How to Use a Two-Letter List Without Ruining the Puzzle

What the numbers mean

A line that says MI 9 means nine answers begin with MI. It does not mean the word MI is playable. You still owe the puzzle at least two more letters, and the center has to appear somewhere in the word.

Busy prefixes are where the points are. A prefix with a count of one is where Queen Bee usually hides. Do not start with the ones if you still want a fair game.

A way to use a single line

Cover the list with your hand, peek at one pair, and close it. Say that pair out loud with the center letter inserted in each possible slot. Most of the tries will be nonsense. One will be a word you are annoyed you missed.

In our sample hive the heaviest pairs were MI, GR and RI. A player who only looked at MI would still have plenty of hive left to solve honestly.

When the list is the wrong tool

If you are under the rank Nice, you do not need prefixes. You need another pass at four-letter words and obvious stems. The list becomes fair when you can name the hole: ‘I know I am missing words that start with a blend.’