NYT Spelling Bee Answers for October 15, 2020
Game Summary
| Center Letter | T |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, c, i, m, r, u |
| # of Pangrams | 1 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 38 words |
| Total Points | 179 points |
| Genius Level | 125 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 | - | 3 | 2 | 1 | - | - | 6 |
| C | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | 8 |
| I | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| M | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| R | - | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 2 |
| T | 6 | 5 | 5 | 2 | - | 1 | 19 |
| U | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | Σ | 11 | 11 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 38 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AR×1 AT×5 |
|---|---|
| C | CA×4 CI×2 CR×1 CU×1 |
| I | |
| M | MA×1 MI×1 MU×1 |
| R | RA×2 |
| T | TA×8 TI×1 TR×8 TU×2 |
| U |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | ARC×1 ATR×2 ATT×3 |
|---|---|
| C | CAC×1 CAR×2 CAT×1 CIR×1 CIT×1 CRI×1 CUR×1 |
| I | |
| M | MAR×1 MIT×1 MUT×1 |
| R | RAI×1 RAT×1 |
| T | TAC×3 TAR×3 TAT×1 TAU×1 TIA×1 TRA×6 TRI×2 TUT×2 |
| U |
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) |
|---|---|---|
| ar.... | AR6 | Alternative letter-case form of Arctic |
| at... | AT5 | plural of atrium |
| at.... | AT6 | A central room or space in ancient Roman homes, open to the sky in the middle; a similar space in other buildings. |
| at... | AT5 | An essential oil extracted from flowers. |
| at... | AT5 | The space, often unfinished and with sloped walls, directly below the roof in the uppermost part of a house or other building, generally used for storage or habitation. |
| at..... | AT7 | To pull toward without touching. |
| ca... | CA5 | plural of cactus |
| ca... | CA5 | A unit of weight for precious stones and pearls, equivalent to 200 milligrams. |
| ca.. | CA4 | A small, open, wheeled vehicle, drawn or pushed by a person or animal, more often used for transporting goods than passengers. |
| ca...... | CA8 | A waterspout. |
| ci..... | CI7 | The act of moving or revolving around, or as in a circle or orbit; a revolution |
| ci.... | CI6 | Of, pertaining to, or derived from, citrus fruit. |
| cr.... | CR6 | A person who appraises the works of others. |
| cu.. | CU4 | Brief or terse, especially to the point of being rude. |
| ma.. | MA4 | A shop, store. |
| mi.. | MI4 | A mitten |
| mu.. | MU4 | A mongrel dog (or sometimes cat); an animal of mixed breed or uncertain origin. |
| ra... | RA5 | A condiment used as a dip or sauce in the cuisine of southern Asia, made from seasoned yogurt. |
| ra..... | RA7 | A swiftly repeated knocking sound. |
| ta... | TA5 | Implied, but not made explicit, especially through silence. |
| ta.. | TA4 | The sense of touch; feeling. |
| ta.... | TA6 | A maneuver, or action calculated to achieve some end. |
| ta.... | TA6 | Tarmacadam. |
| ta.. | TA4 | Sharp to the taste; acid; sour. |
| ta.... | TA6 | A red compound deposited during wine making; mostly potassium hydrogen tartrate — a source of cream of tartar. |
| ta.... | TA6 | Straw matting, in a standard size, used as a floor covering in Japanese houses. |
| ta.. | TA4 | Under tension, like a stretched bowstring, rope, or sail; tight. |
| ti... | TI5 | The papal crown. |
| tr... | TR5 | An area or expanse. |
| tr... | TR5 | An identifying characteristic, habit or trend. |
| tr.. | TR4 | A passenger vehicle for public use that runs on tracks in the road (called a streetcar or trolley in North America). |
| tr..... | TR7 | A streetcar. |
| tr.... | TR6 | Any serious injury to the body, often resulting from violence or an accident. |
| tr....... † | TR9 | Of, caused by, or causing trauma. |
| tr.. | TR4 | To reduce slightly; to cut; especially, to remove excess. |
| tr..... | TR7 | A radioactive isotope of the element hydrogen (symbol T or 1H) having one proton and two neutrons. |
| tu... | TU5 | All together. Indicates that the remainder of a group should join in playing after a solo or other passage with a reduced number of voices. |
| tu.. | TU4 | A ballet skirt made of layered stiff but light netting. |
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.
- arctic (AR6)
- atria (AT5)
- atrium (AT6)
- attar (AT5)
- attic (AT5)
- attract (AT7)
- cacti (CA5)
- carat (CA5)
- cart (CA4)
- cataract (CA8)
- circuit (CI7)
- citric (CI6)
- critic (CR6)
- curt (CU4)
- mart (MA4)
- mitt (MI4)
- mutt (MU4)
- raita (RA5)
- ratatat (RA7)
- tacit (TA5)
- tact (TA4)
- tactic (TA6)
- tarmac (TA6)
- tart (TA4)
- tartar (TA6)
- tatami (TA6)
- taut (TA4)
- tiara (TI5)
- tract (TR5)
- trait (TR5)
- tram (TR4)
- tramcar (TR7)
- trauma (TR6)
- traumatic† (TR9)
- trim (TR4)
- tritium (TR7)
- tutti (TU5)
- tutu (TU4)
Answer Definitions
- arctic (adjective): Alternative letter-case form of Arctic
- atria (noun): plural of atrium
- atrium (noun): A central room or space in ancient Roman homes, open to the sky in the middle; a similar space in other buildings.
- attar (noun): An essential oil extracted from flowers.
- attic (noun): The space, often unfinished and with sloped walls, directly below the roof in the uppermost part of a house or other building, generally used for storage or habitation.
- attract (verb): To pull toward without touching.
- cacti (noun): plural of cactus
- carat (noun): A unit of weight for precious stones and pearls, equivalent to 200 milligrams.
- cart (noun): A small, open, wheeled vehicle, drawn or pushed by a person or animal, more often used for transporting goods than passengers.
- cataract (noun): A waterspout.
- circuit (noun): The act of moving or revolving around, or as in a circle or orbit; a revolution
- citric (adjective): Of, pertaining to, or derived from, citrus fruit.
- critic (noun): A person who appraises the works of others.
- curt (adjective): Brief or terse, especially to the point of being rude.
- mart (noun): A shop, store.
- mitt (noun): A mitten
- mutt (noun): A mongrel dog (or sometimes cat); an animal of mixed breed or uncertain origin.
- raita (noun): A condiment used as a dip or sauce in the cuisine of southern Asia, made from seasoned yogurt.
- ratatat (noun): A swiftly repeated knocking sound.
- tacit (adjective): Implied, but not made explicit, especially through silence.
- tact (noun): The sense of touch; feeling.
- tactic (noun): A maneuver, or action calculated to achieve some end.
- tarmac (noun): Tarmacadam.
- tart (adjective): Sharp to the taste; acid; sour.
- tartar (noun): A red compound deposited during wine making; mostly potassium hydrogen tartrate — a source of cream of tartar.
- tatami (noun): Straw matting, in a standard size, used as a floor covering in Japanese houses.
- taut (adjective): Under tension, like a stretched bowstring, rope, or sail; tight.
- tiara (noun): The papal crown.
- tract (noun): An area or expanse.
- trait (noun): An identifying characteristic, habit or trend.
- tram (noun): A passenger vehicle for public use that runs on tracks in the road (called a streetcar or trolley in North America).
- tramcar (noun): A streetcar.
- trauma (noun): Any serious injury to the body, often resulting from violence or an accident.
- traumatic† (adjective): Of, caused by, or causing trauma.
- trim (verb): To reduce slightly; to cut; especially, to remove excess.
- tritium (noun): A radioactive isotope of the element hydrogen (symbol T or 1H) having one proton and two neutrons.
- tutti (adverb): All together. Indicates that the remainder of a group should join in playing after a solo or other passage with a reduced number of voices.
- tutu (noun): A ballet skirt made of layered stiff but light netting.