Amal Augustine
Founder, Spelling Better
Amal Augustine is the founder of Spelling Better, an innovative learning app designed to help students improve their spelling, vocabulary, and language skills through interactive and engaging methods.
He graduated from St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi and is currently pursuing his Master’s degree at National Sun Yat-sen University, Taiwan, focusing on research and technology-driven learning.
A quiz enthusiast, Amal has won 50+ national-level quiz competitions. He enjoys reading science journals, programming, and exploring Computer Science innovations. Through Spelling Better, he aims to make vocabulary learning simple, enjoyable, and meaningful.
Today's Hive Runs on G
Every so often the Spelling Bee throws in a letter that immediately raises the difficulty — and today it was the X.
Center letter G, surrounded by N, X, D, E, P, I — made for a puzzle that looked intimidating at first glance but unraveled cleanly once I found the right angle.
Today's Letters
As always, the rules hold steady: every valid word must include the center letter G, be at least four letters long, and use only the seven letters shown on the board. Letters can repeat as many times as a word needs, which turns out to matter a lot on a board like this one.
How I Found the Pangram
With an X sitting among the outer letters, I knew the pangram would almost certainly need to lean on a word where X plays a supporting role rather than a starring one — X-heavy words are rare, but words that simply contain an X are more common than they seem. Circling back to N, D, E, P, I with G locked in the middle, one word came together:
Today's Pangram
Once that pangram clicked, several close relatives and shorter cousins revealed themselves fast.
The Full Word List
Here's the complete set of valid words I found using only G, N, X, D, E, P, I, with G required in every single entry:
4-Letter Words
5-Letter Words
6-Letter Words
7-Letter Words
8+ Letter Words
My Go-To Solving Method
For anyone chasing Genius or Queen Bee status today, here's the approach that kept paying off on this board:
Don't fear the X. A lone X in the letter set rarely means you need an X-heavy word — it usually just means one specific word (often the pangram) tucks it in quietly.
Lean into repeated letters aggressively. PIGPEN, DIPPING, and EDGING all reuse a letter, and boards like this one are practically designed to reward solvers who remember that reuse is unlimited.
Build off short roots. Once DING and PING were found, adding -ED turned them into DINGED and PINGED almost automatically.
Test present-participle (-ING) forms early. EDGING, PIDGIN (note: not an -ING word, but easy to spot alongside them), and EXPENDING all share that "-ING" rhythm, which is worth scanning for specifically on G-centered boards.
Wrapping Up the Hive
Today's puzzle rewards solvers who aren't scared off by an awkward-looking letter like X. EXPENDING ties the whole board together neatly, and the surrounding list — built almost entirely on repeated letters — is a great reminder of just how much mileage seven letters can offer. If you've been stuck on G, N, X, D, E, P, I, hopefully this clears the hive for you.
See you at tomorrow's puzzle.