* * * * This section is under development; check back often for updates. * * * *
GamePlay: Mastering & Enjoying the Bee
Here is helpful information about how the Spelling Bee puzzle works, with tips and tricks for solving success, guides to navigating the Spelling Bee forum, and more.
NOTE: The information in these guides pertains to the browser-based versions of the New York Times Spelling Bee and the Spelling Bee forum, and to the full solving experience available to subscribers.
NEW FEATURE: Bee Buzz As an informal supplement to our monthly and annual data reports, LexiConnexxions also offers Bee Buzz, a mostly-daily feature that offers insights about the Bee of the day, with information that might inform a player's solving experience, such as changes to the Bee lexicon, relevant bits of Bee history, solving tips or insights, notes about new or particularly interesting Bee words, and more. Start reading HERE.
Click on a title below to learn more about...
THE SPELLING BEE PUZZLE INTERFACE The Spelling Bee puzzle page includes not only the puzzle itself, but several helpful guides and links to additional information. Here is a rundown of the many elements on this page, with links to more information.
ENTERING WORDS IN THE SPELLING BEE A simple guide to entering words into the Spelling Bee puzzle, with an explanation of how the hidden rules affect what happens next.
RANKS AND SCORING A guide to the Spelling Bee's scores and ranking system (including insights about the hidden "Easter Egg" goal).
PANGRAMS AND BINGO A simple explanation of pangrams and bingo: What they are, how they are (and are not) related, and how knowing their secrets can make you a better solver.
THE OFFICIAL HINTS PAGE A guide to the essential information on the New York Times Spelling Bee’s Official Hints page: The puzzle data, grid, and two-letter list.
SPELLING BEE BUDDY Coming soon!
ALL THE SPELLING BEE RULES Coming soon!
A SPELLING BEE GLOSSARY Coming soon!
HOW WORDS ARE SELECTED FOR THE BEE AND WHY IT MATTERS Coming soon!
WHY A WORD YOU KNOW MIGHT NOT BE IN THE BEE Coming soon!
SOLV-ING STRATEGIES While an I+N+G Bee can be fun to solve, it also presents some unique challenges, as the use of the -ING suffix requires a solver to think “outside” the Bee, for two very important reasons.
NAVIGATING THE SPELLING BEE FORUM Coming soon!
PARTICIPATING IN THE SPELLING BEE FORUM A guide to the landscape, conventions, and traditions of the Spelling Bee Forum, with posting tips and insights for getting the most out of this rich resource.
MORE HELPFUL RESOURCES Coming soon!
If you cite information from this LexiConnexxions report, please give credit and a link to this page. These reports and analyses are compiled and prepared by a human being, not a machine. Thank you.
ESSENTIAL SPELLING BEE RESOURCES
The Spelling Bee Puzzlehttps://www.nytimes.com/puzzles/spelling-bee
The Spelling Bee Forumhttps://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/spelling-bee-forum Glossary of Spelling Bee Terms https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/26/crosswords/spelling-bee-forum-introduction.html
Spelling Bee Buddyhttps://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/upshot/spelling-bee-buddy.htmlAn interactive tool that provides personalized hints and statistics for your daily Spelling Bee solve.
New York Times Help page for Spelling Beehttps://help.nytimes.com/23675493312404-Spelling-Bee New York Times Help page for all gameshttps://help.nytimes.com/360011158491-New-York-Times-Games
Suggest a word for Spelling BeeWithin the Bee puzzle, open the "More" dropdown and choose "Suggest a Word. This links to form by which players may suggest words to be included in the Bee. A direct link is here: https://nyti.ms/4pG5SOFPlayers may also email their suggestions to buzzwords@nytimes.com, especially if they wish to include more information than the form allows.
Provide feedback to the New York Times about Spelling Beehttps://iteratehq.com/nytimes/6776de5d8b6862943a0fb831
The Spelling Bee Forumhttps://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/spelling-bee-forum Glossary of Spelling Bee Terms https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/26/crosswords/spelling-bee-forum-introduction.html
Spelling Bee Buddyhttps://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/upshot/spelling-bee-buddy.htmlAn interactive tool that provides personalized hints and statistics for your daily Spelling Bee solve.
New York Times Help page for Spelling Beehttps://help.nytimes.com/23675493312404-Spelling-Bee New York Times Help page for all gameshttps://help.nytimes.com/360011158491-New-York-Times-Games
Suggest a word for Spelling BeeWithin the Bee puzzle, open the "More" dropdown and choose "Suggest a Word. This links to form by which players may suggest words to be included in the Bee. A direct link is here: https://nyti.ms/4pG5SOFPlayers may also email their suggestions to buzzwords@nytimes.com, especially if they wish to include more information than the form allows.
Provide feedback to the New York Times about Spelling Beehttps://iteratehq.com/nytimes/6776de5d8b6862943a0fb831