The Lexicon: History of Words in the Spelling Bee
Analysis of the Spelling Bee lexicon is at the heart of everything we do here at LexiConnexxions, and that includes keeping an eye on when words enter – or are removed from – the Spelling Bee lexicon, which is the list of words that have been used in all the Spelling Bee puzzles since the online Bee was launched in May 2018.
The reports in this section record, summarize, and note trends in information about words added to or removed from the Spelling Bee lexicon, along with notes about pangrams (numbers, types, and more), the lengths of the daily word lists, the rates at which the dreaded/adored -ED and -ING suffixes appeared, how often the BINGO characteristic appeared, center letter distribution, and much more.
Like many Bee solvers, we look to sbsolver.com for reliable data about which words have appeared in the Spelling Bee. We also maintain daily, monthly, and annual records of the movements of words in and out of the Spelling Be lexicon. The compilations and analyses published here at LexiConnexxions are our own and, we believe, unique.
If you cite information from any LexiConnexxions report, please give credit and a link to the relevant page. These reports and analyses are compiled and prepared by a person, not a machine. Thank you.
Click HERE to jump to the Reports & Records main page, with links to reports and analysis about center letters, pangrams, odd puzzles in Spelling Bee history, and much more.
Click HERE to jump to the LexiTopics main page, with links to dozens of LexiTopics Reports on the many subjects represented in the Spelling Bee lexicon.
Click HERE to jump to the WordPlay main page, with links to WordPlay reports on eponyms, toponyms, orthographic oddities, and much more.
Click HERE to jump to the WordPlay main page, with links to WordPlay reports on eponyms, toponyms, orthographic oddities, and much more.
COMPLETE "INS AND OUTS" WORD LISTS
ANNUAL SUMMARY REPORTS
Updated 2026-08-13
These lists, which track the sometimes-baffling journeys of words in and out of the Spelling Bee lexicon, are updated whenever there is a change; see update notes in each list.
Word movements in and out of the Bee lexicon fall into eight categories, as shown below.IN = allowed OUT = disallowed
All Spelling Bee Words with Histories
Combines data from all eight of the lists detailed below.
611 words | See the list HERE.
OUT
The Midden: All Discontinued SB Words
Combines the four -OUT lists shown below295 words | See the list HERE.
IN-OUT
SB Words Allowed then Disallowed265 words | See the list HERE.
OUT-IN
SB Words Disallowed then Allowed278 words | See the list HERE.
IN-OUT-IN
SB Words Allowed then Disallowed then Allowed
36 words | See the list HERE.
OUT-IN-OUT
SB Words Disallowed, then Allowed, then Disallowed22 words | See the list HERE.
IN-OUT-IN-OUT
SB Words Allowed, then Disallowed, then Allowed, then Disallowed6 words | See the list HERE. (Included in the FLIP-FLOPPED list.)
OUT-IN-OUT-IN
SB Words Disallowed, then Allowed, then Disallowed, then Allowed
2 words | See the list HERE. (Included in the FLIP-FLOPPED list.)
OUT-IN-OUT-IN-OUT
SB Words Disallowed, then Allowed, then Disallowed, then Allowed, then Disallowed
2 words | See the list HERE. (Included in the FLIP-FLOPPED list.)
NOTE: A list of all words that have ever been used in the Spelling Bee (including those that have been discontinued), with full details on the Bee history of each word, may be seen at https://www.sbsolver.com/lexicon.
SPECIAL REPORTS
Pangrams Previously Disallowed | Only a very few Spelling Bee puzzles have admitted pangrams that had been previously disallowed. Read more HERE.
Ratios of Pangrams to Total Word Counts | Spelling Bee puzzles that have had the highest ratio of pangrams to total words in the solution set. Read more HERE.
Annual summaries of changes to the Spelling Bee lexicon, with data on words added and removed, center letters, pangrams, and more. (PLEASE NOTE: Data collection and analysis methods changed in 2024 to provide more robust data and more analyses of interest to Spelling Bee solvers.)
2025 Report | 508 words added, 37 discontinued, net gain 471 | Read the report HERE.
2024 Report | 508 words added, 39 discontinued, net gain 469 | Read the report HERE.
2023 Report | 711 words added, 44 discontinued, net gain 667 | Read the report HERE.
MONTHLY SUMMARY REPORTS
Monthly summaries of changes to the Spelling Bee lexicon, with data on words added and removed, center letters, pangrams, and more. (PLEASE NOTE: Data collection and analysis methods changed in 2024 to provide more robust data and more analyses of interest to Spelling Bee solvers.)
Jul 2026 | 18 words added, 2 discontinued, net gain 16 | Read more HERE.
Jun 2026 | 16 words added, 0 discontinued, net gain 16 | Read more HERE.
May 2026 | 64 words added, 1 discontinued, net gain 63 | Read more HERE.
Apr 2026 | 25 words added, 1 discontinued, net gain 24 | Read more HERE.
Mar 2026 | 23 words added, 0 discontinued, net gain 23 | Read more HERE.
Feb 2026 | 23 words added, 1 discontinued, net gain 22 | Read more HERE.
Jan 2026 | 14 words added, 4 discontinued, net gain 10 | Read more HERE.
Dec 2025 | 21 words added, 0 discontinued, net gain 21 | Read more HERE.
Nov 2025 | 19 words added, 3 discontinued, net gain 16 | Read more HERE.
Oct 2025 | 48 words added, 2 discontinued, net gain 46 | Read more HERE.
Sep 2025 | 56 words added, 1 discontinued, net gain 55 | Read more HERE.
Aug 2025 | 44 words added, 2 discontinued, net gain 42 | Read more HERE.
Jul 2025 | 49 words added, 3 discontinued, net gain 46 | Read more HERE.
Jun 2025 | 50 words added, 4 discontinued, net gain 46 | Read more HERE.
May 2025 | 28 words added, 5 discontinued, net gain 23 | Read more HERE.
Apr 2025 | 29 words added, 4 discontinued, net gain 25 | Read more HERE.
Mar 2025 | 67 words added, 6 discontinued, net gain 61 | Read more HERE.
Feb 2025 | 54 words added, 3 discontinued, net gain 51 | Read more HERE.
Jan 2025 | 42 words added, 4 discontinued, net gain 38 | Read more HERE.
Dec 2024 | 28 words added, 2 discontinued, net gain 26 | Read more HERE.
Nov 2024 | 41 words added, 2 discontinued, net gain 39 | Read more HERE.
Oct 2024 | 48 words added, 5 discontinued, net gain 43 | Read more HERE.
Sep 2024 | 40 words added, 4 discontinued, net gain 36 | Read more HERE.
Aug 2024 | 49 words added, 3 discontinued, net gain 46 | Read more HERE.
Jul 2024 | 60 words added, 5 discontinued, net gain 55 | Read more HERE.
Jun 2024 | 36 words added, 1 discontinued, net gain 35 | Read more HERE.
May 2024 | 40 words added, 3 discontinued, net gain 37 | Read more HERE.
Apr 2024 | 69 words added, 3 discontinued, net gain 66 | Read more HERE.
Mar 2024 | 48 words added, 3 discontinued, net gain 46 | Read more HERE.
Feb 2024 | 21 words added, 6 discontinued, net gain 15 | Read more HERE.
Jan 2024 | 28 words added, 3 discontinued, net gain 25 | Read more HERE.
Dec 2023 | 38 words added, 5 discontinued, net gain 33 | Read more HERE.
Nov 2023 | 50 words added, 5 discontinued, net gain 45 | Read more HERE.
Oct 2023 | 31 words added, 2 discontinued, net gain 29 | Read more HERE.
Sep 2023 | 80 words added, 1 discontinued, net gain 79 | Read more HERE.
Aug 2023 | 76 words added, 1 discontinued, net gain 75 | Read more HERE.
Jul 2023 | 30 words added, 3 discontinued, net gain 27 | Read more HERE.