The New York Times Spelling Bee for 29 December 2025 delivers a deceptively flexible puzzle. As always, every valid word must be at least four letters long and include the center letter. Today’s hive mixes familiar consonants with helpful vowels, encouraging longer builds while still offering plenty of quick four-letter starters to ease you into the grid.
About today’s puzzle
Today’s center letter is B, which shapes nearly every solution. The surrounding letters lean friendly, with multiple vowels and repeatable consonants that support word extensions. The puzzle feels open rather than restrictive, rewarding players who experiment with doubling letters and stretching base words into longer, more satisfying finds.
NYT Spelling Bee Words and Answers: 29 December 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.
- alibi
- bald
- baling
- ball
- ballad
- balling
- banal
- banana
- band
- bandaging
- nibbling
- labia
- bland
- billing
- bill
- bandanna
- banding
- bang
- banging
- banning
Pangram of the day
Balding is today’s standout word because it cleanly uses every letter in the hive while still feeling natural and common. It’s not an obscure term or forced construction, which makes discovering it especially satisfying. Words like this often hide in plain sight, built from simple roots that expand just enough to include every required letter.
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
This puzzle rewards calm exploration more than brute forcing guesses. If you leaned into repeated letters and longer builds, today likely felt generous. Share how many words you found, or let us know if balding jumped out early for you.
Discussion