Bee Roots for 2025-07-13

The table provides clues for the roots of words in today's NY Times Spelling Bee. You're responsible for prefixes, suffixes, tense changes, plurals, doubling consonants before suffixes, and alternate spellings of roots. An exception: since Sam won't allow S, when the root contains an S, the clue may be for a plural or suffixed form. "Mice" for example. If a clue isn't self-explanatory, try googling it. The TL;DR about the site comes after the table.

Past clues are available here

 
Today's puzzle
  • Letters: A/DGINTU
  • Words: 57
  • Points: 314
  • Pangrams: 3
Source: Holland Veterinary Hospitals

Table content

root #answers coveredanswer's first letterclue for root (answer may need prefix, suffix, tense change, alt spelling, ...)
11AJoin something to something else
21AAnother time; once more; adv.
31AHow old you are, noun; or grow older, verb; or period of history, noun
41AItalian slang for heartburn from stress
51AMake someone nervous, campaign for a cause, or stir briskly (clothes in a washing machine, e.g.), verb
61AHelp
71AMedical term for severe (chest) pain
81AOpposed to (prefix), NOT uncle’s wife's nickname
92ASucceed in getting, or reach; verb (… nirvana), noun form is a pangram
101AMake aware (…-ed to her emotions); ends in list word
112AReview financially (tax returns or business ledgers), gerund form is a pangram
121AParent’s sister
131DMild cuss (just get the … thing working!); euphemism for “condemn to Hell” expletive
141DFacts & stats, computer info, or Star Trek Next Gen android
151DJune 12, 2021, e.g., noun; or see someone romantically, verb
162DMake someone feel intimidated or apprehensive (a task, opponent, or situation), gerund form is a pangram
171Ggo around from one place to another, in the pursuit of pleasure or entertainment
181GChoke or retch, verb; or material placed over someone's mouth to prevent them from speaking or crying out, noun/verb
191GSuper enthusiastic; Biden inauguration National Anthem singer
202GIncrease the amount or rate of (you always … a few pounds on a cruise), noun, adj. form is a pangram
211GA person's way of walking, or an animal’s pace (esp. horse); NOT a hinged fence opening
222GGroup of thugs ("Working on the Chain …"), noun/verb
231GHinged barrier, or airplane boarding area
241GMeasuring dial (fuel …)
251GLean and haggard, especially because of suffering, hunger, or age (rhymes with what ghosts do)
261GEnormous person (Jolly Green …, Andre the …)
271GTiny flying insect
281ITropical lizard, noun
291IAnger provoked by what is perceived as unfairness
301ICause to begin, or admit into a secret society; verb; or novice, noun
311IFlood or overwhelm, verb, gerund form is a pangram
321NIndiaan flaat breaad
331NNothing, Spanish
341NAnnoy or irritate with persistent fault-finding or continuous urging
351NGreek water nymph, or dragonfly larva
361NGrandma, slang; or Peter Pan dog
371NSwimming or floating adj. from Latin
381TIdentification label, noun/verb; or kids' game (…, you're it)
391TSometimes swampy coniferous forest of high northern latitudes
402TSmear of corruption or pollution, noun/verb
411TYellowish-brown color
421TStrong taste, flavor, or smell; astronaut orange juice
431TBrown chemical in tea & wine used to preserve leather, noun
441TMake lace
452TProvoke with words
461TNot slack, as a rope, adj.
471TPre-Olympic god, largest Saturn moon, or industry bigwig
481TChicken of the sea (Ahi …)
382UIdentification label, noun/verb; or kids' game (…, you're it)

About this site

This site provides clues for a day's New York Times Spelling Bee puzzle. It follows in Kevin Davis' footsteps. The original set of 4,500 clues came from him, and they still make up about three quarters of the current clue set.

The "Bee Roots" approach is to provide explicit clues for root words, not every word. As logophiles, we are pretty good at putting on prefixes and suffixes, changing tense, and forming plurals (including Latin plurals!). The clues cover root words, arranged alphabetically by root word, with a count of words in the puzzle that come from each root. For example, if a puzzle includes ROAM and ROAMING, there will be a clue for ROAM and a count of 2. The root may not appear in the puzzle at all; for example, the 2021-07-23 Bee included ICED, DEICE, and DEICED. For such a puzzle, the clue would be for ICE with a word count of 3.

The Bee Roots approach involves judgement sometimes. For example, if a puzzle includes LOVE, LOVED, and LOVELY, how many roots are needed to cover them? LOVE and LOVED share the root LOVE, certainly, but LOVELY is tricky. LOVE is part of its etymology, but by now, the word means "exquisitely beautiful," which is a lot farther from the meaning of LOVE than swithcing to past tense. I'm inclined to treat LOVE and LOVELY as separate roots. You may not agree, which is fine. Another thing we logophiles share is a LOVE of arguing about words on Twitter.

A few words can have one meaning as a suffixed form and another as a stand-alone word. EVENING, for example. In those cases I will use the meaning that I think is more common.

One last complication, until another one pops up: a few roots have multiple spellings, for example LOLLYGAG and LALLYGAG. Depending on the day's letters, and maybe even the editor's whims, one or both could be in the puzzle's answer list. With such roots, you could see a word count of 2, even if there are no applicable prefixes or suffixes.

I will do my best to keep this site up to date and helpful (I hope). Check it out, and tweet feedback to @donswartwout Tweet to @donswartwout