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 Yesterday’s puzzle, February 6, 2026.

The Missing Letter Answers - 1

The Missing Letter Answers Yesterday: February 6, 2026

The Missing Letter is: Y

By solving the clues provided, the letter Y is the only one not utilised as a starting letter for an answer.

  • 1 Across: NOUN: “a usually round vessel of greater depth than width used chiefly as an ornament or for holding flowers” – VASE

  • 5 Across: Letters in URLs – HTTP

  • 9 Across: “It’s ___ big misunderstanding!” – ALLA

  • 10 Across: IDIOM: “used to say that a number, amount, etc., is not exact” – ORSO

  • 11 Across: ADVERB: “in the direction in which the hands of a [timepiece] rotate” – CLOCKWISE

  • 13 Across: NOUN: “any of the young of various carnivorous mammals and especially of the dog” – WHELP

  • 14 Across: Tennis star Shelton – BEN

  • 16 Across: ADJECTIVE: “extremely cold” – GELID

  • 19 Across: NOUN: “a jump in figure skating…” – AXEL

  • 21 Across: GEOGRAPHICAL NAME: “city in western Nevada…” – RENO

  • 22 Across: Hamilton or Pullman – LEWIS

  • 24 Across: “Headline News” channel – CNN

  • 25 Across: Underhanded attack – SMEAR

  • 27 Across: ADJECTIVE: “having, exercising, or characterized by [wisdom]” – JUDICIOUS

  • 31 Across: NOUN: “a men’s student organization formed chiefly for social purposes having secret rites and a name consisting of Greek letters” – FRAT

  • 32 Across: Hollywood kiss-sound – MWAH

  • 33 Across: Florida fun spot – KEYS

  • 34 Across: Popular home console – SNES

  • 1 Down: Rug cleaner, briefly – VAC

  • 2 Down: Every last bit – ALL

  • 3 Down: NOUN: “a [period] with little [information] to report” – SLOWNEWSDAY

  • 4 Down: ADVERB: “apiece” – EACH

  • 5 Down: NOUN: “a humorous and ridiculous blunder” – HOWLER

  • 6 Down: NOUN: “the unofficial title signifying the achievement of a baseball player…” – TRIPLECROWN

  • 7 Down: Eliot and Garp, for two – TSS

  • 8 Down: BIOGRAPHICAL NAME: “Edgar Allan 1809–1849 American poet and short-story write” – POE

  • 12 Down: NOUN: “a small cask or barrel having a capacity of 30 gallons or less” – KEG

  • 14 Down: ABBREVIATION: “an amount in excess on the credit side of an account” – BAL

  • 15 Down: Common filename ending – EXE

  • 17 Down: NOUN: “an establishment for the lodging and entertaining of travelers” – INN

  • 18 Down: NOUN: “a head, tutor, or fellow in a college of Oxford or Cambridge University” – DON

  • 20 Down: NOUN: “the place enclosed within a boundary” – LIMITS

  • 23 Down: “Just give me a ___” – SEC

  • 26 Down: Prepares to fire, as a dart gun – AIMS

  • 27 Down: DDE successor – JFK

  • 28 Down: Suffix for forfeit and cult – URE

  • 29 Down: GEOGRAPHICAL NAME: “country in northeastern Arabia on the Persian Gulf between Qatar and Oman” – UAE

  • 30 Down: Movie theater admonitions – SHS

The Missing Letter Crossword Answer Image for February 6, 2026 - 2

This crossword puzzle presents a sophisticated grid that skillfully blends niche vocabulary with pop-culture references, offering a satisfying challenge for solvers of all levels. The clever “missing letter” constraint adds an extra layer of intrigue, encouraging players to pay closer attention to the alphabet as they fill in the blanks. From historical figures to modern tech shorthand, it’s a well-rounded the longer ones add just enough heft to keep things interesting. I also like the final touch of spotting the one unused starting letter, which gives the whole solve a tidy sense of completion. Overall, it’s a smooth and entertaining puzzle, so I’d give it 4 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 .