NYT Spelling Bee Answers for December 22, 2021
Game Summary
| Center Letter | R |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, c, f, i, l, y |
| # of Pangrams | 2 (Perfect: 1) |
| Total Words | 44 words |
| Total Points | 215 points |
| Genius Level | 151 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</th><th>10 | Σ | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | 9 |
| C | - | 3 | - | 1 | 1 | - | - | 5 |
| F | 2 | 5 | 3 | - | 1 | - | 1 | 12 |
| I | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| L | 3 | 1 | - | 1 | - | 1 | - | 6 |
| R | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | - | - | 12 |
| Y | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | Σ | 14 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 44 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AC×1 AF×3 AI×2 AR×3 |
|---|---|
| C | CA×2 CI×2 CL×1 |
| F | FA×5 FL×1 FR×6 |
| I | |
| L | LA×1 LI×2 LY×3 |
| R | RA×7 RI×5 |
| Y |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | ACR×1 AFA×1 AFF×2 AIR×2 ARI×2 ARR×1 |
|---|---|
| C | CAR×2 CIR×2 CLA×1 |
| F | FAI×3 FAR×2 FLA×1 FRA×2 FRI×4 |
| I | |
| L | LAI×1 LIA×1 LIR×1 LYR×3 |
| R | RAC×3 RAF×1 RAI×2 RAL×1 RIA×1 RIF×2 RIL×1 RIY×1 |
| Y |
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..... | AC7 | Derived from acrylic acid or acrylonitrile. |
| af.. | AF4 | At, to, or from a great distance; far away. |
| af.... | AF6 | Something which is done or is to be done; business of any kind, commercial, professional, or public. |
| af.... | AF6 | To startle from quiet; to alarm. |
| ai.... | AI6 | In an airy manner. |
| ai.. | AI4 | (of a room or building) spacious, well lit, and well ventilated. |
| ar.. | AR4 | A musical piece written typically for a solo voice with orchestral accompaniment in an opera or cantata. |
| ar.. | AR4 | A tissue surrounding the seed in certain fruits such as pomegranates. |
| ar... | AR5 | an ordered series or arrangement. |
| ca... | CA5 | To lift (something) and take it to another place; to transport (something) by lifting. |
| ca...... | CA8 | A large bag; a holdall |
| ci... | CI5 | Approximately, about, around |
| ci... | CI5 | plural of cirrus Tendrils or claspers. |
| cl..... † | CL7 | (of liquids, such as wine or syrup) To make clear or bright by freeing from feculent matter. |
| fa.. | FA4 | Beautiful, of a pleasing appearance, with a pure and fresh quality. |
| fa.... | FA6 | In a fair manner; fair; not biased or skewed or favouring a certain party |
| fa... | FA5 | a small imaginary being of human form that has magical powers, especially a female one. E.g., Tinkerbell. |
| fa...... | FA8 | Resembling a farce; ludicrous; absurd. |
| fa........ † | FA10 | In a farcical manner |
| fl... | FL5 | A natural or innate talent or aptitude. |
| fr... | FR5 | Easily broken physically; not firm or durable; liable to fail and perish. |
| fr.. | FR4 | To rub or wear away (something); to cause (something made of strands twisted or woven together, such as cloth or rope) to unravel through friction. |
| fr... | FR5 | A member of a mendicant Christian order such as the Augustinians, Carmelites, Franciscans, or the Dominicans. |
| fr.... | FR6 | house or dwelling where monks or members of certain religious communities live |
| fr... | FR5 | A strip of pleated fabric or paper used as decoration or trim. |
| fr.... | FR6 | Having frills; frilled. |
| la.. | LA4 | A place inhabited by a wild animal, often a cave or a hole in the ground. |
| li.. | LI4 | One who frequently tells lies. |
| li.. | LI4 | The basic unit of currency in Turkey. |
| ly... | LY5 | Of, or relating to a type of poetry (such as a sonnet or ode) that expresses subjective thoughts and feelings, often in a songlike style |
| ly..... | LY7 | Appropriate for or suggestive of singing. |
| ly....... | LY9 | In a manner that is pleasing to hear, as singing or speaking; in a lyrical manner. |
| ra.... | RA6 | Of or relating to a race (or a people). |
| ra...... | RA8 | Relating to race. |
| ra.. | RA4 | Mildly risqué. |
| ra.... | RA6 | A fibrous material used for tying plants, originating from the leaves of the raffia palm tree (genus Raphia). |
| ra.. | RA4 | A horizontal bar extending between supports and used for support or as a barrier; a railing. |
| ra..... | RA7 | A self-propelled railway vehicle for passengers, similar to a bus. |
| ra... | RA5 | A public gathering or mass meeting that is not mainly a protest and is organized to inspire enthusiasm for a cause. |
| ri.. | RI4 | The official currencies of Iran, Oman, and Yemen. |
| ri.. | RI4 | A repeated instrumental melody line in a song. |
| ri...... | RI8 | The rabble; crowds; the common people. |
| ri.. | RI4 | A very small brook; a streamlet; a creek, rivulet. |
| ri... | RI5 | The official currency of Qatar and Saudi Arabia. |
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.
- acrylic (AC7)
- afar (AF4)
- affair (AF6)
- affray (AF6)
- airily (AI6)
- airy (AI4)
- aria (AR4)
- aril (AR4)
- array (AR5)
- carry (CA5)
- carryall (CA8)
- circa (CI5)
- cirri (CI5)
- clarify† (CL7)
- fair (FA4)
- fairly (FA6)
- fairy (FA5)
- farcical (FA8)
- farcically† (FA10)
- flair (FL5)
- frail (FR5)
- fray (FR4)
- friar (FR5)
- friary (FR6)
- frill (FR5)
- frilly (FR6)
- lair (LA4)
- liar (LI4)
- lira (LI4)
- lyric (LY5)
- lyrical (LY7)
- lyrically (LY9)
- racial (RA6)
- racially (RA8)
- racy (RA4)
- raffia (RA6)
- rail (RA4)
- railcar (RA7)
- rally (RA5)
- rial (RI4)
- riff (RI4)
- riffraff (RI8)
- rill (RI4)
- riyal (RI5)
Answer Definitions
- acrylic (adjective): Derived from acrylic acid or acrylonitrile.
- afar (adverb): At, to, or from a great distance; far away.
- affair (noun): Something which is done or is to be done; business of any kind, commercial, professional, or public.
- affray (verb): To startle from quiet; to alarm.
- airily (adverb): In an airy manner.
- airy (adjective): (of a room or building) spacious, well lit, and well ventilated.
- aria (noun): A musical piece written typically for a solo voice with orchestral accompaniment in an opera or cantata.
- aril (noun): A tissue surrounding the seed in certain fruits such as pomegranates.
- array (noun): an ordered series or arrangement.
- carry (verb): To lift (something) and take it to another place; to transport (something) by lifting.
- carryall (noun): A large bag; a holdall
- circa (preposition): Approximately, about, around
- cirri (noun): plural of cirrus Tendrils or claspers.
- clarify† (verb): (of liquids, such as wine or syrup) To make clear or bright by freeing from feculent matter.
- fair (adjective): Beautiful, of a pleasing appearance, with a pure and fresh quality.
- fairly (adverb): In a fair manner; fair; not biased or skewed or favouring a certain party
- fairy (noun): a small imaginary being of human form that has magical powers, especially a female one. E.g., Tinkerbell.
- farcical (adjective): Resembling a farce; ludicrous; absurd.
- farcically† (adverb): In a farcical manner
- flair (noun): A natural or innate talent or aptitude.
- frail (adjective): Easily broken physically; not firm or durable; liable to fail and perish.
- fray (verb): To rub or wear away (something); to cause (something made of strands twisted or woven together, such as cloth or rope) to unravel through friction.
- friar (noun): A member of a mendicant Christian order such as the Augustinians, Carmelites, Franciscans, or the Dominicans.
- friary (noun): house or dwelling where monks or members of certain religious communities live
- frill (noun): A strip of pleated fabric or paper used as decoration or trim.
- frilly (adjective): Having frills; frilled.
- lair (noun): A place inhabited by a wild animal, often a cave or a hole in the ground.
- liar (noun): One who frequently tells lies.
- lira (noun): The basic unit of currency in Turkey.
- lyric (adjective): Of, or relating to a type of poetry (such as a sonnet or ode) that expresses subjective thoughts and feelings, often in a songlike style
- lyrical (adjective): Appropriate for or suggestive of singing.
- lyrically (adverb): In a manner that is pleasing to hear, as singing or speaking; in a lyrical manner.
- racial (adjective): Of or relating to a race (or a people).
- racially (adverb): Relating to race.
- racy (adjective): Mildly risqué.
- raffia (noun): A fibrous material used for tying plants, originating from the leaves of the raffia palm tree (genus Raphia).
- rail (noun): A horizontal bar extending between supports and used for support or as a barrier; a railing.
- railcar (noun): A self-propelled railway vehicle for passengers, similar to a bus.
- rally (noun): A public gathering or mass meeting that is not mainly a protest and is organized to inspire enthusiasm for a cause.
- rial (noun): The official currencies of Iran, Oman, and Yemen.
- riff (noun): A repeated instrumental melody line in a song.
- riffraff (noun): The rabble; crowds; the common people.
- rill (noun): A very small brook; a streamlet; a creek, rivulet.
- riyal (noun): The official currency of Qatar and Saudi Arabia.