Spelling Bee Answers for Thursday, October 16, 2025

Oct 16, 2025, Thursday Spelling Bee Answers for the A, E, L, N, T, U, X honeycomb (center letter T) feature 66 words, a 316-point total, 1 Pangram (0 Perfect Pangram perfect), and the 10-letter longest word: TATTLETALE.

Spelling Bee hive for October 16, 2025 with center letter T and surrounding letters A,E,L,N,U and X

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Thursday, October 16, 2025 NYT Spelling Bee Puzzle Insights

A closer look at this NYT puzzle difficulty, word patterns, scoring, and solve time.

Difficulty

10/10

Very Hard

96th percentile

Avg Word Length

5.59

Typical length

All-time avg: 5.4

Rarity

96/100

Very Rare

Rarer than 96% of puzzles

Avg Solve Time

73 minutes

Longer than usual

To reach Genius

2LL

17

Typical spread

Unique two-letter openings

Bingo Status

No

Missing: X

All 7 letters start at least 1 word

GN4L

31

words to Genius
1×10L3×9L4×8L7×7L16×6L

GN4L OTN

Yes

Exact 221 pts
31 words1×10L3×9L4×8L7×7L16×6L

Vowel Split

43%

Balanced mix

160 vowels · 209 consonants

Score Milestones

  • 0%Beginner0 PTS
  • 5%Good Start16 PTS
  • 15%Moving Up47 PTS
  • 25%Good79 PTS
  • 40%Solid126 PTS
  • 50%Nice158 PTS
  • 60%Great190 PTS
  • 65%Amazing205 PTS
  • 70%Genius221 PTS
  • 100%Queen Bee316 PTS

Full List of NYT Spelling Bee Answers

Here is the complete list of 66 answers for the New York Times Spelling Bee puzzle for Thursday, October 16, 2025. The answers are organized by word length and point value, along with today's pangram. Prefer a spoiler-free approach? Try the spelling bee hints for today or browse the full list of NYT spelling bee words.

Common openings

T
41%
L
18%
E
15%

Try starting with these letters when you're stuck.

Puzzle Letters

Previous2025-10-15
Today's AnswersGo to Today

Pangrams

Reveal letter by letter or uncover a full solution

The Center letter is highlighted in Yellow.
Other days with this pangram

Complete Answers

Sort it your way: longest words or highest scores.

10-Letter Words 1 word

9-Letter Words 3 words

8-Letter Words 4 words

7-Letter Words 7 words

5-Letter Words 15 words

Browse calendar of past puzzles

Word Length Distribution

20 words
4L
20
15 words
5L
15
16 words
6L
16
7 words
7L
7
4 words (Pangram)
8L
4
3 words
9L
3
1 word
10L
1

Share of 66 answers at each word length.

Letter Coverage

T
66 words
100%
E
56 words
85%
A
43 words
65%
N
40 words
61%
L
34 words
52%
U
25 words
38%
X
14 words
21%

Share of 66 words using each hive letter.

Points by Length

20 pts
20
4L
75 pts
75
5L
96 pts
96
6L
49 pts
49
7L
39 pts (Pangram)
39
8L
27 pts
27
9L
10 pts
10
10L

Total points available at each word length.

Letter Frequency Distribution

T
2741%
L
1218%
E
1015%
A
711%
N
69%
U
46%

Share of 66 words starting with each letter.

How does this puzzle compare to other puzzles?

  • Today’s score of 316 ranks in the 93rd percentile among all puzzles.
  • The last time a score this low appeared was on 2025-10-14.
  • The highest score recorded is 506, seen on 2023-09-24.
  • The lowest score recorded is 47, seen on 2023-03-27.
  • With 66 possible answers, this puzzle falls in the 96th percentile overall.
  • The last puzzle with fewer answers occurred on 2025-10-15.
  • The highest number of answers in any puzzle is 80, on 2026-02-01.
  • The lowest number of answers in any puzzle is 16, on 2023-03-27.
  • This puzzle ranks among the Very Hard puzzles, based on overall difficulty scoring.
  • Compared to recent puzzles, today’s challenge is harder than average.
  • The letter set in this puzzle is considered Medium, compared to typical puzzles.
  • Puzzles with similar letter rarity last appeared on 2025-10-15.
  • The estimated solve time of 62–84 min is slower than typical puzzles.
  • Players can expect a grind-heavy solving experience.

Other Dictionary Words Not on This Puzzle's Official List

Wondering why these words aren't on the official list*:

  • aetat
  • alant
  • alate
  • alaunt
  • aleut
  • ananta
  • anat
  • anatta
  • anent
  • anet
  • anlaut
  • annat
  • annet
  • annette
  • annuent
  • annulate
  • annulet
  • annullate
  • anta
  • antae
  • antaean
  • anteal
  • antennal
  • antennate
  • antennula
  • antennule
  • antu
  • atalanta
  • ataunt
  • atellan
  • aten
  • atlanta
  • atlantal
  • atlantean
  • atlatl
  • atlee
  • atta
  • attal
  • attent
  • attentat
  • attentate
  • attenuant
  • attle
  • attn
  • atua
  • aulete
  • elanet
  • eluant
  • eluate
  • eluent
  • elute
  • enate
  • ental
  • entune
  • etna
  • etnean
  • etta
  • ettle
  • exalate
  • exannulate
  • exantlate
  • exeat
  • exultet
  • lanate
  • lant
  • lata
  • lateen
  • latten
  • leat
  • leet
  • leetle
  • lenten
  • lett
  • letten
  • llautu
  • lunet
  • lunt
  • lunulate
  • lunulet
  • lutea
  • lutelet
  • lutulent
  • luxate
  • nannette
  • nantle
  • nate
  • natt
  • naunt
  • neet
  • nete
  • nett
  • neut
  • nunlet
  • nutant
  • nutate
  • nutlet
  • taal
  • tael
  • tala
  • tallet
  • tana
  • tanala
  • tane
  • tanna
  • tannate
  • tantalate
  • tantalean
  • tate
  • tatta
  • tatu
  • taula
  • tean
  • teel
  • teet
  • teetan
  • teetee
  • tela
  • telae
  • tele
  • teletex
  • teleut
  • tellee
  • tellen
  • telt
  • tenent
  • tenne
  • tentlet
  • tenuate
  • tenue
  • tetanal
  • tetel
  • texan
  • textlet
  • tuan
  • tula
  • tule
  • tulu
  • tunna
  • tute
  • tutela
  • tutele
  • ululant
  • unexultant
  • unlent
  • unlute
  • unneat
  • untall
  • untaut
  • untax
  • untell
  • untenant
  • untent
  • untextual

*Every word here uses only the hive's seven letters, includes the center letter, and appears in our dictionary, but it was never published in the NYT's official answer list.

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