The Unofficial Hive

NYT Spelling Bee answers & analysis

DILNTWA

Tuesday, September 1, 2026

Edited by Sam Ezersky

Words
44
Points
151
Genius
105
Pangram
1

Official answers

Show the 44 answersHide answers

Pangram highlighted. Click a word for its definition.

  • alit

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • anal

    adjective — Of a person, compulsive and stubborn, obsessed with neatness and accuracy, supposedly from not having progressed beyond the anal stage.

    adjective — Of, related to, intended for or involving the anus.

    adjective — Of the stage in psychosexual development when the child's interest is alleged to be concentrated on the anal region.

    noun — Anal sex.

    noun — Any of the anal scales of a reptile.

    adjective — (of a vein) Proximate to the thorax.

    Appeared in 22 recorded puzzles.

  • annal

    noun — The record of a single event or item.

    Appeared in 22 recorded puzzles.

  • anti

    adjective — Opposed to something.

    noun — A person opposed to a concept or principle.

    preposition — Alternative form of anti-

    adjective — That has a torsion angle between 90° and 180°

    Appeared in 18 recorded puzzles.

  • atilt

    adjective — At an angle from the vertical or horizontal.

    adverb — At an angle from the vertical or horizontal; at the point of falling over.

    preposition — Diagonally over or across.

    adverb — Tilting or as if tilting (charging with a lance, like a knight on horseback in a joust).

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • attain

    verb — To gain (an object or desired result).

    verb — To reach or come to, by progression or motion; to arrive at (a place, time, state, etc.).

    verb — To reach in excellence or degree.

    verb — To come or arrive, by motion, growth, bodily exertion, or efforts toward a place, object, state, etc.

    verb — To get at the knowledge of.

    verb — To reach a person after being behind them.

    Appeared in 18 recorded puzzles.

  • await

    noun — A waiting for; ambush.

    verb — To wait for.

    noun — Watching, watchfulness, suspicious observation.

    verb — To expect.

    verb — To be in store for; to be ready or in waiting for.

    verb — To serve or attend; to wait on, wait upon.

  • data

    noun — (plural: data) A measurement of something on a scale understood by both the recorder (a person or device) and the reader (another person or device). The scale is arbitrarily defined, such as from 1 to 10 by ones, 1 to 100 by 0.1, or simply true or false, on or off, yes, no, or maybe, etc.

    noun — (plural: data) A fact known from direct observation.

    noun — (plural: data) A premise from which conclusions are drawn.

    noun — (plural: datums) A fixed reference point, or a coordinate system.

    Appeared in 12 recorded puzzles.

  • dawn

    noun — The morning twilight period immediately before sunrise.

    verb — To begin to brighten with daylight.

    noun — The rising of the sun.

    noun — The time when the sun rises.

    noun — The earliest phase of something.

    verb — To start to appear or be realized.

    Appeared in 2 recorded puzzles.

  • dial

    noun — A graduated, circular scale over which a needle moves to show a measurement (such as speed).

    noun — A clock face.

    verb — To control or select something with a dial, or (figuratively) as if with a dial.

    verb — To select a number, or to call someone, on a telephone.

    noun — A sundial.

    noun — A panel on a radio etc showing wavelengths or channels; a knob that is turned to change the wavelength etc.

    Appeared in 11 recorded puzzles.

  • initial

    adjective — Chronologically first, early; of or pertaining to the beginning, cause or origin.

    noun — In plural, the first letter of each word of a person's full name considered as a unit.

    noun — The first letter of a word or a name.

    verb — To sign one's initial(s), as an abbreviated signature.

    noun — A distinguished initial letter of a chapter or section of a document.

    adjective — Spatially first, placed at the beginning, in the first position; especially said of the first letter of a word.

    Appeared in 8 recorded puzzles.

  • inlaid

    adjective — (of a design) Set into a surface in a decorative pattern.

    adjective — (of the surface of an item) Having an inset decorative pattern.

    verb — To place (pieces of a foreign material) within another material to form a decorative design.

    verb — To place an inlay in a tooth.

    Appeared in 7 recorded puzzles.

  • inland

    noun — The interior part of a country.

    adverb — Into, or towards, the interior of the land, away from the coast.

    adjective — Within the land; relatively remote from the ocean or from open water; interior

    adjective — Limited to the land, or to inland routes; within the seashore boundary; not passing on, or over, the sea

    adjective — Confined to a country or state; domestic; not foreign.

    Appeared in 7 recorded puzzles.

  • laid

    verb — To place down in a position of rest, or in a horizontal position.

    verb — To produce and deposit an egg.

    verb — To have sex with.

    verb — To install certain building materials, laying one thing on top of another.

    verb — To prepare (a plan, project etc.); to set out, establish (a law, principle).

    verb — To state; to allege.

    Appeared in 11 recorded puzzles.

  • lain

    verb — To rest in a horizontal position on a surface.

    verb — To be placed or situated.

    verb — To abide; to remain for a longer or shorter time; to be in a certain state or condition.

    verb — Used with with: to have sexual relations with.

    verb — Used with in: to be or exist; to belong or pertain; to have an abiding place; to consist.

    verb — Used with on/upon: to be incumbent (on); to be the responsibility of a person.

    Appeared in 16 recorded puzzles.

  • lanai

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

    Appeared in 16 recorded puzzles.

  • land

    noun — The part of Earth which is not covered by oceans or other bodies of water.

    noun — Real estate or landed property; a partitioned and measurable area which is owned and on which buildings can be erected.

    noun — A country or region.

    verb — To descend to a surface, especially from the air.

    verb — To acquire; to secure.

    adjective — Of or relating to land.

    Appeared in 10 recorded puzzles.

  • lantana

    noun — Any member of the genus Lantana of perennial verbenas with aromatic flower clusters.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • lawn

    noun — An open space between woods.

    noun — A type of thin linen or cotton.

    noun — Ground (generally in front of or around a house) covered with grass kept closely mown.

    noun — An overgrown agar culture, such that no separation between single colonies exists.

    noun — (in the plural) Pieces of this fabric, especially as used for the sleeves of a bishop.

    noun — A piece of clothing made from lawn.

  • naan

    noun — A type of round, flat bread baked in a tandoor popular in South and Central Asian cuisine.

    Appeared in 35 recorded puzzles.

  • nada

    pronoun — Nothing.

    Appeared in 16 recorded puzzles.

  • naiad

    noun — A female deity (nymph) associated with water, especially a spring, stream, or other fresh water.

    noun — The aquatic larva (nymph) of a dragonfly or damselfly.

    noun — Any of various aquatic plants of the genus Najas.

    Appeared in 11 recorded puzzles.

  • nail

    noun — The thin, horny plate at the ends of fingers and toes on humans and some other animals.

    noun — 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.

    verb — To fix (an object) to another object using a nail.

    verb — To drive a nail.

    verb — To nail down: to make certain, or confirm.

    verb — To accomplish (a task) completely and successfully.

    Appeared in 16 recorded puzzles.

  • nana

    noun — (term of endearment) one's grandmother

    noun — A banana

    noun — A fool

    noun — A nanny

    Appeared in 35 recorded puzzles.

  • natal

    adjective — Of or relating to birth.

    adjective — Of or relating to the buttocks.

    Appeared in 9 recorded puzzles.

  • natant

    adjective — Floating or swimming (in water)

    adjective — In a horizontal position, as if swimming

    Appeared in 22 recorded puzzles.

  • tail

    noun — The caudal appendage of an animal that is attached to its posterior and near the anus.

    noun — The back, last, lower, or inferior part of anything.

    noun — (chiefly in the plural) The side of a coin not bearing the head; normally the side on which the monetary value of the coin is indicated; the reverse.

    noun — The tail-end of an object, e.g. the rear of an aircraft's fuselage, containing the tailfin.

    verb — To follow and observe surreptitiously.

    noun — The latter part of a time period or event, or (collectively) persons or objects represented in this part.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • tailwind

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • taint

    verb — To contaminate or corrupt (something) with an external agent, either physically or morally.

    noun — A mark of disgrace, especially on one's character; blemish

    noun — A contamination, decay or putrefaction, especially in food

    verb — To spoil (food) by contamination.

    noun — Infection; corruption; deprivation

    noun — A marker indicating that a variable is unsafe and should be subjected to additional security checks.

    Appeared in 18 recorded puzzles.

  • tali

    noun — The bone of the ankle.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • tall

    adjective — (of a person) Having a vertical extent greater than the average. For example, somebody with a height of over 6 feet would generally be considered to be tall.

    adjective — (of a building, etc.) Having its top a long way up; having a great vertical (and often greater than horizontal) extent; high.

    adjective — (of a story) Hard to believe, such as a tall story or a tall tale.

    adjective — (of a cup of coffee) A cup of coffee smaller than grande, usually 8 ounces.

    noun — (possibly nonstandard) Someone or something that is tall.

    Appeared in 14 recorded puzzles.

  • tallit

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 13 recorded puzzles.

  • tannin

    noun — Tannic acid or any of its derivatives.

    Appeared in 18 recorded puzzles.

  • tidal

    adjective — Relating to tides

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • titan

    noun — Something or someone of very large stature, greatness, or godliness.

    Appeared in 18 recorded puzzles.

  • twain

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • wail

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

  • wait

    noun — A delay.

    verb — To delay movement or action until the arrival or occurrence of; to await. (Now generally superseded by “wait for”.)

    noun — An ambush.

    noun — One who watches; a watchman.

    noun — (in the plural) Hautboys, or oboes, played by town musicians.

    noun — (in the plural) Musicians who sing or play at night or in the early morning, especially at Christmas time; serenaders; musical watchmen. [formerly waites, wayghtes.]

  • wall

    noun — A rampart of earth, stones etc. built up for defensive purposes.

    verb — To enclose with, or as if with, a wall or walls.

    verb — To boil.

    noun — A spring of water.

    noun — A kind of knot often used at the end of a rope; a wall knot or wale.

    verb — To make a wall knot on the end of (a rope).

    Appeared in 2 recorded puzzles.

  • wand

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 2 recorded puzzles.

  • wanna

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

    Appeared in 3 recorded puzzles.

  • want

    noun — A desire, wish, longing.

    verb — To wish for or desire (something); to feel a need or desire for; to crave or demand.

    noun — (often followed by of) Lack, absence.

    noun — Poverty.

    noun — Something needed or desired; a thing of which the loss is felt.

    noun — A depression in coal strata, hollowed out before the subsequent deposition took place.

    Appeared in 2 recorded puzzles.

  • watt

    noun — In the International System of Units, the derived unit of power; the power of a system in which one joule of energy is transferred per second. Symbol: W

    Appeared in 4 recorded puzzles.

  • wildland

    No cached definition. Look it up on Wiktionary.

Hints, no spoilers

Words by first two letters

  • al×1
  • an×3
  • at×2
  • aw×1
  • da×2
  • di×1
  • in×3
  • la×6
  • na×7
  • ta×7
  • ti×2
  • tw×1
  • wa×7
  • wi×1

Words by first letter and length

45678Σ
a 331·· 7
d 3···· 3
i ··21· 3
l 41·1· 6
n 421·· 7
t 342·1 10
w 61··1 8
Σ 2311622 44

The numbers

Genius today takes 105 points of 151 available. The average answer runs 4.8 letters.

Total points vs. all 431 recorded puzzles
24th percentile
Word count vs. all recorded puzzles
47th percentile

Word lengths, today vs. 19454 recorded answers

423 today34.5% all-time511 today22.9% all-time66 today20.0% all-time72 today12.0% all-time82 today6.2% all-time92.6% 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
a ● Monday, August 31, 2026 Friday, July 3, 2026
d Monday, August 31, 2026 Thursday, August 6, 2026
i Sunday, August 30, 2026 Saturday, August 22, 2026
l Monday, August 31, 2026 Monday, August 31, 2026
n Sunday, August 30, 2026 Monday, August 24, 2026
t Sunday, August 30, 2026 Saturday, August 29, 2026
w Thursday, August 27, 2026 Saturday, June 27, 2026

Most common answers, all recorded puzzles

  1. noon 45
  2. naan 35
  3. nana 35
  4. toot 32
  5. onion 31
  6. loll 30
  7. mama 27
  8. mamma 27
  9. nene 26
  10. acacia 25
  11. acai 25
  12. cocoon 24
  13. onto 24
  14. toon 24
  15. mini 24
  16. minim 24
  17. loon 24
  18. olio 24
  19. aria 23
  20. imam 23
  21. maim 23
  22. mitt 23
  23. cancan 23
  24. canna 23
  25. neon 23

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.