NYT Spelling Bee Answers for December 12, 2022
Game Summary
| Center Letter | G |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | e, h, i, l, t, w |
| # of Pangrams | 1 (Perfect: none) |
| Total Words | 25 words |
| Total Points | 126 points |
| Genius Level | 88 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</th><th>11 | Σ | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E | - | 1 | 1 | - | - | 1 | - | - | 3 |
| G | 5 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 7 |
| H | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 1 | - | - | 3 |
| I | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| L | - | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 4 |
| T | 1 | 2 | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | 4 |
| W | - | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | 4 | Σ | 7 | 9 | 5 | - | 1 | 2 | - | 1 | 25 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| E | EI×3 |
|---|---|
| G | GE×2 GH×1 GI×3 GL×1 |
| H | HE×1 HI×2 |
| I | |
| L | LE×1 LI×3 |
| T | TH×1 TI×1 TW×2 |
| W | WE×2 WI×2 |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| E | EIG×3 |
|---|---|
| G | GEL×2 GHE×1 GIG×1 GIL×2 GLE×1 |
| H | HEI×1 HIG×2 |
| I | |
| L | LEG×1 LIE×1 LIG×2 |
| T | THI×1 TIG×1 TWI×2 |
| W | WEI×2 WIG×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) |
|---|---|---|
| li......... † | LI11 | A particular weight class, or member of such, as prescribed by the rules, between that of the heavier welterweight and the lighter featherweight. See Wikipedia for the specifics of each sport. |
| ei... | EI5 | NATO & ICAO phonetic alphabet code for the numeral 8. |
| ei.... | EI6 | The ordinal form of the number eight. |
| ei....... | EI9 | The ordinal form of the number eighty. |
| ge... | GE5 | Any gelled suspension made for culinary purposes. |
| ge.. | GE4 | A lunatic. |
| gh.. | GH4 | A type of clarified butter used in South Asian cooking; usli ghee. |
| gi.... | GI6 | To laugh gently in a nervous or affected manner. |
| gi.. | GI4 | a breathing organ of fish and other aquatic animals |
| gi.. | GI4 | Gold or other metal in a thin layer; gilding. Gold-colored paint or other coating. |
| gl.. | GL4 | Joy; happiness great delight, especially from one's own good fortune or from another's misfortune. |
| he.... | HE6 | The distance from the base of something to the top. |
| hi.. | HI4 | Physically elevated, extending above a base or average level: Very elevated; extending or being far above a base; tall; lofty. |
| hi....... | HI9 | An area or a spot in a drawing, painting, or photograph that is strongly illuminated. |
| le... | LE5 | A legitimate; a legitimate actor. |
| li... | LI5 | A free and independent person; specifically, a lord paramount; a sovereign. |
| li... | LI5 | Visible electromagnetic radiation. The human eye can typically detect radiation (light) in the wavelength range of about 400 to 750 nanometers. Nearby shorter and longer wavelength ranges, although not visible, are commonly called ultraviolet and infrared light. |
| th... | TH5 | The upper leg of a human, between the hip and the knee. |
| ti... | TI5 | Firmly held together; compact; not loose or open. |
| tw.. | TW4 | A small thin branch of a tree or bush. |
| tw...... | TW8 | The soft light in the sky seen before the rising and (especially) after the setting of the sun, occasioned by the illumination of the earth’s atmosphere by the direct rays of the sun and their reflection on the earth. |
| we... | WE5 | To determine the weight of an object. |
| we.... | WE6 | The force on an object due to the gravitational attraction between it and the Earth (or whatever astronomical object it is primarily influenced by). |
| wi.... | WI6 | To move with irregular, back and forward or side to side motions; To shake or jiggle. |
| wi... | WI5 | A living creature, especially a human being. |
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.
- lightweight† (LI11)
- eight (EI5)
- eighth (EI6)
- eightieth (EI9)
- gelee (GE5)
- gelt (GE4)
- ghee (GH4)
- giggle (GI6)
- gill (GI4)
- gilt (GI4)
- glee (GL4)
- height (HE6)
- high (HI4)
- highlight (HI9)
- legit (LE5)
- liege (LI5)
- light (LI5)
- thigh (TH5)
- tight (TI5)
- twig (TW4)
- twilight (TW8)
- weigh (WE5)
- weight (WE6)
- wiggle (WI6)
- wight (WI5)
Answer Definitions
- lightweight† (noun): A particular weight class, or member of such, as prescribed by the rules, between that of the heavier welterweight and the lighter featherweight. See Wikipedia for the specifics of each sport.
- eight (numeral): NATO & ICAO phonetic alphabet code for the numeral 8.
- eighth (adjective): The ordinal form of the number eight.
- eightieth (adjective): The ordinal form of the number eighty.
- gelee (noun): Any gelled suspension made for culinary purposes.
- gelt (noun): A lunatic.
- ghee (noun): A type of clarified butter used in South Asian cooking; usli ghee.
- giggle (verb): To laugh gently in a nervous or affected manner.
- gill (noun): a breathing organ of fish and other aquatic animals
- gilt (noun): Gold or other metal in a thin layer; gilding. Gold-colored paint or other coating.
- glee (noun): Joy; happiness great delight, especially from one's own good fortune or from another's misfortune.
- height (noun): The distance from the base of something to the top.
- high (adjective): Physically elevated, extending above a base or average level: Very elevated; extending or being far above a base; tall; lofty.
- highlight (noun): An area or a spot in a drawing, painting, or photograph that is strongly illuminated.
- legit (noun): A legitimate; a legitimate actor.
- liege (noun): A free and independent person; specifically, a lord paramount; a sovereign.
- light (noun): Visible electromagnetic radiation. The human eye can typically detect radiation (light) in the wavelength range of about 400 to 750 nanometers. Nearby shorter and longer wavelength ranges, although not visible, are commonly called ultraviolet and infrared light.
- thigh (noun): The upper leg of a human, between the hip and the knee.
- tight (adjective): Firmly held together; compact; not loose or open.
- twig (noun): A small thin branch of a tree or bush.
- twilight (noun): The soft light in the sky seen before the rising and (especially) after the setting of the sun, occasioned by the illumination of the earth’s atmosphere by the direct rays of the sun and their reflection on the earth.
- weigh (verb): To determine the weight of an object.
- weight (noun): The force on an object due to the gravitational attraction between it and the Earth (or whatever astronomical object it is primarily influenced by).
- wiggle (verb): To move with irregular, back and forward or side to side motions; To shake or jiggle.
- wight (noun): A living creature, especially a human being.