The Unofficial Hive

NYT Spelling Bee answers & analysis

DEFILVO

Sunday, July 5, 2026

Edited by Sam Ezersky

Words
54
Points
232
Genius
162
Pangram
1

Official answers

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Pangram highlighted. Click a word for its definition.

  • devoid

    adjective — Empty; having none of; completely without

    verb — To empty out; to remove.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • devolve

    verb — To fall as a duty or responsibility on or upon someone.

    verb — To delegate (a responsibility, duty, etc.) on or upon someone.

    verb — To degenerate; to break down.

    verb — To be inherited by someone else; to pass down upon the next person in a succession, especially through failure or loss of an earlier holder.

    verb — To roll (something) down; to unroll.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • devolved

    verb — To fall as a duty or responsibility on or upon someone.

    verb — To delegate (a responsibility, duty, etc.) on or upon someone.

    verb — To degenerate; to break down.

    verb — To be inherited by someone else; to pass down upon the next person in a succession, especially through failure or loss of an earlier holder.

    verb — To roll (something) down; to unroll.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • dildo

    noun — An artificial phallus (penis) for sexual use.

    noun — An idiot, a bore.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • diode

    noun — An electronic device that allows current to flow in one direction only; used chiefly as a rectifier.

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • dodo

    noun — A large, flightless bird, †Raphus cucullatus, related to the pigeon, that is now extinct (since the 1600s) and was native to Mauritius.

    noun — A person or organisation which is very old or has very old-fashioned views or is not willing to change and adapt.

    noun — Fried plantain.

    Appeared in 14 recorded puzzles.

  • doff

    verb — To remove or tip a hat, as in greeting, salutation or as a mark of respect.

    verb — (clothing) To remove or take off, especially of clothing.

    verb — To get rid of, to throw off.

    verb — To strip; to divest; to undress.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • doffed

    verb — To remove or tip a hat, as in greeting, salutation or as a mark of respect.

    verb — (clothing) To remove or take off, especially of clothing.

    verb — To get rid of, to throw off.

    verb — To strip; to divest; to undress.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • dole

    verb — To distribute in small amounts; to share out small portions of a meager resource.

    noun — Payment by the state to the unemployed.

    noun — Money or other goods given as charity.

    noun — Distribution; dealing; apportionment.

    noun — A boundary; a landmark.

    noun — Sorrow or grief; dolour.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • doled

    verb — To distribute in small amounts; to share out small portions of a meager resource.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • doll

    noun — A toy in the form of a human.

    noun — A term of endearment: darling, sweetheart.

    noun — (sometimes offensive) An attractive young woman

    noun — A dollar.

    noun — (now possibly offensive) A good-natured, cooperative or helpful girl.

    noun — The smallest or pet pig in a litter.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • dolled

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • dollied

    verb — To move (an object) using a dolly.

    verb — To hit a dolly.

    verb — To wash (laundry) in a tub using the stirring device called a dolly.

    verb — To beat (red-hot metal) with a hammer.

    verb — To crush ore with a dolly.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • doodle

    verb — To draw or scribble aimlessly.

    noun — A small mindless sketch, etc.

    noun — Any crossbreed of a poodle with a different breed of dog.

    noun — A fool, a simpleton, a mindless person.

    noun — (sometimes childish) Penis.

    verb — To drone like a bagpipe.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • doodled

    verb — To draw or scribble aimlessly.

    verb — To drone like a bagpipe.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • dove

    noun — A pigeon, especially one smaller in size; a bird (often arbitrarily called either a pigeon or a dove or both) of more than 300 species of the family Columbidae.

    verb — To jump into water head-first.

    verb — To jump headfirst toward the ground or into another substance.

    verb — (especially with in) To undertake with enthusiasm.

    verb — To plunge or to go deeply into any subject, question, business, etc.; to penetrate; to explore.

    noun — A person favouring conciliation and negotiation rather than conflict.

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

  • evolve

    verb — To change; transform.

    verb — Of a population, to change genetic composition over successive generations through the process of evolution.

    verb — To come into being; develop.

    verb — To cause something to change or transform.

    verb — To move in regular procession through a system.

    verb — To give off (gas, such as oxygen or carbon dioxide during a reaction).

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • evolved

    verb — To change; transform.

    verb — Of a population, to change genetic composition over successive generations through the process of evolution.

    adjective — Having arisen through a process of evolution or iterative development.

    verb — To come into being; develop.

    verb — To cause something to change or transform.

    verb — To move in regular procession through a system.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • fivefold

    adjective — In fives; consisting of five in one; quintuple.

    adverb — By a factor of five.

  • floe

    noun — A low, flat mass of floating ice.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • flood

    noun — A (usually disastrous) overflow of water from a lake or other body of water due to excessive rainfall or other input of water.

    verb — To overflow, as by water from excessive rainfall.

    verb — To cover or partly fill as if by a flood.

    noun — A large number or quantity of anything appearing more rapidly than can easily be dealt with.

    verb — To provide (someone or something) with a larger number or quantity of something than can easily be dealt with.

    noun — A floodlight.

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • flooded

    adjective — Filled with water from rain or rivers.

    adjective — (by extension) Overwhelmed with too much of something.

    verb — To provide (someone or something) with a larger number or quantity of something than can easily be dealt with.

    adjective — Filled with too much fluid.

    verb — To overflow, as by water from excessive rainfall.

    verb — To cover or partly fill as if by a flood.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • foil

    noun — A very thin sheet of metal.

    noun — Thin aluminium/aluminum (or, formerly, tin) used for wrapping food.

    verb — To prevent (something) from being accomplished.

    noun — (authorship) In literature, theatre/theater, etc., a character who helps emphasize the traits of the main character and who usually acts as an opponent or antagonist.

    verb — To cover or wrap with foil.

    noun — A very thin sword with a blunted (or foiled) tip

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

  • foiled

    verb — To prevent (something) from being accomplished.

    adjective — Having a foil.

    verb — To cover or wrap with foil.

    verb — To prevent (someone) from accomplishing something.

    verb — To blunt; to dull; to spoil.

    verb — To expand a product of two or more algebraic expressions, typically binomials.

  • fold

    verb — To bend (any thin material, such as paper) over so that it comes in contact with itself.

    noun — A bend or crease.

    noun — An act of folding.

    verb — To become folded; to form folds.

    verb — To stir gently, with a folding action.

    verb — To give way on a point or in an argument.

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • folded

    verb — To bend (any thin material, such as paper) over so that it comes in contact with itself.

    verb — To become folded; to form folds.

    verb — To make the proper arrangement (in a thin material) by bending.

    verb — To stir gently, with a folding action.

    verb — To give way on a point or in an argument.

    verb — To fall over; to be crushed.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • folio

    noun — (books) A book made of sheets of paper each folded in half (two leaves or four pages to the sheet); hence, a book of the largest kind, exceeding 30 cm in height.

    noun — A leaf of a book or manuscript

    noun — A page of a book, that is, one side of a leaf of a book.

    noun — A page number. The even folios are on the left-hand pages and the odd folios on the right-hand pages.

    verb — To put a serial number on each folio or page of (a book); to page

    noun — A page in an account book; sometimes, two opposite pages bearing the same serial number.

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

  • food

    noun — Any solid substance that can be consumed by living organisms, especially by eating, in order to sustain life.

    noun — A foodstuff.

    noun — Anything that nourishes or sustains.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • foodie

    noun — A person with a special interest in or knowledge of food, a gourmet.

  • fool

    noun — A person with poor judgment or little intelligence.

    verb — To trick; to deceive

    verb — To act in an idiotic manner; to act foolishly

    noun — A jester; a person whose role was to entertain a sovereign and the court (or lower personages).

    noun — A type of dessert made of puréed fruit and custard or cream.

    noun — Buddy, dude, man.

    Appeared in 10 recorded puzzles.

  • fooled

    verb — To trick; to deceive

    verb — To act in an idiotic manner; to act foolishly

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • idol

    noun — A cultural icon, or especially popular person.

    noun — (originally Japan) Popular entertainer; usually young, captivating, attractive; and often female, with an image of being close to fans.

    noun — A graven image or representation of anything that is revered, or believed to convey spiritual power.

    noun — An eidolon or phantom; something misleading or elusive.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • iodide

    noun — A binary compound of iodine and another element or radical.

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • lode

    noun — A vein of metallic ore that lies within definite boundaries, or within a fissure.

    noun — (by extension) A rich source of supply.

    noun — A way or path; a road.

    noun — A watercourse.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • loll

    verb — To act lazily or indolently while reclining; to lean; to lie at ease.

    verb — To hang extended from the mouth, like the tongue of an animal heated from exertion.

    verb — To let (the tongue) hang from the mouth in this way.

    Appeared in 27 recorded puzzles.

  • lolled

    verb — To act lazily or indolently while reclining; to lean; to lie at ease.

    verb — To laugh out loud.

    verb — To hang extended from the mouth, like the tongue of an animal heated from exertion.

    verb — To let (the tongue) hang from the mouth in this way.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • love

    noun — Strong affection.

    verb — (usually transitive, sometimes intransitive, stative) To have a strong affection for (someone or something).

    noun — A person who is the object of romantic feelings; a darling, a sweetheart, a beloved.

    noun — A thing, activity etc which is the object of one's deep liking or enthusiasm.

    verb — To be strongly inclined towards something; an emphatic form of like.

    verb — (usually transitive, sometimes intransitive) To care deeply about, to be dedicated to (someone or something).

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • loved

    verb — (usually transitive, sometimes intransitive, stative) To have a strong affection for (someone or something).

    adjective — Being the object of love.

    verb — To be strongly inclined towards something; an emphatic form of like.

    verb — (usually transitive, sometimes intransitive) To care deeply about, to be dedicated to (someone or something).

    verb — To derive delight from a fact or situation.

    verb — To need, thrive on.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • offed

    verb — To kill.

    verb — To switch off.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • oiled

    adjective — Covered in, or supplied with, oil.

    verb — To lubricate with oil.

    adjective — Drunk. Usually in conjunction with well.

    verb — To grease with oil for cooking.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • oldie

    noun — A song or record from a previous era.

    noun — (in the plural) The genre of music composed of popular music from previous eras.

    noun — Something or someone old.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • oleo

    noun — Margarine

    noun — The various fats and oils that go into the making of margarine.

    Appeared in 18 recorded puzzles.

  • olio

    noun — A medley or mixture; a hotchpotch.

    noun — A collection of various musical, theatrical or other artistic works; a miscellany.

    noun — A rich, thick, Spanish stew consisting of meat and vegetables.

    noun — (by extension) Vaudeville or similar miscellaneous musical or theatrical entertainment skits presented between the main acts of burlesque or minstrel shows.

    Appeared in 21 recorded puzzles.

  • olive

    noun — The small oval fruit of this tree, eaten ripe (usually black) or unripe (usually green).

    noun — A tree, Olea europaea, cultivated since ancient times in the Mediterranean for its fruit and the oil obtained from it.

    adjective — Of a grayish green color, that of an unripe olive.

    noun — A dark yellowish-green color, that of an unripe olive.

    noun — The wood of the olive tree.

    noun — A component of a plumbing compression joint; a ring which is placed between the nut and the pipe and compressed during fastening to provide a seal.

  • ollie

    noun — An aerial maneuver in which one catches air by leaping off the ground with the skateboard and into the air.

    verb — To perform an ollie.

    Appeared in 11 recorded puzzles.

  • ovoid

    adjective — Shaped like an oval.

    noun — Something that is oval in shape.

    adjective — Egg-shaped; shaped like an oval, but more tapered at one end; ovate.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • video

    noun — Television, television show, movie.

    noun — A short film clip, with or without audio (as in a music video, or one of the plethora of user-generated short movies on sites such as YouTube).

    verb — To record using a video camera, to videotape

    noun — Motion picture stored on VHS or some other format.

    verb — To record a television program

    noun — VHS.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • videoed

    verb — To record using a video camera, to videotape

    verb — To record a television program

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • viol

    noun — A stringed instrument related to the violin family, but held in the lap between the legs like a cello, usually with C-holes, a flat back, a fretted neck and six strings, played with an underhanded bow hold.

    verb — To play the viol.

    Appeared in 2 recorded puzzles.

  • void

    adjective — Containing nothing; empty; not occupied or filled.

    noun — An empty space; a vacuum.

    adjective — Being without; destitute; devoid.

    verb — To make invalid or worthless.

    verb — To empty.

    adjective — Not producing any effect; ineffectual; vain.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • voided

    verb — To make invalid or worthless.

    verb — To empty.

    adjective — With the centre cut out.

    verb — To throw or send out; to evacuate; to emit; to discharge.

    verb — To withdraw, depart.

    verb — To remove the contents of; to make or leave vacant or empty; to quit; to leave.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • voile

    noun — A light, translucent cotton fabric used for making curtains and dresses.

  • vole

    noun — Any of a large number of species of small rodents of the subfamily Arvicolinae of the family Cricetidae which are not lemmings or muskrats.

    noun — A deal in a card game, écarté, that draws all the tricks.

    verb — To win all the tricks by a vole.

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • voodoo

    noun — Any of a group of related religious practices found chiefly in and around the Caribbean, particularly in Haiti and Louisiana.

    noun — Any sort of magical or irrational approach to a problem.

    noun — The spiritual beliefs of the Ewe/Fon of West Africa, practiced chiefly in Benin and in the south of Togo.

    noun — One who practices voodoo; a native sorcerer.

    verb — To bewitch someone or something using voodoo

    Appeared in 5 recorded puzzles.

Hints, no spoilers

Words by first two letters

  • de×3
  • di×2
  • do×11
  • ev×2
  • fi×1
  • fl×3
  • fo×9
  • id×1
  • io×1
  • lo×5
  • of×1
  • oi×1
  • ol×5
  • ov×1
  • vi×3
  • vo×5

Words by first letter and length

45678Σ
d 53431 16
e ··11· 2
f 52411 13
i 1·1·· 2
l 311·· 5
o 26··· 8
v 3221· 8
Σ 19141362 54

The numbers

Genius today takes 162 points of 232 available. The average answer runs 5.2 letters.

Total points vs. all 378 recorded puzzles
62nd percentile
Word count vs. all recorded puzzles
69th percentile

Word lengths, today vs. 17142 recorded answers

419 today34.5% all-time514 today22.8% all-time613 today20.0% all-time76 today12.1% all-time82 today6.3% all-time92.5% all-time101.2% all-time110.3% all-time120.1% all-time130.0% all-time

History

Today's letters, last seen

LetterLast in a puzzleLast as center
d Friday, July 3, 2026 Friday, April 24, 2026
e Saturday, July 4, 2026 Wednesday, July 1, 2026
f Monday, June 29, 2026 Friday, June 5, 2026
i Saturday, July 4, 2026 Thursday, June 25, 2026
l Saturday, July 4, 2026 Tuesday, June 2, 2026
o ● Friday, July 3, 2026 Tuesday, June 30, 2026
v Sunday, June 28, 2026 Sunday, June 28, 2026

Most common answers, all recorded puzzles

  1. noon 41
  2. naan 30
  3. nana 30
  4. onion 28
  5. toot 27
  6. loll 27
  7. mama 24
  8. mamma 24
  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. anon 20
  24. lull 19
  25. lulu 19

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.