NYT Spelling Bee Answers for May 20, 2023
Game Summary
| Center Letter | H |
|---|---|
| Outer Letters | a, c, i, r, t, u |
| # of Pangrams | 1 (Perfect: 1) |
| Total Words | 38 words |
| Total Points | 164 points |
| Genius Level | 115 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 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | 1 | 5 |
| C | 6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 17 |
| H | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | - | - | 10 |
| I | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| R | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| T | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | 4 |
| U | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | Σ | 15 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 38 |
Two-Letter List (2LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding two letters.
| A | AR×4 AT×1 |
|---|---|
| C | CA×3 CH×13 CR×1 |
| H | HA×6 HI×1 HU×3 |
| I | IT×1 |
| R | RI×1 |
| T | TA×1 TH×2 TR×1 |
| U |
Three-Letter List (3LL) Hints
The following list shows the number of solution words that begin with the corresponding three letters.
| A | ARC×2 ARH×1 ART×1 ATT×1 |
|---|---|
| C | CAT×3 CHA×5 CHI×7 CHU×1 CRU×1 |
| H | HAI×2 HAR×1 HAT×3 HIT×1 HUR×2 HUT×1 |
| I | ITC×1 |
| R | RIC×1 |
| T | TAC×1 THA×2 TRU×1 |
| 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) |
|---|---|---|
| ha..... † | HA7 | The act of cutting of the hair, often done professionally by a barber, hair stylist, or beautician. |
| ar.. | AR4 | An inverted U shape. |
| 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... | AR5 | One who has attained enlightenment; a Buddhist saint. |
| ar....... | AR9 | Of, or affected by arthritis. |
| at.... | AT6 | To fasten, to join to (literally and figuratively). |
| ca..... | CA7 | Inflammation of the mucous membranes of the nose and throat. |
| ca... | CA5 | The act of seizing or capturing. |
| 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 | To burn something to charcoal. |
| ch... | CH5 | A map. A map illustrating the geography of a specific phenomenon. A navigator's map. |
| ch.. | CH4 | To be engaged in informal conversation. |
| 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 |
| ch.... | CH6 | A Christian house of worship; a building where Christian religious services take place. |
| cr.... | CR6 | A device to assist in motion as a cane, especially one that provides support under the arm to reduce weight on a leg. |
| ha.. | HA4 | A pigmented filament of keratin which grows from a follicle on the skin of humans and other mammals. |
| ha.. | HA4 | A male deer, especially the male of the red deer after his fifth year. |
| ha... | HA5 | A horizontal door in a floor or ceiling. |
| ha.. | HA4 | third-person singular simple present indicative form of have |
| ha... | HA5 | The fundamental form of yoga that focuses on asanas |
| hi... | HI5 | A sudden pull. |
| hu.... | HU6 | Expressing approval, appreciation, or happiness. |
| hu.. | HU4 | To cause (a person or animal) physical pain and/or injury. |
| hu... | HU5 | A box, chest, crate, case or cabinet. |
| it.. | IT4 | A sensation felt on an area of the skin that causes a person or animal to want to scratch said area. |
| ri.. | RI4 | Wealthy: having a lot of money and possessions. |
| ta.. | TA4 | Clipping of tachometer. |
| th.. | TH4 | Introducing a clause which is the subject or object of a verb (such as one involving reported speech), or which is a complement to a previous statement. |
| th.... | TH6 | Straw, rushes, or similar, used for making or covering the roofs of buildings, or of stacks of hay or grain. |
| tr... | TR5 | True facts, genuine depiction or statements of reality. |
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.
- haircut† (HA7)
- arch (AR4)
- archaic (AR7)
- arhat (AR5)
- arthritic (AR9)
- attach (AT6)
- catarrh (CA7)
- catch (CA5)
- cathartic (CA9)
- chai (CH4)
- chair (CH5)
- char (CH4)
- chart (CH5)
- chat (CH4)
- chia (CH4)
- chic (CH4)
- chica (CH5)
- chichi (CH6)
- chihuahua (CH9)
- chit (CH4)
- chitchat (CH8)
- church (CH6)
- crutch (CR6)
- hair (HA4)
- hart (HA4)
- hatch (HA5)
- hath (HA4)
- hatha (HA5)
- hitch (HI5)
- hurrah (HU6)
- hurt (HU4)
- hutch (HU5)
- itch (IT4)
- rich (RI4)
- tach (TA4)
- that (TH4)
- thatch (TH6)
- truth (TR5)
Answer Definitions
- haircut† (noun): The act of cutting of the hair, often done professionally by a barber, hair stylist, or beautician.
- arch (noun): An inverted U shape.
- 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.).
- arhat (noun): One who has attained enlightenment; a Buddhist saint.
- arthritic (adjective): Of, or affected by arthritis.
- attach (verb): To fasten, to join to (literally and figuratively).
- catarrh (noun): Inflammation of the mucous membranes of the nose and throat.
- catch (noun): The act of seizing or capturing.
- 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.
- char (verb): To burn something to charcoal.
- chart (noun): A map. A map illustrating the geography of a specific phenomenon. A navigator's map.
- chat (verb): To be engaged in informal conversation.
- 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
- church (noun): A Christian house of worship; a building where Christian religious services take place.
- crutch (noun): A device to assist in motion as a cane, especially one that provides support under the arm to reduce weight on a leg.
- hair (noun): A pigmented filament of keratin which grows from a follicle on the skin of humans and other mammals.
- hart (noun): A male deer, especially the male of the red deer after his fifth year.
- hatch (noun): A horizontal door in a floor or ceiling.
- hath (verb): third-person singular simple present indicative form of have
- hatha (noun): The fundamental form of yoga that focuses on asanas
- hitch (noun): A sudden pull.
- hurrah (interjection): Expressing approval, appreciation, or happiness.
- hurt (verb): To cause (a person or animal) physical pain and/or injury.
- hutch (noun): A box, chest, crate, case or cabinet.
- itch (noun): A sensation felt on an area of the skin that causes a person or animal to want to scratch said area.
- rich (adjective): Wealthy: having a lot of money and possessions.
- tach (noun): Clipping of tachometer.
- that (conjunction): Introducing a clause which is the subject or object of a verb (such as one involving reported speech), or which is a complement to a previous statement.
- thatch (noun): Straw, rushes, or similar, used for making or covering the roofs of buildings, or of stacks of hay or grain.
- truth (noun): True facts, genuine depiction or statements of reality.