of closely ranged steel pins which divide the ribbons of flax fiber or wool into fewer parallel filaments
verb
  1. To remove the gills from a fish as part of gutting and cleaning it
  2. To catch (a fish) in a gillnet
  3. To be or become entangled in a gillnet

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A drink measure for spirits and wine (size varies regionally but it is about one quarter of a pint)
  2. A measuring jug holding a quarter or half a pint

Etymology 3

noun
  1. Rivulet
  2. Ravine

Etymology 4

noun
  1. A two-wheeled frame for transporting timber

Etymology 5

noun
  1. A leech

Etymology 6

noun
  1. A female ferret
  2. A promiscuous woman; harlot, wanton
  3. A prostitute
verb
  1. To act as a prostitute.

gilling

verb
  1. To remove the gills from a fish as part of gutting and cleaning it
  2. To catch (a fish) in a gillnet
  3. To be or become entangled in a gillnet
verb
  1. To act as a prostitute.

gliding

verb
  1. To move softly, smoothly, or effortlessly.
  2. To fly unpowered, as of an aircraft. Also relates to gliding birds and flying fish.
  3. To cause to glide.
  4. To pass with a glide, as the voice.
noun
  1. The action or motion of something that glides.
  2. The hobby, sport or act of flying a glider.
adjective
  1. That moves or changes with a glide.
  2. (employment) Employing flexitime.

idling

verb
  1. To spend in idleness; to waste; to consume.
  2. To lose or spend time doing nothing, or without being employed in business.
  3. Of an engine: to run at a slow speed, or out of gear; to tick over.
noun
  1. An idle period; something done idly.

limn

verb
  1. To draw or paint; to delineate.
  2. To illuminate, as a manuscript; to decorate with gold or some other bright colour.

limning

verb
  1. To draw or paint; to delineate.
  2. To illuminate, as a manuscript; to decorate with gold or some other bright colour.
noun
  1. A depiction.

limp

Etymology 1

noun
  1. An irregular, jerky or awkward gait.
  2. A scraper for removing poor ore or refuse from the sieve.
verb
  1. To walk lamely, as if favouring one leg.
  2. (of a vehicle) To travel with a malfunctioning system of propulsion.
  3. To move or proceed irregularly.
  4. To call, particularly in an unraised pot pre-flop.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. A scraper of board or sheet-iron shaped like half the head of a small cask, used for scraping the ore off the sieve in the operation of hand-jigging.
verb
  1. To be inadequate or unsatisfactory.
adjective
  1. Flaccid; flabby, like flesh.
  2. Lacking stiffness; flimsy
  3. (of a penis) not erect
  4. (of a man) not having an erect penis
  5. Physically weak

Etymology 3

verb
  1. To happen; befall; chance.
  2. To come upon; meet.

limpid

adjective
  1. Clear, transparent or bright.

limping

verb
  1. To walk lamely, as if favouring one leg.
  2. (of a vehicle) To travel with a malfunctioning system of propulsion.
  3. To move or proceed irregularly.
  4. To call, particularly in an unraised pot pre-flop.
verb
  1. To be inadequate or unsatisfactory.
verb
  1. To happen; befall; chance.
  2. To come upon; meet.
noun
  1. The motion of one who limps.

lining

verb
  1. To place (objects) into a line (usually used with "up"); to form into a line; to align.
  2. To place persons or things along the side of for security or defense; to strengthen by adding; to fortify.
  3. To form a line along.
  4. To mark with a line or lines, to cover with lines.
  5. To represent by lines; to delineate; to portray.
  6. To read or repeat line by line.
  7. To hit a line drive; to hit a line drive which is caught for an out. Compare fly and ground.
  8. To track (wild bees) to their nest by following their line of flight.
  9. To measure.
verb
  1. To cover the inner surface of (something), originally especially with linen.
  2. To reinforce (the back of a book) with glue and glued scrap material such as fabric or paper.
  3. To fill or supply (something), as a purse with money.
verb
  1. (of a dog) To copulate with, to impregnate.
noun
  1. A covering for the inside surface of something.
  2. The material used for such a covering.
  3. The act of attaching such a covering.

lipid

noun
  1. Any of a group of organic compounds including the fats, oils, waxes, sterols, and triglycerides. Lipids are characterized by being insoluble in water, and account for most of the fat present in the human body.

lipping

verb
  1. To touch or grasp with the lips; to kiss; to lap the lips against (something).
  2. (of something inanimate) To touch lightly.
  3. To wash against a surface, lap.
  4. To rise or flow up to or over the edge of something.
  5. To form the rim, edge or margin of something.
  6. To utter verbally.
  7. To simulate speech by moving the lips without making any sound; to mouth.
  8. To make a golf ball hit the lip of the cup, without dropping in.
  9. To change the sound of (a musical note played on a wind instrument) by moving or tensing the lips.
noun
  1. Edging

middling

noun
  1. Something of intermediate or average size, position, or quality.
adjective
  1. Of intermediate or average size, position, or quality; mediocre.
  2. In fairly good health.
adverb
  1. Fairly, moderately, somewhat.
  2. Not too badly, with modest success.

mild

noun
  1. A relatively low-gravity beer, often with a dark colour; mild ale
adjective
  1. Gentle and not easily angered.
  2. (of a rule or punishment) Of only moderate severity; not strict.
  3. Not overly felt or seriously intended.
  4. (of an illness or pain) Not serious or dangerous.
  5. (of weather) Moderately warm, especially less cold than expected.
  6. (of a medicine or cosmetic) Acting gently and without causing harm.
  7. (of food, drink, or a drug) Not sharp or bitter; not strong in flavor.

mill

Etymology 1

noun
  1. A grinding apparatus for substances such as grains, seeds, etc.
  2. The building housing such a grinding apparatus.
  3. A machine used for expelling the juice, sap, etc., from vegetable tissues by pressure, or by pressure in combination with a grinding, or cutting process.
  4. A machine for grinding and polishing.
  5. The raised or ridged edge or surface made in milling anything, such as a coin or screw.
  6. A manufacturing plant for paper, steel, textiles, etc.
  7. A building housing such a plant.
  8. An establishment that handles a certain type of situation or procedure routinely, or produces large quantities of an item without much regard to quality, such as a divorce mill, a puppy mill, etc.
  9. An institution awarding educational certificates not officially recognised
  10. An engine.
  11. A boxing match, fistfight.
  12. (die sinking) A hardened steel roller with a design in relief, used for imprinting a reversed copy of the design in a softer metal, such as copper.
  13. An excavation in rock, transverse to the workings, from which material for filling is obtained.
  14. A passage underground through which ore is shot.
  15. A milling cutter.
  16. A treadmill.
  17. A typewriter used to transcribe messages received.
verb
  1. To grind or otherwise process in a mill or other machine.
  2. To shape, polish, dress or finish using a machine.
  3. To engrave one or more grooves or a pattern around the edge of (a cylindrical object such as a coin).
  4. (followed by around, about, etc.) To move about in an aimless fashion.
  5. To cause to mill, or circle around.
  6. (of air-breathing creatures) To swim underwater.
  7. (of a whale) To swim suddenly in a new direction.
  8. To beat; to pound.
  9. To pass through a fulling mill; to full, as cloth.
  10. To roll (steel, etc.) into bars.
  11. To make (drinking chocolate) frothy, as by churning.
  12. To undergo hulling.
  13. To take part in a fistfight; to box.
  14. To fill (a winze or interior incline) with broken ore, to be drawn out at the bottom.
  15. (thieves' cant) To commit burglary.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. An obsolete coin worth one thousandth of a US dollar, or one tenth of a cent.
  2. One thousandth part, particularly in millage rates of property tax.

Etymology 3

noun
  1. An angular mil, a unit of angular measurement equal to 1⁄6400 of a complete circle. At 1000 metres one mil subtends about one metre (0.98 m). Also 1⁄6000 and 1⁄6300 are used in other countries.
  2. A unit of measurement equal to 1⁄1000 of an inch, usually used for thin objects, such as sheets of plastic.
  3. A former subdivision (1/1000) of the Maltese lira
  4. (plural "mil") Abbreviation of million.
noun
  1. A unit of measure of capacity, being one thousandth of a litre. Symbol: ml

Etymology 4

noun
  1. A line of three matching pieces in nine men's morris and related games.

Etymology 5

noun
  1. (trading card games) Discarding a card from one's deck.
  2. (trading card games) A strategy centered on depleting the opponent's deck.
verb
  1. (trading card games) To move (a card) from a deck to the discard pile.
  2. (Hearthstone) To destroy (a card) due to having a full hand.

milling

verb
  1. To grind or otherwise process in a mill or other machine.
  2. To shape, polish, dress or finish using a machine.
  3. To engrave one or more grooves or a pattern around the edge of (a cylindrical object such as a coin).
  4. (followed by around, about, etc.) To move about in an aimless fashion.
  5. To cause to mill, or circle around.
  6. (of air-breathing creatures) To swim underwater.
  7. (of a whale) To swim suddenly in a new direction.
  8. To beat; to pound.
  9. To pass through a fulling mill; to full, as cloth.
  10. To roll (steel, etc.) into bars.
  11. To make (drinking chocolate) frothy, as by churning.
  12. To undergo hulling.
  13. To take part in a fistfight; to box.
  14. To fill (a winze or interior incline) with broken ore, to be drawn out at the bottom.
  15. (thieves' cant) To commit burglary.
verb
  1. (trading card games) To move (a card) from a deck to the discard pile.
  2. (Hearthstone) To destroy (a card) due to having a full hand.
noun
  1. A grinding process using a mill.
  2. The series of notches around the edge of a coin, placed there during minting so that it can be told if some of the metal from the edge is removed. Removing metal from a coin was common practice during earlier times when coins made of precious metals circulated.
  3. A circular or random motion of a herd or a crowd.

mingling

verb
  1. To intermix; to combine or join, as an individual or part, with other parts, but commonly so as to be distinguishable in the product
  2. To associate or unite in a figurative way, or by ties of relationship
  3. To cause or allow to intermarry
  4. To intermarry.
  5. To deprive of purity by mixture; to contaminate.
  6. To make or prepare by mixing the ingredients of.
  7. To put together; to join.
  8. To become mixed or blended.
  9. To socialize with different people at a social event.
noun
  1. A mixture; a blending.

niggling

verb
  1. To trifle with; to deceive; to mock.
  2. To use, spend, or do in a petty or trifling manner.
  3. To dwell too much on minor points or on trifling details.
  4. To fidget, fiddle, be restless.
noun
  1. A sensation that niggles.
adjective
  1. Petty

piddling

verb
  1. To eat with small, quick bites.
  2. To bite lightly.
  3. To consume gradually.
  4. To find fault; to cavil.
verb
  1. To strike or pierce with the beak or bill (of a bird).
  2. To form by striking with the beak or a pointed instrument.
  3. To strike, pick, thrust against, or dig into, with a pointed instrument, especially with repeated quick movements.
  4. To seize and pick up with the beak, or as if with the beak; to bite; to eat; often with up.
  5. To do something in small, intermittent pieces.
  6. To type by searching for each key individually.
  7. To type in general.
  8. To kiss briefly.
verb
  1. To throw.
  2. To lurch forward; especially, of a horse, to stumble after hitting the ground with the toe instead of the flat of the foot.
verb
  1. Often followed by about or around: to act or work ineffectually and wastefully.
  2. (Namibia) To urinate.
adjective
  1. Insignificant, negligible, paltry, trivial, useless.

piling

verb
  1. (often used with the preposition "up") To lay or throw into a pile or heap; to heap up; to collect into a mass; to accumulate
  2. To cover with heaps; or in great abundance; to fill or overfill; to load.
  3. To add something to a great number.
  4. (of vehicles) To create a hold-up.
  5. To place (guns, muskets, etc.) together in threes so that they can stand upright, supporting each other.
verb
  1. To drive piles into; to fill with piles; to strengthen with piles.
verb
  1. To give a pile to; to make shaggy.
noun
  1. A structural support comprising a length of wood, steel, or other construction material.
  2. The act of heaping up.
  3. (ironworking) The process of building up, heating, and working fagots or piles to form bars, etc.

pill

Etymology 1

noun
  1. A small, usually round or cylindrical object designed for easy swallowing, usually containing some sort of medication.
  2. (definite, i.e. used with "the") Contraceptive medication, usually in the form of a pill to be taken by a woman; an oral contraceptive pill.
  3. A comical or entertaining person.
  4. A contemptible, annoying, or unpleasant person.
  5. A small piece of any substance, for example a ball of fibres formed on the surface of a textile by rubbing.
  6. A baseball.
  7. A bullet (projectile).
  8. A rounded rectangle indicating the tag or category that an item belongs to.
verb
  1. Of a woven fabric surface, to form small matted balls of fiber.
  2. To form into the shape of a pill.
  3. To medicate with pills.
  4. To persuade or convince someone of something.

Etymology 2

noun
  1. The peel or skin.
verb
  1. To peel; to remove the outer layer of hair, skin, or bark.
  2. To peel; to make by removing the skin.
  3. To be peeled; to peel off in flakes.
  4. To pillage; to despoil or impoverish.

Etymology 3

noun
  1. An inlet on the coast; a small tidal pool or bay.

pilling

verb
  1. Of a woven fabric surface, to form small matted balls of fiber.
  2. To form into the shape of a pill.
  3. To medicate with pills.
  4. To persuade or convince someone of something.
verb
  1. To peel; to remove the outer layer of hair, skin, or bark.
  2. To peel; to make by removing the skin.
  3. To be peeled; to peel off in flakes.
  4. To pillage; to despoil or impoverish.
noun
  1. Balls of fibre formed on clothing through usage, often called pill or pills.