A
B
O
T
R
I
V

Tuesday, January 6, 2026

Welcome to today’s New York Times Spelling Bee hints and answers. Today’s puzzle features a substantially larger than average board today, promising plenty of opportunities with a center letter of “T”. With a total of 53 words to find resulting in 245 total possible points, we are looking at a massively high scoring ceiling. Impressively, there are 2 pangrams to uncover. Whether you’re stuck looking for those elusive final few words to reach Genius rank, or simply seeking a gentle nudge to get the ball rolling, you’re in the right place. Dive into our comprehensive two-letter lists, explore our word length grid, and uncover targeted Merriam-Webster definitions tailored specifically to help you without giving the entire game away immediately. Good luck mastering the hive!

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Puzzle Stats

Total Words :

53

Total Pangrams :

2

Total Points:

245

Genius Score :

172

Pangram

Finding the nyt pangram is key to reaching “Genius” status.
Below is progressive reveal to help you achieve it.

7-letter pangram 0 / 7 letters revealed
???????
8-letter pangram 0 / 8 letters revealed
????????

NYT Spelling Bee Hints & Grid

Maximize your score without ruining the fun.

The grid shows how many words start with each letter, broken down by word length.

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Σ
A – 5 1 2 – – 1 9
B 4 1 – – – – – 5
I 1 – – – – – – 1
O 1 1 1 – 1 – – 4
R 3 4 2 2 – – – 11
T 8 8 3 1 – 1 – 21
V – – – 1 1 – – 2
Σ 17 19 7 6 2 1 1 53

Knowing the first two letters of a missing word is often the perfect clue. Here is the two letter list for today’s puzzle.

  • AB 2
  • AI 1
  • AO 1
  • AR 1
  • AT 2
  • AV 2
  • BA 1
  • BI 1
  • BO 2
  • BR 1
  • IO 1
  • OB 1
  • OR 3
  • RA 4
  • RI 2
  • RO 5
  • TA 7
  • TI 2
  • TO 6
  • TR 6
  • VI 2

Dictionary Clues for Todays List.

AB

  1. AB5 — as in bishop, archbishop; archbishop; archpriest; bishop; dean sounds like agate, but, butt, habit, rabbit
  2. AB5 — to put an end to (something planned or previously agreed to); abandon; call; call off; cancel sounds like assort

AI

  1. AI7 — as in hovercraft, air-cushion vehicle; air-cushion vehicle; hovercraft; cockleshell; tub sounds like boat, elbow, errant, orbit, rote

AO

  1. AO5 — sounds like aura, chortle, court, fort, mortal

AR

  1. AR10 — a person who impartially decides or resolves a dispute or controversy; adjudicator; arbiter; judge; referee

AT

  1. AT5 — as in peristyles, gallerias; gallerias; parvises; peristyles; closes sounds like area, aria, outreach, streak, stream
  2. AT5 — a sweet or pleasant smell; aroma; balm; bouquet; fragrance sounds like butter, cutter, eater, gutter, mutter

AV

  1. AV6 — a visible representation of something abstract (as a quality); abstract; embodier; embodiment; epitome sounds like actor, after, amateur, aster, hotter
  2. AV7 — one who flies or is qualified to fly an aircraft or spacecraft; airman; birdman; flier; pilot sounds like creator, radiator

BA

  1. BA4 — something used to attract animals to a hook or into a trap; something that persuades one to perform an action for pleasure or gain; decoy; lure; allurement sounds like abate, ate

BI

  1. BI5 — sounds like iota

BO

  1. BO4 — a small buoyant structure for travel on water; a large craft for travel by water; bottom; craft; vessel sounds like bait, bat, beat, beau, beet
  2. BO4 — to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way; blow; bobble; boggle; bollix (up) sounds like bait, bat, beat, beet, bet

BR

  1. BR4 — as in nuisance, disrupter; disrupter; misbehaver; nuisance; ragamuffin sounds like bat, rat

IO

  1. IO4 — the smallest amount or part imaginable; beans; bubkes; continental; damn sounds like aroma, beta, boa, boat, boater

OB

  1. OB4 — a notice of a person’s death usually with a short biographical account; necrology; obituary sounds like bit, omit

OR

  1. OR6 — a person who makes usually formal public speeches; lecturer; speaker sounds like altar, alter, amateur, auditor, aura
  2. OR8 — as in mass; mass; Gloria Patri; hallelujah; paean
  3. OR5 — as in circle, loop; circle; circuit; loop; course sounds like abbot, argot, aura, aural, but

RA

  1. RA6 — as in raccoon, fox; badger; beaver; chamois; chinchilla sounds like abbot, habit, rebut
  2. RA5 — sounds like beta
  3. RA7 — sounds like habitat
  4. RA5 — the relationship in quantity, amount, or size between two or more things; proportion; rate

RI

  1. RI6 — sounds like rebut
  2. RI4 — someone or something that is very funny; hoot; knee-slapper; laugh; scream sounds like diet, rut, write

RO

  1. RO5 — sounds like bought, probate, rabbit, rebate, rebut
  2. RO4 — a point or place at which something is invented or provided; the source from which something grows or develops; an immaterial thing upon which something else rests; cradle; font sounds like boot, brute, chute, fruit, hoot
  3. RO7 — sounds like rattler, rioter, stutter
  4. RO4 — sounds like goatee, ratty, wrote
  5. RO5 — as in gyroplane, convertiplane; as in biplane, triplane; autogiro; convertiplane; gyroplane sounds like boater, motor, voter, writer

TA

  1. TA5 — that may not be permitted; banned; barred; forbidden; impermissible
  2. TA5 —
  3. TA4 — sounds like borrow, morrow, sorrow
  4. TA5 — sounds like carrot
  5. TA4 — causing or characterized by the one of the basic taste sensations that is produced chiefly by acids; marked by the use of wit that is intended to cause hurt feelings; acid; acidic; acidulous sounds like art, cart, chart, dart, heart
  6. TA6 — sounds like barter, charter, garter, martyr, starter
  7. TA6 —

TI

  1. TI5 — as in anadem; anadem; chaplet; coronal; coronet sounds like rearm, tar, tarred, tart, zebra
  2. TI5 — sounds like phobia, tabby, trivia, tuba

TO

  1. TO4 — a bout of prolonged or excessive drinking; bender; binge; bust; carousal sounds like boot, chute, hoot, jute, loot
  2. TO4 — sounds like gory, story, talky, tarry, tawdry
  3. TO5 — sounds like boring, corny, forage, foresee, gory
  4. TO4 —
  5. TO4 — sounds like court, fort, port, short, sort
  6. TO5 — sounds like aorta

TR

  1. TR5 — something that sets apart an individual from others of the same kind; affection; attribute; attribution; character sounds like crate, freight, grate, great, irate
  2. TR7 — one who betrays a trust or an allegiance; apostate; backstabber; betrayer; double-crosser sounds like crater, freighter, greater, straighter
  3. TR9 — sounds like oratorio, oratory, territorial, territory, tutorial
  4. TR4 — a group of three; threesome; triad; trifecta; trinity
  5. TR6 — as in nonsense, trash; bunk; claptrap; drivel; follies
  6. TR4 — a mean or ugly old woman; abnormally frequent intestinal evacuations with more or less fluid stools; beldam; carline; crone sounds like rot

VI

  1. VI7 — sounds like libretto, veto
  2. VI8 —

The Complete Word List (Spoiler Alert!)

Ready to see the words? Use the toggles below to reveal today’s nyt spelling bee answers.

  • bait
  • boat
  • boot
  • brat
  • iota
  • obit
  • riot
  • root
  • roti
  • taro
  • tart
  • toot
  • tori
  • toro
  • tort
  • trio
  • trot

  • abbot
  • abort
  • airboat
  • aorta
  • arbitrator
  • atria
  • attar
  • avatar
  • aviator
  • biota
  • orator
  • oratorio
  • orbit
  • rabbit
  • raita
  • ratatat
  • ratio
  • ribbit
  • robot
  • rotator
  • rotor
  • taboo
  • tabor
  • tarot
  • tartar
  • tattoo
  • tiara
  • tibia
  • torii
  • torta
  • trait
  • traitor
  • trattoria
  • trivia
  • vibrato
  • vibrator

Valid dictionary words not in today’s official answers

Today’s puzzle have total of 86 valid dictionary words that are excluded. If you found a valid dictionary word that wasn’t accepted, it’s likely due to the New York Times Spelling Bee’s strict editorial criteria. Sam Ezersky, the puzzle’s editor, manually curates the daily word list to balance difficulty and fairness.

  • Obscure or Highly Technical Words: Medical, legal, and intensely specific scientific jargon is frequently omitted to keep the puzzle accessible to a general audience.
  • Offensive Language: Vulgar or derogatory words are universally banned.
  • Proper Nouns: Capitalized names of people or places are never allowed.
  • Hyphenated Words: Multi-word combinations containing hyphens are excluded.
  • Letter S / Plurals: The letter “S” is generally never included on a Spelling Bee board to avoid making the game too simple by tacking plurals onto every word.

  • AARTI
  • ABATOR
  • ABATTOIR
  • AIRT
  • ARIOT
  • ARTI
  • ATAATA
  • ATTRIT
  • BABBITT
  • BARRAT
  • BARRATOR
  • BATATA
  • BATAVIA
  • BATT
  • BATTA
  • BITO
  • BITT
  • BITTOR
  • BOART
  • BOBBITT
  • BORT
  • BOTA
  • BOTT
  • BRAATA
  • BRIARROOT
  • BRIT
  • BRITT
  • IRRITATOR
  • OBIIT
  • OBVIATOR
  • OOBIT
  • ORBITA
  • OTTAR
  • OTTAVA
  • OTTO
  • OVATOR
  • RABAT
  • RABATO
  • RABBITO
  • RAIT
  • RATA
  • RATO
  • RATOO
  • RIATA
  • RITT
  • RORT
  • ROTA
  • ROTAVATOR
  • ROTO
  • ROTOVATOR
  • TAATA
  • TABI
  • TAIRA
  • TAIT
  • TARA
  • TATAR
  • TATT
  • TAVA
  • TIAR
  • TIRITI
  • TIRO
  • TIRR
  • TIRRIT
  • TITBIT
  • TITI
  • TITIVATOR
  • TITRATOR
  • TITTIVATOR
  • TOIT
  • TOITOI
  • TOOART
  • TORA
  • TOROT
  • TORR
  • TOTARA
  • TRAT
  • TRATT
  • TRIOR
  • TROAT
  • TROTTOIR
  • VIATOR
  • VITA
  • VITIATOR
  • VITTA
  • VIVAT
  • VROT