The NYT Spelling Bee for July 5, 2026 centers on the letter F, with D, E, I, L, O, and V surrounding it in the outer ring. Every valid word must contain F, each of the seven letters may be used more than once within the same word, and the puzzle accepts 49 words in total today. If you have been working through the hive since midnight and need the answers, the complete list is below.
Today’s Letters
Center: F. Outer ring: D, E, I, L, O, V. Every word must contain F at least once, and letters may repeat within the same word – which is exactly how this grid produces some of its more unusual entries. The puzzle resets at midnight ET, so today’s window runs until then.
Hints Before the Reveal
Today’s single pangram is FIVEFOLD. It means five times as much or to a degree five times greater, and uses all seven letters, with F appearing twice. The word tends to elude players who work through the obvious F words first and then overlook the compound structure entirely. Once the FIVE root clicks into place, the -FOLD suffix follows immediately.
This grid rewards players who are comfortable with repeated vowels. VOODOO stands out: six letters, three O’s, and entirely valid on this board since the outer ring includes O and repetition is permitted. DOODLED and DOLLIED both require double letters in specific positions and trip up solvers who assume longer words will use more of the available alphabet. IODIDE, the chemical term for a compound containing iodine, is the kind of scientific vocabulary the Spelling Bee consistently rewards and casual solvers often skip. DEVOLVED and its six-letter base DEVOLVE are worth hunting once the -OLVE ending becomes clear from shorter guesses.
Full Answer List for July 5, 2026
Eight letters:
DEVOLVED, FIVEFOLD
Seven letters:
DEVOLVE, DOLLIED, DOODLED, EVOLVED, FLOODED, VIDEOED
Six letters:
DEVOID, DOFFED, DOLLED, DOODLE, EVOLVE, FOILED, FOLDED, FOODIE, FOOLED, IODIDE, LOLLED, VOIDED, VOODOO
Five letters:
DILDO, DIODE, DOLED, FLOOD, FOLIO, LOVED, OFFED, OILED, OLDIE, OLIVE, OLLIE, OVOID, VIDEO, VOILE
Four letters:
DODO, DOFF, DOLE, DOLL, DOVE, FLOE, FOIL, FOLD, FOOD, FOOL, IDOL, LODE, LOLL, LOVE, OLEO, OLIO, VIOL, VOID, VOLE
FIVEFOLD is the word most players report missing the longest today. The compound is standard English but rarely surfaces in everyday writing, which means it sits below the threshold of instinctive recall for most solvers. Players who spotted FIVE early and then tried extending it hit the pangram fast; those who approached from FOLD and worked backward found it almost as quickly. VOODOO is the other notable late find: the triple-O construction looks impossible until solvers remember that the outer ring carries a single O that can be reused at will. IODIDE is worth noting as a two-attempt trap, where players who enter IODINE first lose a guess before recognizing that the available letters do not include N.
Yesterday’s NYT Spelling Bee for July 4 centered on the letter B and offered three pangrams: BIATHLETE, HABITABLE, and HITTABLE, making it one of the more generous grids of the year. Today’s single-pangram structure brings the difficulty back to a more typical Sunday level. If you are also working through today’s other Word Desk puzzles, the NYT Strands answer for July 5 and the Wordle for July 5 are both covered. The next Spelling Bee grid resets at midnight.
