If you’re looking to flex your vocabulary muscles beyond the standard crossword, The Missing Letter crossword puzzle by Merriam-Webster is a daily brain teaser! This puzzle is not just filling in a grid, but an alphabetical hunt. With the clues, each starting with a different letter of the alphabet, the real challenge is figuring out which single letter has been left out. Here are the answers and the crucial missing letter for today’s puzzle, January 9, 2026.
The Missing Letter Answers Today: January 9, 2026
The Missing Letter is: Q
By solving the clues provided, the letter Q is the only one not utilised as a starting letter for an answer.
1 Across: NOUN: “a sharp projecting part” — JAG
4 Across: GEOGRAPHICAL NAME: “city in northeastern Texas north of Dallas population 259,841” — PLANO
9 Across: Ending for fluor or chlor — IDE
10 Across: Meal in a bowl — RAMEN
11 Across: NOUN: “an expression of good wishes when someone leaves on a journey” — BON VOYAGE
13 Across: GEOGRAPHICAL NAME: “city and port…in northwestern Pennsylvania” — ERIE
14 Across: VERB: “to diminish the importance, value, or effectiveness of something” — DETRACT
18 Across: NOUN: “a Sudanese people living below Timbuktu in the bend of the Niger that are mostly Muslim” — SONGHAI
20 Across: VERB: “to alter (something, such as a photographic negative) to produce a more desirable appearance” — RETOUCH
22 Across: NOUN: “a joint…that is the articulation between the femur, tibia, and patella” — KNEE
23 Across: Zinc or lead, e.g. — BASEMETAL
28 Across: 1972 Bill Withers hit — USEME
29 Across: Motivating force — EGO
30 Across: GEOGRAPHICAL NAME: “city on the Ocmulgee River in central Georgia population 91,351” — MACON
31 Across: No longer working (abbr.) — RET
1 Down: Agreed, as calculations — JIBED
2 Down: Can’t get enough of — ADORES
3 Down: NOUN: “the biological as distinguished from the legal father” — GENITOR
4 Down: In favor of — PRO
5 Down: VERB: “to put or set down” — LAY
6 Down: “‘I ___ Man of Constant Sorrow’” — AMA
7 Down: ABBREVIATION: “less than zero and opposite in sign to a positive” — NEG
8 Down: NOUN: “the first in a set or series” — ONE
12 Down: BIOGRAPHICAL NAME: “Jules (Gabriel) 1828–1905 French writer” — VERNE
15 Down: ABBREVIATION: “one engaged in undercover activities (such as espionage)” — AGT
16 Down: VERB: “to lose one’s composure and fail to perform effectively in a critical situation” — CHOKE
17 Down: VERB: “[one who]…challenge[s] in a mocking or insulting manner” — TAUNTER
19 Down: NOUN: “the Pleistocene glacial epoch” — ICEAGE
21 Down: NOUN: “a member of a class of serfs in ancient Sparta” — HELOT
23 Down: Beach ___ (sun worshiper) — BUM
24 Down: Words in many similes — ASA
25 Down: Part of a min. — SEC
26 Down: Not-real–inspirational music genre — EMO
27 Down: “‘A Few Good ___’ (Tom Cruise movie)” — MEN
Today’s grid was a fantastic voyage through specialized terminology and world geography. The long-form horizontal answers were particularly satisfying, ranging from the polite French farewell Bon Voyage to the historic Songhai people of the Niger bend. While the puzzle tested your technical knowledge with terms like Base Metal and the Spartan Helot , it remained grounded with pop-culture nods to Bill Withers and Jules Verne . The flow of the grid felt smooth, with the short crossings in the southern section helping to reveal the more obscure geographical names. Overall, a balanced and rewarding solve that perfectly highlights the “dictionary-first” spirit of the game. I would rate this challenge a 4.5 out of 5 .
How to Play ‘The Missing Letter’
If you’re new to this Merriam-Webster classic, here’s how the “alphabetical twist” works:
- The Goal: Fill the grid using 25 words that each begin with a unique letter of the alphabet.
- Identify the Gap: Once the grid is complete, determine which of the 26 letters was not used as a starting letter.
- Weekly Reward: Keep track of each daily missing letter; at the end of the week, you can unscramble them to solve the Weekly Mystery Word .
