NYT Spelling Bee Answers for May 16, 2022
Game Summary
| Center Letter | I |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, c, h, r, t, u |
| # of Pangrams | 1 (Perfect: 1) |
| Total Words | 36 words |
| Total Points | 174 points |
| Genius Level | 122 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 | Σ | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | - | 1 | 8 |
| C | 4 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 16 |
| H | 1 | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 3 |
| I | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| R | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | 2 |
| T | - | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | 5 |
| U | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | Σ | 10 | 13 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 36 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AC×2 AR×4 AT×2 |
|---|---|
| C | CA×2 CH×9 CI×4 CR×1 |
| H | HA×2 HI×1 |
| I | IT×1 |
| R | RA×1 RI×1 |
| T | TA×2 TI×1 TR×1 TU×1 |
| U | UR×1 |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | ACA×2 ARC×2 ARI×1 ART×1 ATR×1 ATT×1 |
|---|---|
| C | CAC×1 CAT×1 CHA×2 CHI×7 CIR×3 CIT×1 CRI×1 |
| H | HAI×2 HIT×1 |
| I | ITC×1 |
| R | RAI×1 RIC×1 |
| T | TAC×2 TIA×1 TRA×1 TUT×1 |
| U | URI×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. |
| ar..... | AR7 | A general term for the prehistoric period intermediate between the earliest period (‘Paleo-Indian’, ‘Paleo-American’, ‘American‐paleolithic’, &c.) of human presence in the Western Hemisphere, and the most recent prehistoric period (‘Woodland’, etc.). |
| ar.... | AR6 | Alternative letter-case form of Arctic |
| ar.. | AR4 | A musical piece written typically for a solo voice with orchestral accompaniment in an opera or cantata. |
| ar....... | AR9 | Of, or affected by arthritis. |
| at... | AT5 | plural of atrium |
| 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. |
| ca... | CA5 | plural of cactus |
| ca....... | CA9 | Purgative; inducing mental or physical catharsis. |
| ch.. | CH4 | A female gypsy. |
| ch... | CH5 | An item of furniture used to sit on or in, comprising a seat, legs or wheels, back, and sometimes arm rests, for use by one person. Compare stool, couch, sofa, settee, loveseat and bench. |
| 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....... | CH9 | Alternative letter-case form of Chihuahua |
| ch.. | CH4 | A child or babe; a young, small, or insignificant person or animal. |
| ch...... | CH8 | Alternative spelling of chit-chat |
| ci... | CI5 | Approximately, about, around |
| ci..... | CI7 | The act of moving or revolving around, or as in a circle or orbit; a revolution |
| ci... | CI5 | plural of cirrus Tendrils or claspers. |
| ci.... | CI6 | Of, pertaining to, or derived from, citrus fruit. |
| cr.... | CR6 | A person who appraises the works of others. |
| ha.. | HA4 | A pigmented filament of keratin which grows from a follicle on the skin of humans and other mammals. |
| ha..... † | HA7 | The act of cutting of the hair, often done professionally by a barber, hair stylist, or beautician. |
| hi... | HI5 | A sudden pull. |
| it.. | IT4 | A sensation felt on an area of the skin that causes a person or animal to want to scratch said area. |
| ra... | RA5 | A condiment used as a dip or sauce in the cuisine of southern Asia, made from seasoned yogurt. |
| ri.. | RI4 | Wealthy: having a lot of money and possessions. |
| ta... | TA5 | Implied, but not made explicit, especially through silence. |
| ta.... | TA6 | A maneuver, or action calculated to achieve some end. |
| ti... | TI5 | The papal crown. |
| tr... | TR5 | An identifying characteristic, habit or trend. |
| 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. |
| ur.. | UR4 | Pertaining to, contained in, or obtained from urine. |
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)
- archaic (AR7)
- arctic (AR6)
- aria (AR4)
- arthritic (AR9)
- atria (AT5)
- attic (AT5)
- cacti (CA5)
- cathartic (CA9)
- chai (CH4)
- chair (CH5)
- chia (CH4)
- chic (CH4)
- chica (CH5)
- chichi (CH6)
- chihuahua (CH9)
- chit (CH4)
- chitchat (CH8)
- circa (CI5)
- circuit (CI7)
- cirri (CI5)
- citric (CI6)
- critic (CR6)
- hair (HA4)
- haircut† (HA7)
- hitch (HI5)
- itch (IT4)
- raita (RA5)
- rich (RI4)
- tacit (TA5)
- tactic (TA6)
- tiara (TI5)
- trait (TR5)
- tutti (TU5)
- uric (UR4)
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.
- archaic (noun): A general term for the prehistoric period intermediate between the earliest period (‘Paleo-Indian’, ‘Paleo-American’, ‘American‐paleolithic’, &c.) of human presence in the Western Hemisphere, and the most recent prehistoric period (‘Woodland’, etc.).
- arctic (adjective): Alternative letter-case form of Arctic
- aria (noun): A musical piece written typically for a solo voice with orchestral accompaniment in an opera or cantata.
- arthritic (adjective): Of, or affected by arthritis.
- atria (noun): plural of atrium
- 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.
- cacti (noun): plural of cactus
- cathartic (adjective): Purgative; inducing mental or physical catharsis.
- chai (noun): A female gypsy.
- chair (noun): An item of furniture used to sit on or in, comprising a seat, legs or wheels, back, and sometimes arm rests, for use by one person. Compare stool, couch, sofa, settee, loveseat and bench.
- 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.
- chihuahua (noun): Alternative letter-case form of Chihuahua
- chit (noun): A child or babe; a young, small, or insignificant person or animal.
- chitchat (noun): Alternative spelling of chit-chat
- circa (preposition): Approximately, about, around
- circuit (noun): The act of moving or revolving around, or as in a circle or orbit; a revolution
- cirri (noun): plural of cirrus Tendrils or claspers.
- citric (adjective): Of, pertaining to, or derived from, citrus fruit.
- critic (noun): A person who appraises the works of others.
- hair (noun): A pigmented filament of keratin which grows from a follicle on the skin of humans and other mammals.
- haircut† (noun): The act of cutting of the hair, often done professionally by a barber, hair stylist, or beautician.
- hitch (noun): A sudden pull.
- itch (noun): A sensation felt on an area of the skin that causes a person or animal to want to scratch said area.
- raita (noun): A condiment used as a dip or sauce in the cuisine of southern Asia, made from seasoned yogurt.
- rich (adjective): Wealthy: having a lot of money and possessions.
- tacit (adjective): Implied, but not made explicit, especially through silence.
- tactic (noun): A maneuver, or action calculated to achieve some end.
- tiara (noun): The papal crown.
- trait (noun): An identifying characteristic, habit or trend.
- 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.
- uric (adjective): Pertaining to, contained in, or obtained from urine.