Today’s New York Times Spelling Bee gave us a hive centered on the letter V, with the surrounding letters A, T, R, N, G, and I. At first glance, the hive looked packed with potential — short, punchy words, some tricky arrangements, and the promise of a long, satisfying pangram. And sure enough, the big discovery was GRAVITATING.

How I Solved the Puzzle

When tackling Spelling Bee, I always start with a few quick warm-up words. With V as the mandatory letter, my first instinct was to play with simple pairs like “vi,” “va,” and “ra.” Words such as vain, vine, and viva quickly fell into place. These shorter entries give momentum, like laying the foundation stones of a building.

From there, I began scanning for 6- and 7-letter options. Words like rating, granit, and ravine soon appeared. But I knew the real prize — the pangram — had to be lurking somewhere.

The key was noticing the cluster -ating, which naturally fits with many longer words. Once I paired it with grav-, the word GRAVITATING suddenly clicked into place. That “aha!” moment is exactly why Spelling Bee is so addictive.

Today’s Pangram

GRAVITATING

Defined as “moving toward or being drawn to something,” gravitating is not only elegant but also thematic: we, as solvers, are constantly gravitating toward the pangram, the central challenge of every Spelling Bee puzzle.

Word List for the Day

Here’s a snapshot of the words I uncovered from today’s hive. While the list may vary depending on how deep you dig, these are some of the highlights:

4-letter words:

• vain
• vang
• rant
• gran
• ring
• girt
• tarn

• avian

• grain

• varna

• rating

• virgin
• raving
• avatar
• graven
• trivia
• vagina

• vagrant
• vintage
• ravings
• nirvana
• variant

• gravitating (pangram)
• aggravating
• arriving
• aviating
• invariant
• inviting
• navigating
• ravaging
• titivating
• vitiating

Of course, the crown jewel of the puzzle is gravitating, using all seven letters beautifully.

My Thought Process

What worked especially well today was building around familiar roots and endings:

1. Focus on “-ing” endings: Adding -ing often unlocks longer words, and today was no exception. Gravitating would have been easy to miss if not for trying this extension.

2. Cluster building: Noticing patterns like “grav-” or “rav-” allowed me to push past the obvious.

3. Patience with obscure options: While words like vang (a nautical term) aren’t common in daily conversation, they’re classic Spelling Bee finds. Keeping an open mind always pays off.

Why This Puzzle Was Fun

This puzzle balanced straightforward entries with a long, rewarding pangram. Unlike shorter pangrams, gravitating gives you the thrill of discovering something big, almost like hitting the jackpot. The word itself is satisfying because of its movement and energy — you can almost feel it pulling you in.

It’s also one of those puzzles where the theme of the pangram matches the experience: I found myself literally gravitating toward the solution as smaller discoveries pulled me closer and closer.

Did You Spot the Pangram?

The NYT Spelling Bee for September 18, 2025, turned out to be one of those sessions that starts simple but builds into something memorable. Finding gravitating as the pangram was the highlight of the day, and every smaller word along the way felt like a step in that direction.

Whether you solved it quickly or took your time circling around the hive, today’s challenge was a reminder of why this puzzle is such a daily favorite: it rewards persistence, creativity, and a love for language.