![]() While writing this article, I learned that I completely missed the March 2022 pangram “whippoorwill”-the only bird pangram to appear so far in the game. As a Native Hawaiian word, it should be Nēnē, with the diacritical marks to lengthen and add stress to the “e” pronunciation.Įach Spelling Bee puzzle contains at least one pangram-a word that contains all seven letters and is worth extra points. It is also worth noting that Spelling Bee’s “Nene” may be considered misspelled by some. Well before Spelling Bee ever existed, Nēnē s have been popular inclusions in crossword puzzles (more on the reasons for that below). ![]() ![]() ![]() William Shunn theorizes, however, that these birds may be especially familiar to word puzzle fans. Evolved from Canada Geese and native only to the Hawaiian islands, they should be obscure birds to most people who don’t live or visit there. That Nēnēs are accepted at all is surprising. (Today their populations are recovering and are viewed as an inspiring example of successful intervention to save a species). It's a little sad that of the three, Dodos are extinct, and Nēnēs were almost extinct with only 30 birds left in the wild. *This is a relatively comprehensive list but probably not a complete one.Īccording to Spelling Bee Solver, Dodo and Nene are among the Top 20 most frequently appearing words in all of the game, closely followed by Loons. 1: Peafowl Hawk Wigeon Duck Junco Puffin Bunting Hawk Owlet Penguin.2-5 : Cuckoo, Pewee (5) Crow, Titmice, Condor, Martin (4) Whippoorwill, Bobolink, Towhee (3) Finch, Robin, Toucan, Chicken, Dove (2).Those puzzles, however, may use different word lists).Īccepted Birds So Far, By Number of Puzzle Appearances* (Note: Playing Spelling Bee beyond the early levels requires a New York Times Games subscription, though you can also find similar free- and ad-supported versions of this game. I also relied heavily on the excellent Spelling Bee Solver, a site with daily puzzle hints and a searchable archive created by puzzle aficionado William Shunn all statistics below come from my searches of his site. Without his input, I turned to surveying colleagues and Twitter. Since its digital debut in 2018, Spelling Bee has published more than 1,400 daily puzzles. The unenviable task of arbitrating which words are and aren’t obscure is led by New York Times digital puzzles editor Sam Ezersky, who through a spokesperson declined what (I thought) was an irresistible opportunity to be interviewed about avian curation strategy. And for bird fans who like puzzles, prepare to have opinions. For puzzle fans who don’t know much about birds, you may gain an extra edge and hopefully a greater appreciation for the wide spectrum of avian diversity. Keep reading for a close look at some avian strategy for several popular word games. But it also can be frustrating when a bird that you know isn’t valid. Knowing about birds can confer an advantage at all kinds of word puzzles, whether in Spelling Bee or a classic game of Scrabble. Foodies know a wider ranger of dishes and ingredients than the average person on the street, for example, while gardeners know flowers and carpenters know unusual tools.īird people also have their own unique dictionary-the most obvious entries being the names of birds themselves. Dive into any job or hobby or become familiar with any culture, or subculture, and you will inevitably develop a specialized lexicon that confuses outsiders. According to the puzzle’s rules: “Our word list does not include words that are offensive, obscure, hyphenated or proper nouns.”įor many game fans, the critical word is “obscure.” Jargon is a universal construct. There's one more catch: Not every possible word is accepted-and therefore, not every word is worth points. In Spelling Bee, a player uses seven letters to form as many as words as possible, aiming to achieve "genius" status. Each word must be at least four letters and contain that day's required letter. Spelling Bee is an addictive word challenge game that became popular during the pandemic, only to be later eclipsed in fame by Wordle, another word game that recently took the internet by storm. Then I grab my phone and ease into the day with a game of Spelling Bee. When my alarm goes off each morning, I hit snooze, and I hit snooze again.
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