# NYT Spelling Bee drives me crazy **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** board-card-word-game\ **Created:** [December 17, 2023, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739 "2023-12-17T15:50:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 76
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2025, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1501 "2025-05-14T11:56:42Z")
Checked the hints page today to find the last words (got stuck on PINNIPED) and discovered that there is an error there. The page you get where you click on “Hints” thinks there’s an additional pangram (with the accompanying number of additional points). The Spelling Bee Buddy has the correct number of words and points. Wonder what happened there? I assume it will get amended at some point today. ETA: The forum commenters have naturally picked up on the discrepancy and think the missing word is HEADPIN (spoiled because it gives away other words). ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2025, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1502 "2025-05-14T12:20:14Z")
That’s weird about that error! I’m glad I usually skip that page and head to the Buddy. Just one word to go today, the hardest. ETA: Got it! ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2025, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1503 "2025-05-15T08:53:23Z")
MACH HATCHECK Yes, Discourse, this is an okay post. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2025, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1504 "2025-05-15T09:06:56Z")
Mach is unit named after a person so it’s a proper noun. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2025, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1505 "2025-05-15T13:13:20Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Mach is unit named after a person so it’s a proper noun That’s not necessarily true. Counterexamples: ampere, volt, watt, newton, many others. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2025, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1506 "2025-05-15T13:31:32Z")
And several of those are definitely accepted. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2025, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1507 "2025-05-15T13:43:31Z")
It may be based on whether the word is commonly capitalized? ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2025, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1508 "2025-05-16T03:47:27Z")
Dear Mr. Ezersky: Is it truly your assertion that HAMATE, a carpal bone, is NOT obscure or technical? It’s just an everyday word for you, like THEM? (I assume no one needed that one blurred.) ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2025, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1509 "2025-05-19T14:01:39Z")
I am certain that OOCYTE was accepted in the past. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2025, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1510 "2025-05-19T19:03:31Z")
Accepted seven times and now mysteriously canceled. I drove myself crazy thinking I had spelled it wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2025, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1511 "2025-05-19T19:12:46Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > Dear Mr. Ezersky: > > Is it truly your assertion that HAMATE, a carpal bone, is NOT obscure or technical? It’s just an everyday word for you, like THEM? (I assume no one needed that one blurred.) It seemed to be an obscure word to me; I needed a hint and Google to find the word. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2025, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1512 "2025-05-19T22:40:01Z")
Hamate is a familiar word to baseball fans. Some of the best players have broken that particular little bone, like David Ortiz, Mike Trout, Giancarlo Stanton, Jose Ramirez, Tony Gwynn, Ken Griffey, jr., Jim Thome and many others. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2025, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1513 "2025-05-20T13:34:00Z")
Well. Started off directly with five pangrams and then spent quite a while looking for another before turning to the rest of the puzzle. Got to Genius pretty quickly. ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2025, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1514 "2025-05-23T16:06:32Z")
Had a first today – got to Genius without finding a pangram. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2025, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1515 "2025-05-25T17:46:37Z")
Today the last remaining word, for which I needed a hint, was napoleon, which Merriam-Webster tells me can be lower case. But the word is derived from the proper name, so I would think it should be excluded. . ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2025, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1516 "2025-05-26T17:25:46Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > But the word is derived from the proper name, so I would think it should be excluded. Not all words derived from proper names are capitalized. I believe I pointed out a little ways upthread that many names of measurement units are not capitalized even though they’re named after people. As far as today, cockroaches are disappointed that CUCARACHA isn’t accepted. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2025, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1517 "2025-05-26T17:42:30Z")
I tried that word. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2025, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1518 "2025-05-26T17:58:53Z")
No DUARCHY, which would be a pangram. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2025, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1519 "2025-05-26T18:20:53Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Not all words derived from proper names are capitalized Which is why we also have panama (a hat that hails from Ecuador, of course) and morocco, a type of leather. ---
**Author:** ![carlb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carlb/32/5930_2.png) [@carlb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlb)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739/1520 "2025-05-30T11:04:36Z")
OK, this one’s not obscure or specialized at all. Bidden should be an acceptable answer. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739.md?page=75) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyt-spelling-bee-drives-me-crazy/994739.md?page=77)