The Unofficial Hive

NYT Spelling Bee answers & analysis

BELNOVT

Monday, March 30, 2026

Words
46
Points
172
Genius
120
Pangram
1

Official answers

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Pangram highlighted. Click a word for its definition.

  • beet

    noun — A beetroot, a swollen root of such a plant.

    noun — Beta vulgaris, a plant with a swollen root which is eaten or used to make sugar.

    verb — To improve; to mend.

    verb — To kindle a fire.

    verb — To rouse.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • beetle

    noun — Any of numerous species of insect in the order Coleoptera characterized by a pair of hard, shell-like front wings which cover and protect a pair of rear wings when at rest.

    noun — A small car, the Volkswagen Beetle (original version made 1938–2003, similar models made 1997–2010 and since 2011)

    adjective — Protruding, jutting, overhanging. (As in beetle brows.)

    noun — A game of chance in which players attempt to complete a drawing of a beetle, different dice rolls allowing them to add the various body parts.

    verb — To move away quickly, to scurry away.

    verb — To loom over; to extend or jut.

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

  • belt

    noun — A band worn around the waist to hold clothing to one's body (usually pants), hold weapons (such as a gun or sword), or serve as a decorative piece of clothing.

    noun — A band used as a restraint for safety purposes, such as a seat belt.

    noun — (usually capitalized) A geographical region known for a particular product, feature or demographic (Corn Belt, Bible Belt, Black Belt, Green Belt).

    verb — To scream or sing in a loud manner.

    verb — To hit someone or something.

    verb — To hit a pitched ball a long distance, usually for a home run.

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

  • benevolent

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • bent

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • bento

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • betel

    noun — Either of two plants often used in combination:

    noun — A quid (chewing preparation) containing these and other plant materials; paan.

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

  • blot

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • blotto

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • bolt

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • bonnet

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • boot

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 6 recorded puzzles.

  • bootee

    noun — A soft, woolen shoe, usually knitted, for a baby or small pet.

    noun — An overshoe or sock worn to cover dirty shoes or feet.

    noun — A thick sock worn under a wetsuit.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • botnet

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • bottle

    noun — A container, typically made of glass or plastic and having a tapered neck, used primarily for holding liquids.

    noun — The contents of such a container.

    noun — Intoxicating liquor; alcohol.

    noun — A container with a rubber nipple used for giving liquids to infants, a baby bottle.

    noun — Nerve, courage.

    verb — To seal (a liquid) into a bottle for later consumption. Also fig.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • entente

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • event

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 2 recorded puzzles.

  • lent

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • lento

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

  • loot

    noun — A kind of scoop or ladle, chiefly used to remove the scum from brine-pans in saltworks.

    noun — The act of plundering.

    verb — To steal, especially as part of war, riot or other group violence.

    noun — Plunder, booty, especially from a ransacked city.

    noun — Any prize or profit received for free, especially Christmas presents

    noun — Items dropped by defeated enemies.

    Appeared in 14 recorded puzzles.

  • lotto

    noun — A game of chance similar to bingo

    noun — A lottery

    Appeared in 14 recorded puzzles.

  • nettle

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • nonet

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • nonevent

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 2 recorded puzzles.

  • note

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • novelette

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • onto

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 21 recorded puzzles.

  • teen

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • tell

    verb — To convey by speech; to say.

    verb — To narrate.

    verb — To instruct or inform.

    verb — To order; to direct, to say to someone.

    verb — To reveal.

    verb — To discern, notice, identify or distinguish.

    Appeared in 11 recorded puzzles.

  • tenet

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • tenon

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • tent

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • toll

    noun — Loss or damage incurred through a disaster.

    verb — To impose a fee for the use of.

    noun — The act or sound of tolling

    verb — To ring (a bell) slowly and repeatedly.

    verb — To draw; pull; tug; drag.

    verb — To take away; to vacate; to annul.

    Appeared in 14 recorded puzzles.

  • tone

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • tonne

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • tool

    noun — A mechanical device intended to make a task easier.

    verb — To work on or shape with tools, e.g., hand-tooled leather.

    noun — Equipment used in a profession, e.g., tools of the trade.

    noun — Something to perform an operation; an instrument; a means.

    noun — A piece of software used to develop software or hardware, or to perform low-level operations.

    noun — A person or group which is used or controlled, usually unwittingly, by another person or group.

    Appeared in 14 recorded puzzles.

  • toon

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 21 recorded puzzles.

  • toot

    noun — The noise of a horn or whistle.

    verb — To stand out, or be prominent.

    noun — A toilet.

    noun — (by extension) A fart; flatus.

    noun — Cocaine.

    noun — A portion of cocaine that a person snorts.

    Appeared in 28 recorded puzzles.

  • tootle

    verb — To go (somewhere); to amble aimlessly.

    verb — To make a soft toot sound.

    verb — To play (a musical instrument) making such a sound.

    noun — A soft toot sound.

    noun — A trip or excursion.

    verb — To transport (someone somewhere).

    Appeared in 6 recorded puzzles.

  • tote

    noun — A tote bag.

    verb — To carry or bear.

    verb — To add up; to calculate a total.

    noun — A heavy burden.

    noun — (logistics) A kind of plastic box used for transporting goods.

    noun — A pari-mutuel machine; a totalizator.

    Appeared in 12 recorded puzzles.

  • velvet

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • velveteen

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • vent

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 2 recorded puzzles.

  • veto

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • volt

    noun — In the International System of Units, the derived unit of electrical potential and electromotive force (voltage); the potential difference across a conductor when a current of one ampere uses one watt of power. Symbol: V

    noun — A circular tread; a gait by which a horse going sideways round a centre makes two concentric tracks.

    noun — A sudden movement to avoid a thrust.

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • vote

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

Hints, no spoilers

Words by first two letters

  • be×7
  • bl×2
  • bo×6
  • en×1
  • ev×1
  • le×2
  • lo×2
  • ne×1
  • no×4
  • on×1
  • te×5
  • to×8
  • ve×4
  • vo×2

Words by first letter and length

45678910Σ
b 626···1 15
e ·1·1··· 2
l 22····· 4
n 111·11· 5
o 1······ 1
t 931···· 13
v 4·1··1· 6
Σ 23991121 46

The numbers

Genius today takes 120 points of 172 available. The average answer runs 5.1 letters.

Total points vs. all 380 recorded puzzles
34th percentile
Word count vs. all recorded puzzles
50th percentile

Word lengths, today vs. 17231 recorded answers

423 today34.6% all-time59 today22.8% all-time69 today19.9% all-time71 today12.1% all-time81 today6.3% all-time92 today2.6% all-time101 today1.2% all-time110.3% all-time120.1% all-time130.0% all-time

History

Today's letters, last seen

LetterLast in a puzzleLast as center
b Sunday, March 29, 2026 Sunday, March 29, 2026
e Saturday, March 28, 2026 Saturday, March 21, 2026
l Sunday, March 29, 2026 Wednesday, March 25, 2026
n Sunday, March 29, 2026 Saturday, March 28, 2026
o Sunday, March 29, 2026 Thursday, March 5, 2026
t ● Saturday, March 28, 2026 Monday, February 9, 2026
v Saturday, March 21, 2026 Wednesday, February 4, 2026

Most common answers, all recorded puzzles

  1. noon 41
  2. naan 30
  3. nana 30
  4. onion 28
  5. toot 28
  6. loll 27
  7. mama 25
  8. mamma 25
  9. cocoon 23
  10. nene 23
  11. acacia 22
  12. acai 22
  13. bill 22
  14. loon 22
  15. aria 21
  16. onto 21
  17. toon 21
  18. cancan 21
  19. canna 21
  20. neon 21
  21. none 21
  22. olio 21
  23. lilt 20
  24. till 20
  25. tilt 20

Valid words the Bee rejected

Dictionary words the Bee never takes

Legitimate words (per the ENABLE list) that fit the letters but aren't official answers — usually judged too obscure.