Beeswax

About Beeswax

Beeswax runs a championship-style spelling bee once a day. Everyone gets the same five words, read aloud in turn and climbing in difficulty, from an opening word worth 160 points to a hard final tier worth 320. You hear the word, type it on the board and press Enter, and a single wrong letter ends the day.

Each word has a two-minute clock. As in a real bee you can ask for help: the definition, the word used in a sentence, its language of origin and its part of speech, all spoken. Hearing the word again is free and the first hint on each word costs nothing; after that each hint takes 25 points off. Seconds left on the clock are added to your score, so a quick, hint-free run scores best. Accents are never spelled, and American and British spellings both count.

The daily bee is free and resets at midnight New York time. A paid membership, at 3 US dollars a month or 24 a year, opens the archive of earlier days. There is also the Dojo, an endless run of the harder words that ends at your first miss, plus stats, a Hall of Fame, friend challenges and a subreddit.

It suits people who were good at spelling at school and want a short test of it each day, rather than a word-building or guessing game.

How to play Beeswax

1. Press Start the bee to hear the first word read aloud.
2. Ask for the definition, a sentence, the language of origin or the part of speech if you need help.
3. Type the spelling in the box and press Enter before the two-minute clock runs out.
4. Spell the word right to move on to the next, harder one; one wrong letter ends the day.
5. Clear all five words and share your score.

Screenshots

Tips

• Replay the word as often as you like: hearing it again costs nothing.
• Use your free first hint on the language of origin, which often settles doubled letters and vowel sounds.
• Leave out accents, and do not worry about American or British spelling: both are accepted.
• Answer quickly once you are sure, because the seconds left on the clock add to your score.

Questions