NYT Spelling Bee Answers for September 23, 2018
Game Summary
| Center Letter | M |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, b, d, j, o, r |
| # of Pangrams | 1 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 34 words |
| Total Points | 143 points |
| Genius Level | 100 points |
| Bingo? | No |
Table of Contents
As you scroll down this page, the clues get progressively more revealing. So scroll slowly!
- Spelling Bee Grid
- Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
- Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
- Extra Letter Hints (Incrementally Revealing) 🤯
- Today's Complete Solution
- Answer Definitions
If you're just here for a list of NYT Spelling Bee answers, Jump down to the answers ↓ (Spoiler Alert!).
Spelling Bee Grid
The following table shows the standard Spelling Bee summary grid, which lists word lengths across the top and letters down the left-hand side. The cell where the word lengths and letters intersect displays the number of words in today's puzzle with the corresponding first letter and word length.
| 4</th><th>5</th><th>6</th><th>7</th><th>8</th><th>9 | Σ | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 1 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | 4 |
| B | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | 1 | 7 |
| D | 3 | 1 | - | - | 1 | - | 5 |
| J | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| M | 5 | 6 | - | - | 1 | 1 | 13 |
| O | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| R | 2 | - | 2 | - | - | - | 4 | Σ | 14 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 34 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AM×1 AR×3 |
|---|---|
| B | BA×2 BO×4 BR×1 |
| D | DO×3 DR×2 |
| J | JA×1 |
| M | MA×9 MO×4 |
| O | |
| R | RA×2 RO×2 |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | AMM×1 ARM×2 ARO×1 |
|---|---|
| B | BAM×1 BAR×1 BOA×1 BOM×2 BOO×1 BRO×1 |
| D | DOO×2 DOR×1 DRA×2 |
| J | JAM×1 |
| M | MAD×1 MAJ×2 MAM×4 MAR×2 MOJ×1 MOM×1 MOO×2 |
| O | |
| R | RAM×2 ROA×1 ROO×1 |
Extra Letter Hints (Incrementally Revealing)
The table below lists all of the solutions to today's puzzle, but they're concealed. You can click the plus button (+) to reveal additional letters, one-by-one.
Concealed definitions are provided as additional clues. You can toggle concealment of the definitions by clicking on the concealer bar or the text that appears when the definition is visible.
Pangrams are marked with a dagger symbol (†).
| Word | 2L Ref | Definition (click to reveal) |
|---|---|---|
| am.. | AM4 | Ammunition. |
| ar.... | AR6 | A fleet of warships, especially with reference to the Spanish Armada. |
| ar... | AR5 | A protective layer over a body, vehicle, or other object intended to deflect or diffuse damaging forces. |
| ar... | AR5 | A smell; especially a pleasant spicy or fragrant one. |
| ba.... | BA6 | A fast-growing grass of the Poaceae family, characterised by its woody, hollow, round, straight, jointed stem, all of which are in the Bambuseae tribe. |
| ba..... | BA7 | A room where alcoholic drinks are served over a counter. |
| bo....... | BO9 | The room where a group of people (especially the board of a company or organization) conducts its meetings |
| bo.. | BO4 | An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, one dropped from an aircraft. The atomic bomb. |
| bo..... | BO7 | a medieval primitive cannon, used chiefly in sieges for throwing heavy stone balls. |
| bo.. | BO4 | To make a loud, hollow, resonant sound. |
| br... | BR5 | A domestic utensil with fibers bound together at the end of a long handle, used for sweeping. |
| do.. | DO4 | Destiny, especially terrible. |
| do...... † | DO8 | Either of the upright posts on either side of a door, which together support a lintel. |
| do.. | DO4 | Clipping of dormitory. |
| dr.. | DR4 | A small unit of weight, variously: One sixteenth of an ounce avoirdupois (approximately 1.77 g). Alternative form of drachm (“⁄8 ounce apothecary (3.89 g) (symbol: ℨ)”). Synonym of dirhem: a former Turkish unit of weight (variously 1.5–3.5 g). Synonym of drachma: a former Greek unit of weight (about 4.3 g). |
| dr... | DR5 | A composition, normally in prose, telling a story and intended to be represented by actors impersonating the characters and speaking the dialogue |
| ja.. | JA4 | Either of the vertical components that form the side of an opening in a wall, such as that of a door frame, window frame, or fireplace. |
| ma... | MA5 | A polite form of address for a woman or lady. |
| ma... | MA5 | : Greater in dignity, rank, importance, significance, or interest. Greater in number, quantity, or extent. |
| ma....... | MA9 | The head servant or official in a royal Spanish or Italian household; later, any head servant in a wealthy household in a foreign country; a leading servant or butler. |
| ma.. | MA4 | Mother, female parent. |
| ma... | MA5 | Any of various venomous snakes of the genus Dendroaspis, native to Africa, that live in trees. |
| ma... | MA5 | A voodoo priestess (in Haiti) |
| ma... | MA5 | The milk-secreting organ of female humans and other mammals which includes the mammary gland and the nipple or teat; a breast; an udder. |
| ma...... | MA8 | A herb of the mint family, Origanum majorana, having aromatic leaves. |
| ma.. | MA4 | madam; a polite term of address for a lady. |
| mo.. | MO4 | A magic charm or spell. |
| mo... | MO5 | mother |
| mo.. | MO4 | A mental or emotional state, composure. |
| mo.. | MO4 | An extensive waste covered with patches of heath, and having a poor, light soil, but sometimes marshy, and abounding in peat; a heath |
| ra.... | RA6 | A simple arbour or open porch, typically roofed with branches. |
| ra.... | RA6 | Device used with muzzleloaders to push the projectile up against the propellant. |
| ro.. | RO4 | To wander or travel freely and with no specific destination. |
| ro.. | RO4 | Opportunity or scope (to do something). |
Today's Complete Solution
The words that follow are a complete listing of all acceptable words in today's New York Time Spelling Bee puzzle.
Next to the answer word you'll see the two-letter reference (2L Ref) in parentheses. We added that 2L Ref for easier translation of the spoiler-avoidant language you see on the Spelling Bee Forum and Twitter. The 2L Ref signifies a word's two start letters followed by the total number of letters in the word.
- ammo (AM4)
- armada (AR6)
- armor (AR5)
- aroma (AR5)
- bamboo (BA6)
- barroom (BA7)
- boardroom (BO9)
- bomb (BO4)
- bombard (BO7)
- boom (BO4)
- broom (BR5)
- doom (DO4)
- doorjamb† (DO8)
- dorm (DO4)
- dram (DR4)
- drama (DR5)
- jamb (JA4)
- madam (MA5)
- major (MA5)
- majordomo (MA9)
- mama (MA4)
- mamba (MA5)
- mambo (MA5)
- mamma (MA5)
- marjoram (MA8)
- marm (MA4)
- mojo (MO4)
- momma (MO5)
- mood (MO4)
- moor (MO4)
- ramada (RA6)
- ramrod (RA6)
- roam (RO4)
- room (RO4)
Answer Definitions
- ammo (noun): Ammunition.
- armada (noun): A fleet of warships, especially with reference to the Spanish Armada.
- armor (noun): A protective layer over a body, vehicle, or other object intended to deflect or diffuse damaging forces.
- aroma (noun): A smell; especially a pleasant spicy or fragrant one.
- bamboo (noun): A fast-growing grass of the Poaceae family, characterised by its woody, hollow, round, straight, jointed stem, all of which are in the Bambuseae tribe.
- barroom (noun): A room where alcoholic drinks are served over a counter.
- boardroom (noun): The room where a group of people (especially the board of a company or organization) conducts its meetings
- bomb (noun): An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, one dropped from an aircraft. The atomic bomb.
- bombard (noun): a medieval primitive cannon, used chiefly in sieges for throwing heavy stone balls.
- boom (verb): To make a loud, hollow, resonant sound.
- broom (noun): A domestic utensil with fibers bound together at the end of a long handle, used for sweeping.
- doom (noun): Destiny, especially terrible.
- doorjamb† (noun): Either of the upright posts on either side of a door, which together support a lintel.
- dorm (noun): Clipping of dormitory.
- dram (noun): A small unit of weight, variously: One sixteenth of an ounce avoirdupois (approximately 1.77 g). Alternative form of drachm (“⁄8 ounce apothecary (3.89 g) (symbol: ℨ)”). Synonym of dirhem: a former Turkish unit of weight (variously 1.5–3.5 g). Synonym of drachma: a former Greek unit of weight (about 4.3 g).
- drama (noun): A composition, normally in prose, telling a story and intended to be represented by actors impersonating the characters and speaking the dialogue
- jamb (noun): Either of the vertical components that form the side of an opening in a wall, such as that of a door frame, window frame, or fireplace.
- madam (noun): A polite form of address for a woman or lady.
- major (adjective): : Greater in dignity, rank, importance, significance, or interest. Greater in number, quantity, or extent.
- majordomo (noun): The head servant or official in a royal Spanish or Italian household; later, any head servant in a wealthy household in a foreign country; a leading servant or butler.
- mama (noun): Mother, female parent.
- mamba (noun): Any of various venomous snakes of the genus Dendroaspis, native to Africa, that live in trees.
- mambo (noun): A voodoo priestess (in Haiti)
- mamma (noun): The milk-secreting organ of female humans and other mammals which includes the mammary gland and the nipple or teat; a breast; an udder.
- marjoram (noun): A herb of the mint family, Origanum majorana, having aromatic leaves.
- marm (noun): madam; a polite term of address for a lady.
- mojo (noun): A magic charm or spell.
- momma (noun): mother
- mood (noun): A mental or emotional state, composure.
- moor (noun): An extensive waste covered with patches of heath, and having a poor, light soil, but sometimes marshy, and abounding in peat; a heath
- ramada (noun): A simple arbour or open porch, typically roofed with branches.
- ramrod (noun): Device used with muzzleloaders to push the projectile up against the propellant.
- roam (verb): To wander or travel freely and with no specific destination.
- room (noun): Opportunity or scope (to do something).