NYT Spelling Bee Answers for May 4, 2022
Game Summary
| Center Letter | C |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, g, i, n, p, r |
| # of Pangrams | 3 (Perfect: 1) |
| Total Words | 40 words |
| Total Points | 234 points |
| Genius Level | 164 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 | Σ | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 1 | 1 | 4 | - | - | 6 |
| C | 3 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 20 |
| G | - | - | - | 1 | - | 1 |
| I | - | 1 | - | - | - | 1 |
| N | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 2 |
| P | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 |
| R | - | 1 | 2 | - | - | 3 | Σ | 6 | 10 | 14 | 7 | 3 | 40 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AC×3 AR×3 |
|---|---|
| C | CA×11 CI×3 CR×6 |
| G | GR×1 |
| I | IC×1 |
| N | NA×1 NI×1 |
| P | PA×2 PI×2 PR×3 |
| R | RA×1 RI×2 |
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×1 ARC×2 ARN×1 |
|---|---|
| C | CAG×1 CAI×1 CAN×4 CAP×1 CAR×4 CIG×1 CIR×2 CRA×5 CRI×1 |
| G | GRA×1 |
| I | ICI×1 |
| N | NAR×1 NIA×1 |
| P | PAC×1 PAN×1 PIC×2 PRA×1 PRI×2 |
| R | RAC×1 RIC×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) |
|---|---|---|
| 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... | AC5 | present participle of ace |
| ar.... | AR6 | Specialized knowledge that is mysterious to the uninitiated. |
| ar.... | AR6 | present participle of arc |
| ar.... | AR6 | Any of several plants, of the genus Arnica, considered to have medicinal properties, especially Arnica montana. |
| ca.... | CA6 | present participle of cage |
| ca... | CA5 | A rounded or conical heap of stones erected by early inhabitants of the British Isles, apparently as a sepulchral monument. |
| ca.... | CA6 | A high-kicking chorus line dance originating in France. |
| ca.... | CA6 | present participle of cane |
| ca... | CA5 | Any member of the genus Canna of tropical plants with large leaves and often showy flowers. |
| ca..... | CA7 | present participle of can (“to be able to”) |
| ca..... | CA7 | present participle of cap |
| ca.... | CA6 | Kind, sensitive, or empathetic. |
| ca.. | CA4 | Any of various freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, especially the common carp, Cyprinus carpio. |
| ca... | CA5 | plural of carpus |
| ca..... † | CA7 | present participle of carp |
| ci... | CI5 | A cylinder of tobacco rolled and wrapped with an outer covering of tobacco leaves, intended to be smoked. |
| ci... | CI5 | Approximately, about, around |
| ci... | CI5 | plural of cirrus Tendrils or claspers. |
| cr.. | CR4 | A rocky outcrop; a rugged steep cliff or rock. |
| cr.... | CR6 | plural of cranium |
| cr..... | CR7 | present participle of crane |
| cr.. | CR4 | The husk of grain; chaff. |
| cr...... † | CR8 | present participle of crap |
| cr...... | CR8 | present participle of cringe |
| gr..... | GR7 | present participle of grace |
| ic... | IC5 | A sweet, often creamy and thick glaze made primarily of sugar, often enriched with ingredients like butter, egg whites, or flavorings, typically used for baked goods. |
| na.. | NA4 | A police officer assigned to or engaging in illegal narcotics control. |
| 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.... | PA6 | present participle of pace |
| pa... | PA5 | Alternative letter-case form of Panic (“pertaining to the Greek god Pan”) |
| 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. |
| pr...... † | PR8 | present participle of prance |
| pr..... | PR7 | Phallic. |
| pr..... | PR7 | present participle of price |
| ra.... | RA6 | The sport of competing in races. |
| ri... | RI5 | An extremely toxic lectin extracted from the castor bean. |
| ri.... | RI6 | present participle of rice |
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)
- acing (AC5)
- arcana (AR6)
- arcing (AR6)
- arnica (AR6)
- caging (CA6)
- cairn (CA5)
- cancan (CA6)
- caning (CA6)
- canna (CA5)
- canning (CA7)
- capping (CA7)
- caring (CA6)
- carp (CA4)
- carpi (CA5)
- carping† (CA7)
- cigar (CI5)
- circa (CI5)
- cirri (CI5)
- crag (CR4)
- crania (CR6)
- craning (CR7)
- crap (CR4)
- crapping† (CR8)
- cringing (CR8)
- gracing (GR7)
- icing (IC5)
- narc (NA4)
- niacin (NI6)
- pacing (PA6)
- panic (PA5)
- pica (PI4)
- picnic (PI6)
- prancing† (PR8)
- priapic (PR7)
- pricing (PR7)
- racing (RA6)
- ricin (RI5)
- ricing (RI6)
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.
- acing (verb): present participle of ace
- arcana (noun): Specialized knowledge that is mysterious to the uninitiated.
- arcing (verb): present participle of arc
- arnica (noun): Any of several plants, of the genus Arnica, considered to have medicinal properties, especially Arnica montana.
- caging (verb): present participle of cage
- cairn (noun): A rounded or conical heap of stones erected by early inhabitants of the British Isles, apparently as a sepulchral monument.
- cancan (noun): A high-kicking chorus line dance originating in France.
- caning (verb): present participle of cane
- canna (noun): Any member of the genus Canna of tropical plants with large leaves and often showy flowers.
- canning (verb): present participle of can (“to be able to”)
- capping (verb): present participle of cap
- caring (adjective): Kind, sensitive, or empathetic.
- carp (noun): Any of various freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, especially the common carp, Cyprinus carpio.
- carpi (noun): plural of carpus
- carping† (verb): present participle of carp
- cigar (noun): A cylinder of tobacco rolled and wrapped with an outer covering of tobacco leaves, intended to be smoked.
- circa (preposition): Approximately, about, around
- cirri (noun): plural of cirrus Tendrils or claspers.
- crag (noun): A rocky outcrop; a rugged steep cliff or rock.
- crania (noun): plural of cranium
- craning (verb): present participle of crane
- crap (noun): The husk of grain; chaff.
- crapping† (verb): present participle of crap
- cringing (verb): present participle of cringe
- gracing (verb): present participle of grace
- icing (noun): A sweet, often creamy and thick glaze made primarily of sugar, often enriched with ingredients like butter, egg whites, or flavorings, typically used for baked goods.
- narc (noun): A police officer assigned to or engaging in illegal narcotics control.
- niacin (noun): A water-soluble vitamin, a component of vitamin B complex, found in meat, yeast, and dairy products; it is essential to metabolism.
- pacing (verb): present participle of pace
- panic (adjective): Alternative letter-case form of Panic (“pertaining to the Greek god Pan”)
- 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.
- prancing† (verb): present participle of prance
- priapic (adjective): Phallic.
- pricing (verb): present participle of price
- racing (noun): The sport of competing in races.
- ricin (noun): An extremely toxic lectin extracted from the castor bean.
- ricing (verb): present participle of rice