NYT Spelling Bee Answers for January 20, 2020
Game Summary
| Center Letter | E |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | b, c, i, l, n, v |
| # of Pangrams | 2 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 43 words |
| Total Points | 178 points |
| Genius Level | 125 points |
| Bingo? | Yes |
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</th><th>10 | Σ | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B | 3 | 4 | - | 2 | - | - | - | 9 |
| C | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| E | 2 | - | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | 5 |
| I | - | - | 1 | 1 | - | - | 1 | 3 |
| L | 4 | 5 | - | 1 | 1 | - | - | 11 |
| N | 3 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | 5 |
| V | 6 | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | 7 | Σ | 19 | 12 | 4 | 5 | 2 | - | 1 | 43 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| B | BE×7 BI×2 |
|---|---|
| C | CE×3 |
| E | EL×1 EN×1 EV×3 |
| I | IC×1 IN×2 |
| L | LE×3 LI×8 |
| N | NE×1 NI×4 |
| V | VE×2 VI×5 |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| B | BEE×2 BEL×4 BEV×1 BIB×1 BIL×1 |
|---|---|
| C | CEL×3 |
| E | ELE×1 ENL×1 EVE×1 EVI×2 |
| I | ICI×1 INC×1 INV×1 |
| L | LEN×1 LEV×2 LIB×2 LIC×1 LIE×1 LIN×2 LIV×2 |
| N | NEN×1 NIB×1 NIC×1 NIE×1 NIN×1 |
| V | VEI×2 VIB×1 VIC×1 VIL×1 VIN×2 |
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) |
|---|---|---|
| be..... | BE7 | A very direct or quick path or trip. |
| be.. | BE4 | past participle of be. |
| be... | BE5 | To lie around; encompass. |
| be..... | BE7 | To accept as true, particularly without absolute certainty (i.e., as opposed to knowing). |
| be.. | BE4 | A percussive instrument made of metal or other hard material, typically but not always in the shape of an inverted cup with a flared rim, which resonates when struck. |
| be... | BE5 | An attractive woman. |
| be... | BE5 | An edge that is canted, one that is not a 90-degree angle; a chamfer. |
| bi... | BI5 | Alternative letter-case form of Bible (“a specific version, edition, translation, or copy of the Christian religious text”) |
| bi.. | BI4 | A bitter brownish-yellow or greenish-yellow secretion produced by the liver, stored in the gall bladder, and discharged into the duodenum where it aids the process of digestion. |
| ce... | CE5 | A celebrity; a famous person. |
| ce.. | CE4 | A single-room dwelling for a hermit. |
| ce... | CE5 | plural of cello |
| el.... | EL6 | The cardinal number occurring after ten and before twelve. Represented as 11 in Arabic digits. |
| en..... | EN7 | To give life or spirit to; to revive or animate. |
| ev.. | EV4 | Flat and level. |
| ev.. | EV4 | Intending to harm; malevolent. |
| ev.... | EV6 | To show or demonstrate clearly; to manifest. |
| ic.... | IC6 | A drooping, tapering shape of ice. |
| in..... | IN7 | To bend or move (something) out of a given plane or direction, often the horizontal or vertical. |
| in........ † | IN10 | Impossible to defeat, destroy or kill; too powerful to be defeated or overcome. |
| le...... | LE8 | Leniency: mercy or forgiveness in the assignment of punishment. |
| le... | LE5 | An elevated geographical feature. |
| le... | LE5 | The same height at all places; parallel to a flat ground. |
| li... | LI5 | A written or pictorial false statement which unjustly seeks to damage someone's reputation. |
| li..... | LI7 | The party against which a libel (hostile handbill) has been filed by a libelant. |
| li.. | LI4 | plural of louse |
| li.. | LI4 | A tendon. |
| li.. | LI4 | A path through two or more points (compare ‘segment’); a continuous mark, including as made by a pen; any path, curved or straight. |
| li... | LI5 | Thread or cloth made from flax fiber. |
| li.. | LI4 | To be alive; to have life. |
| li... | LI5 | To cause to be more lively, or to become more lively. |
| ne.. | NE4 | The Hawaiian goose, Branta sandvicensis, which was designated the state bird of Hawaii in 1957. |
| ni.... | NI6 | A small, quick bite taken with the front teeth. |
| ni.. | NI4 | Pleasant, satisfactory. |
| ni... | NI5 | A daughter of one’s sibling, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law; either the daughter of one's brother ("fraternal niece"), or of one's sister ("sororal niece"). |
| ni.. | NI4 | NATO & ICAO phonetic alphabet code for the numeral 9. |
| ve.. | VE4 | Something hung up or spread out to hide or protect the face, or hide an object from view; usually of gauze, crepe, or similar diaphanous material. |
| ve.. | VE4 | A blood vessel that transports blood from the capillaries back to the heart. |
| vi.. | VI4 | A vibraphone. |
| vi.. | VI4 | A bad habit. |
| vi.. | VI4 | Morally low; base; despicable. |
| vi...... † | VI8 | Capable of being defeated or overcome; assailable or vulnerable. |
| vi.. | VI4 | The climbing plant that produces grapes. |
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.
- beeline (BE7)
- been (BE4)
- belie (BE5)
- believe (BE7)
- bell (BE4)
- belle (BE5)
- bevel (BE5)
- bible (BI5)
- bile (BI4)
- celeb (CE5)
- cell (CE4)
- celli (CE5)
- eleven (EL6)
- enliven (EN7)
- even (EV4)
- evil (EV4)
- evince (EV6)
- icicle (IC6)
- incline (IN7)
- invincible† (IN10)
- lenience (LE8)
- levee (LE5)
- level (LE5)
- libel (LI5)
- libelee (LI7)
- lice (LI4)
- lien (LI4)
- line (LI4)
- linen (LI5)
- live (LI4)
- liven (LI5)
- nene (NE4)
- nibble (NI6)
- nice (NI4)
- niece (NI5)
- nine (NI4)
- veil (VE4)
- vein (VE4)
- vibe (VI4)
- vice (VI4)
- vile (VI4)
- vincible† (VI8)
- vine (VI4)
Answer Definitions
- beeline (noun): A very direct or quick path or trip.
- been (verb): past participle of be.
- belie (verb): To lie around; encompass.
- believe (verb): To accept as true, particularly without absolute certainty (i.e., as opposed to knowing).
- bell (noun): A percussive instrument made of metal or other hard material, typically but not always in the shape of an inverted cup with a flared rim, which resonates when struck.
- belle (noun): An attractive woman.
- bevel (noun): An edge that is canted, one that is not a 90-degree angle; a chamfer.
- bible (noun): Alternative letter-case form of Bible (“a specific version, edition, translation, or copy of the Christian religious text”)
- bile (noun): A bitter brownish-yellow or greenish-yellow secretion produced by the liver, stored in the gall bladder, and discharged into the duodenum where it aids the process of digestion.
- celeb (noun): A celebrity; a famous person.
- cell (noun): A single-room dwelling for a hermit.
- celli (noun): plural of cello
- eleven (numeral): The cardinal number occurring after ten and before twelve. Represented as 11 in Arabic digits.
- enliven (verb): To give life or spirit to; to revive or animate.
- even (adjective): Flat and level.
- evil (adjective): Intending to harm; malevolent.
- evince (verb): To show or demonstrate clearly; to manifest.
- icicle (noun): A drooping, tapering shape of ice.
- incline (verb): To bend or move (something) out of a given plane or direction, often the horizontal or vertical.
- invincible† (adjective): Impossible to defeat, destroy or kill; too powerful to be defeated or overcome.
- lenience (noun): Leniency: mercy or forgiveness in the assignment of punishment.
- levee (noun): An elevated geographical feature.
- level (adjective): The same height at all places; parallel to a flat ground.
- libel (noun): A written or pictorial false statement which unjustly seeks to damage someone's reputation.
- libelee (noun): The party against which a libel (hostile handbill) has been filed by a libelant.
- lice (noun): plural of louse
- lien (noun): A tendon.
- line (noun): A path through two or more points (compare ‘segment’); a continuous mark, including as made by a pen; any path, curved or straight.
- linen (noun): Thread or cloth made from flax fiber.
- live (verb): To be alive; to have life.
- liven (verb): To cause to be more lively, or to become more lively.
- nene (noun): The Hawaiian goose, Branta sandvicensis, which was designated the state bird of Hawaii in 1957.
- nibble (noun): A small, quick bite taken with the front teeth.
- nice (adjective): Pleasant, satisfactory.
- niece (noun): A daughter of one’s sibling, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law; either the daughter of one's brother ("fraternal niece"), or of one's sister ("sororal niece").
- nine (numeral): NATO & ICAO phonetic alphabet code for the numeral 9.
- veil (noun): Something hung up or spread out to hide or protect the face, or hide an object from view; usually of gauze, crepe, or similar diaphanous material.
- vein (noun): A blood vessel that transports blood from the capillaries back to the heart.
- vibe (noun): A vibraphone.
- vice (noun): A bad habit.
- vile (adjective): Morally low; base; despicable.
- vincible† (adjective): Capable of being defeated or overcome; assailable or vulnerable.
- vine (noun): The climbing plant that produces grapes.