Spelling Bee hints & answers: May 3, 2026 (Puzzle #21294)

This page shows spoiler‑layered hints and full answers for the NYT Spelling Bee hive published on May 3, 2026 (2026-05-03 · Puzzle #21294).

Hive overview

This hive centers on C with six outer letters. It has 69 stored words, 1 pangram, and about 383 available points before rank thresholds.

Show structure hint

This hive has 69 playable words worth about 383 points in total. Aim to unlock the pangram and a few long words early to get ahead of the ranking curve.

There is 1 pangram hidden in this hive.

Show word-count hints

Word count matrix (starting letter × length):

	4	5	6	7+	Σ
C	4 letters8	5 letters8	6 letters12	7+ letters14	Total42
A	4 letters1	5 letters2	6 letters1	7+ letters7	Total11
N	4 letters1	5 letters1	6 letters–	7+ letters–	Total2
O	4 letters1	5 letters1	6 letters1	7+ letters–	Total3
R	4 letters–	5 letters–	6 letters2	7+ letters1	Total3
T	4 letters2	5 letters1	6 letters1	7+ letters3	Total7
U	4 letters–	5 letters1	6 letters–	7+ letters–	Total1
Σ	4 letters13	5 letters14	6 letters17	7+ letters25	Total69

Approximate rank thresholds for this hive:

Good Start: 0 pts
Moving Up: 8 pts
Good: 19 pts
Solid: 31 pts
Nice: 57 pts
Great: 96 pts
Amazing: 153 pts
Genius: 268 pts
Queen Bee: 383 pts

Check your current score in the NYT game to see how close you are to each rank.

Reveal full answer list (spoiler)

Full answer list for today's hive (alphabetical):

WordLengthScorePangram

ACCOUNT
7
7
No
ACCOUNTANT
10
10
No
ACORN
5
5
No
ACTOR
5
5
No
ACTUATOR
8
8
No
ARCANA
6
6
No
ARCO
4
1
No
ATTRACT
7
7
No
ATTRACTANT
10
10
No
ATTRACTOR
9
9
No
AUTOCRAT
8
8
No
CACAO
5
5
No
CANCAN
6
6
No
CANNA
5
5
No
CANNON
6
6
No
CANNOT
6
6
No
CANON
5
5
No
CANT
4
1
No
CANTATA
7
7
No
CANTON
6
6
No
CANTOR
6
6
No
CARAT
5
5
No
CARROT
6
6
No
CART
4
1
No
CARTON
6
6
No
CARTOON
7
7
No
CATARACT
8
8
No
COAT
4
1
No
COCA
4
1
No
COCOA
5
5
No
COCONUT
7
7
No
COCOON
6
6
No
CONCOCT
7
7
No
CONCUR
6
6
No
CONTACT
7
7
No
CONTORT
7
7
No
CONTOUR
7
7
No
CONTRACT
8
8
No
CONTRACTOR
10
10
No
COOT
4
1
No
CORN
4
1
No
CORONA
6
6
No
COTTON
6
6
No
COUNT
5
5
No
COURT
5
5
No
CROC
4
1
No
CROON
5
5
No
CROUTON
7
7
No
CURACAO
7
7
No
CURATOR
7
7
No
CURRANT
7
7
No
CURT
4
1
No
CUTOUT
6
6
No
NARC
4
1
No
NARCO
5
5
No
OCCUR
5
5
No
OCTANT
6
6
No
ORCA
4
1
No
RACCOON
7
7
No
RANCOR
6
6
No
ROCOCO
6
6
No
TACO
4
1
No
TACT
4
1
No
TOCCATA
7
7
No
TOUCAN
6
6
No
TRACT
5
5
No
TRACTOR
7
7
No
TURNCOAT
8
15
Yes
UNCUT
5
5
No

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Today's hintsSee hive structure, rank cues, and spoiler-layered help.Spelling Bee archiveJump to stored hives by NYT print date.Previous hive: May 2, 2026Open the stored hive from May 2, 2026 · Puzzle #21155.Next hive: May 4, 2026Open the next stored hive from May 4, 2026 · Puzzle #12781.