The New York Times Spelling Bee for December 1, 2025 challenges you to build words of four letters or more that must include the center letter (I). Today’s hive is consonant-heavy with only one vowel, so it feels a bit tricky and focused — rewarding solvers who spot short linkable stems and satellite longer words.

About today’s puzzle

Center letter: I. The surrounding letters (D, O, K, W, N, L) create a mostly consonant mix with a single vowel, so play feels constrained but logical. The hive leans on consonant clusters and allows solid short words plus a handful of longer, satisfying finds — an overall puzzle that felt balanced between restrictive and generous.

NYT Spelling Bee Words and Answers: December 1, 2025

Here’s a best-effort list of words that fit today’s rules. Keep in mind: some are rare or unusual, so the official NYT list may vary.

  • downlink
  • window
  • wind
  • wink
  • wild
  • will
  • link
  • kind
  • dink
  • kilo
  • loin
  • lino
  • kiln

Pangram of the day

Downlink works as today’s pangram because it uses every required letter at least once: D, O, W, N, L, I, N, K. It’s a single technical word meaning a signal sent from a satellite or spacecraft down to Earth — a neat, theme-free word that neatly stitches together the consonant-heavy hive with the lone vowel I, making it both satisfying and plausible for the puzzle.

Quick tactics for any puzzle

  • Start with the center letter
  • Play with prefixes and suffixes
  • Anagram your discoveries
  • Use repeated letters
  • Begin with easy 4-letter words

Final thoughts

Nice work getting through this hive — it rewards careful anagramming and spotting short stems. Tell us how many words you found, and whether you spotted the downlink pangram today. Happy spelling!