NYT Spelling Bee Answers for February 20, 2020
Game Summary
| Center Letter | I |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, c, d, h, n, p |
| # of Pangrams | 1 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 32 words |
| Total Points | 132 points |
| Genius Level | 92 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 | Σ | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 2 | 2 | 2 | - | - | 6 |
| C | 5 | 5 | 3 | - | - | 13 |
| D | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| H | 1 | - | - | - | 1 | 2 |
| I | 1 | - | - | 1 | - | 2 |
| N | - | 1 | 1 | - | - | 2 |
| P | 3 | 2 | 2 | - | - | 7 | Σ | 12 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 32 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AC×4 AP×2 |
|---|---|
| C | CA×2 CH×9 CI×2 |
| D | |
| H | HA×1 HI×1 |
| I | IN×2 |
| N | NA×1 NI×1 |
| P | PA×4 PI×3 |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | ACA×2 ACI×2 APH×1 API×1 |
|---|---|
| C | CAN×2 CHA×2 CHI×7 CIC×1 CIN×1 |
| D | |
| H | HAN×1 HIN×1 |
| I | INC×1 IND×1 |
| N | NAI×1 NIA×1 |
| P | PAI×2 PAN×2 PIC×2 PIN×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) |
|---|---|---|
| ac.... | AC6 | A shrub or tree of the tribe Acacieae. |
| ac.. | AC4 | Any of several South American palms, of the genus Euterpe, having a dark purple drupe. |
| ac.. | AC4 | Sour, sharp, or biting to the taste; tart; having the taste of vinegar. |
| ac.... | AC6 | Having a pH less than 7, or being sour, or having the strength to neutralize alkalis, or turning a litmus paper red. |
| ap... | AP5 | Sapsucking pest insect of the superfamily Aphidoidea; an aphidian. |
| ap... | AP5 | Relating to bees. |
| ca.... | CA6 | Impartial and free from prejudice. |
| ca... | CA5 | Any member of the family Canidae, including dogs, wolves, foxes, coyotes and jackals. |
| ch.. | CH4 | A female gypsy. |
| ch... | CH5 | A series of interconnected rings or links usually made of metal. |
| ch.. | CH4 | A Mexican sage grown for its edible seeds, Salvia hispanica. |
| ch.. | CH4 | Elegant, stylish. |
| ch... | CH5 | A Latin-American girl; a Latina. |
| ch.... | CH6 | Affectedly trendy; chic and stylish in a pretentious way. |
| ch.. | CH4 | The bottom of a face, the typically jutting jawline below the mouth. |
| ch... | CH5 | Synonym of porcelain, a hard white translucent ceramic made from kaolin, now sometimes distinguished in reference to tableware as fine or good china. |
| ch.. | CH4 | A small piece broken from a larger piece of solid material. |
| ci.... | CI6 | Any of several insects in the superfamily Cicadoidea, with small eyes wide apart on the head and transparent well-veined wings. The periodical cicada. |
| ci... | CI5 | A simple saddle girth used in Mexico. |
| ha...... † | HA8 | Something that prevents, hampers, or hinders. |
| hi.. | HI4 | Located at the rear (most often said of animals' body parts). |
| in.. | IN4 | A unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot, or exactly 2.54 centimetres. |
| in..... | IN7 | plural of indicium |
| na... | NA5 | A female deity (nymph) associated with water, especially a spring, stream, or other fresh water. |
| ni.... | NI6 | A water-soluble vitamin, a component of vitamin B complex, found in meat, yeast, and dairy products; it is essential to metabolism. |
| pa.. | PA4 | simple past tense and past participle of pay |
| pa.. | PA4 | An ache or bodily suffering, or an instance of this; an unpleasant sensation, resulting from a derangement of functions, disease, or injury by violence; hurt. |
| pa... | PA5 | Alternative letter-case form of Panic (“pertaining to the Greek god Pan”) |
| pa.... | PA6 | A type of grilled sandwich made of a small loaf of bread, cut horizontally, filled with meat such as salami or ham, cheese or other food. |
| pi.. | PI4 | A disorder characterized by appetite and craving for non-edible substances, such as chalk, clay, dirt, ice, or sand. |
| pi.... | PI6 | An informal social gathering, usually in a natural outdoor setting, to which the participants bring their own food and drink. |
| pi... | PI5 | To squeeze a small amount of a person's skin and flesh, making it hurt. |
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.
- acacia (AC6)
- acai (AC4)
- acid (AC4)
- acidic (AC6)
- aphid (AP5)
- apian (AP5)
- candid (CA6)
- canid (CA5)
- chai (CH4)
- chain (CH5)
- chia (CH4)
- chic (CH4)
- chica (CH5)
- chichi (CH6)
- chin (CH4)
- china (CH5)
- chip (CH4)
- cicada (CI6)
- cinch (CI5)
- handicap† (HA8)
- hind (HI4)
- inch (IN4)
- indicia (IN7)
- naiad (NA5)
- niacin (NI6)
- paid (PA4)
- pain (PA4)
- panic (PA5)
- panini (PA6)
- pica (PI4)
- picnic (PI6)
- pinch (PI5)
Answer Definitions
- acacia (noun): A shrub or tree of the tribe Acacieae.
- acai (noun): Any of several South American palms, of the genus Euterpe, having a dark purple drupe.
- acid (adjective): Sour, sharp, or biting to the taste; tart; having the taste of vinegar.
- acidic (adjective): Having a pH less than 7, or being sour, or having the strength to neutralize alkalis, or turning a litmus paper red.
- aphid (noun): Sapsucking pest insect of the superfamily Aphidoidea; an aphidian.
- apian (adjective): Relating to bees.
- candid (adjective): Impartial and free from prejudice.
- canid (noun): Any member of the family Canidae, including dogs, wolves, foxes, coyotes and jackals.
- chai (noun): A female gypsy.
- chain (noun): A series of interconnected rings or links usually made of metal.
- chia (noun): A Mexican sage grown for its edible seeds, Salvia hispanica.
- chic (adjective): Elegant, stylish.
- chica (noun): A Latin-American girl; a Latina.
- chichi (adjective): Affectedly trendy; chic and stylish in a pretentious way.
- chin (noun): The bottom of a face, the typically jutting jawline below the mouth.
- china (noun): Synonym of porcelain, a hard white translucent ceramic made from kaolin, now sometimes distinguished in reference to tableware as fine or good china.
- chip (noun): A small piece broken from a larger piece of solid material.
- cicada (noun): Any of several insects in the superfamily Cicadoidea, with small eyes wide apart on the head and transparent well-veined wings. The periodical cicada.
- cinch (noun): A simple saddle girth used in Mexico.
- handicap† (noun): Something that prevents, hampers, or hinders.
- hind (adjective): Located at the rear (most often said of animals' body parts).
- inch (noun): A unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot, or exactly 2.54 centimetres.
- indicia (noun): plural of indicium
- naiad (noun): A female deity (nymph) associated with water, especially a spring, stream, or other fresh water.
- niacin (noun): A water-soluble vitamin, a component of vitamin B complex, found in meat, yeast, and dairy products; it is essential to metabolism.
- paid (verb): simple past tense and past participle of pay
- pain (noun): An ache or bodily suffering, or an instance of this; an unpleasant sensation, resulting from a derangement of functions, disease, or injury by violence; hurt.
- panic (adjective): Alternative letter-case form of Panic (“pertaining to the Greek god Pan”)
- panini (noun): A type of grilled sandwich made of a small loaf of bread, cut horizontally, filled with meat such as salami or ham, cheese or other food.
- pica (noun): A disorder characterized by appetite and craving for non-edible substances, such as chalk, clay, dirt, ice, or sand.
- picnic (noun): An informal social gathering, usually in a natural outdoor setting, to which the participants bring their own food and drink.
- pinch (verb): To squeeze a small amount of a person's skin and flesh, making it hurt.