If you’ve ever played the New York Times Spelling Bee, you know how satisfying it feels to find that one word hiding in plain sight.

The New York Times Spelling Bee for November 14 centers on O and surrounds it with M, N, A, D, I and C. Every valid word must include the center letter O and be at least four letters long. With a mix of consonants and a single vowel, the hive felt moderately open — there were obvious short answers plus some deeper, rarer entries for points.

About today’s puzzle

This hive centers on O and pairs it with mostly consonants—M, N, D, C and the vowel A (plus I). That mix makes the puzzle fairly consonant-heavy but serviceable; familiar roots like dom-, nom- and -oid opened paths to longer forms, while short O-words kept the list approachable rather than punishingly tight.

Screenshot by: NerdsChalk

Words and answers: November 14

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.

  • nomadic (pangram)
  • monadic
  • monoid
  • domain
  • diamond
  • domino
  • condo
  • condom
  • mondo
  • nomic
  • amino
  • ionic
  • iconic
  • comic
  • coin
  • icon
  • coda
  • coma
  • moan
  • noma
  • odic
  • iodic

Pangram of the day

Nomadic neatly uses every hive letter — N, O, M, A, D, I and C — to form a tidy seven-letter answer that packs both definition and payoff. It describes a roaming or itinerant lifestyle, which felt fitting given the scattered consonant-heavy set. Because it contains common roots (nom- for law or naming and -adic as an adjectival ending), it unlocked several legitimate derivatives and guided solvers toward longer forms.

Quick tactics for any puzzle

  • Start with the center letter — list short, obvious words that must include it.
  • Play with prefixes and suffixes — add -ic, -oid, -dom, -ion to extend stems.
  • Anagram your discoveries — shuffle known chunks (nom, dom, ion) to spot new words.
  • Use repeated letters — don’t assume each letter appears only once; doubles can form longer words.
  • Begin with easy 4-letter words — they build momentum and reveal useful letter pairings.

Final thoughts

Today’s hive balanced approachable short words with a handful of deeper finds; many players will spot a solid set, while dedicated puzzlers can hunt the rarer entries. How many