Warning: This page contains spoilers for the May 6, 2025, game of Jeopardy! — please do not scroll down if you wish to avoid being spoiled. Please note that the game airs as early as noon Eastern in some U.S. television markets.
Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category Word Origins) for Tuesday, May 6, 2025 (Season 41, Game 172):
Fittingly, this adjective describing a hit-you-in-the-gut kind of feeling goes back to a Latin word for internal organs
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Keegan Olson, a consultant from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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Sarah Gillis, a mortgage loan processor from Asbury Park, New Jersey
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Ben Ganger, a data analyst from Goshen, Indiana (5-day total: $105,915)
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Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
We have a new 5-day champion in Ben Ganger, who has averaged over 26 correct responses per game thus far during his run. Today, he faces off against New Jersey’s Sarah Gillis and Canadian Keegan Olson.
I’ve definitely noticed something comparing Ben’s run with that of Liam Starnes: Liam “moved the needle” a lot more than Ben has in terms of fan interest. Younger contestants who do well tend to do this, especially because I believe that it reminds the average viewer of their grandchildren, while older contestants just don’t generate the same overall fan interest. This is certainly one reason why Teen Tournaments and College tournaments have proven successful over the years for the show and why the Seniors Tournament last ran in 1995. (And to those who say there’s only one way to find out? When you already have strong prior data, which is confirmed in a roundabout way by how fans react currently to different players, there’s very little incentive to run an experiment again to see if anything has actually changed.)
One further thing I’ve realized—and hopefully I don’t jinx it by saying this—we have now had 41 consecutive regular-play games where we’ve seen every clue; that’s nearly two full months of “Team 61” being very happy.
(Content continues below)
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Correct response: What is visceral?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2025 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
Coming from the word viscera, the plural of viscus, meaning an internal organ of the body (generally one’s heart, liver, or intestine), the word visceral is an excellent word to add to one’s vocabulary. It’s even one I have used on this site itself, making reference to the completely out-of-pocket fan reaction to Ryan Bilger in the 2021 Tournament of Champions. (I think Ryan is probably one of the more underrated players in recent J! history, and maybe one who deserves a shot in a Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament.)
I like this as a good regular-play word origins clue. We’ll see how it plays, though—in my experience, word origins clues often play more difficult.
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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Tuesday, May 6, 2025 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: My Cup Runneth Over; Oscar Hosts; Metaphors Be With You; Howdy, Neighbor!; Just Moved In?; We’Re The Carp Family)
Sarah doubled her score with the Daily Double, but an incorrect response just before the break gave Keegan the lead after 15 clues. At the break, your scores were Keegan $2,800 Sarah $2,400 Ben $2,200.
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Keegan 4 correct 1 incorrect
Sarah 5 correct 1 incorrect
Ben 4 correct 0 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Keegan was attacked by a swan in Switzerland.
Sarah is a huge soccer fan and is a Gotham FC season ticket holder.
Ben is a huge IndyCar fan.
Keegan picked up another five correct to continue to lead after 30 clues.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Keegan 9 correct 1 incorrect
Sarah 8 correct 2 incorrect
Ben 9 correct 2 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Keegan $4,600
Sarah $3,400
Ben $2,800
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Cold War Times; It’s A Fact; Rhyming Song Titles; Novels & Novelists; Starts & Ends With “D”; Flags)
It was the best of times (11 correct) and the worst of times (two missed Daily Doubles, including a True Daily Double on clue 12) for Keegan in this round. Meanwhile, Ben had 3 high-value incorrect responses which led to Sarah being in a runaway position going into Final Jeopardy.
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Sarah 13 correct 4 incorrect
Ben 16 correct 5 incorrect
Keegan 20 correct 4 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 30 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Sarah $7,400
Ben $3,600
Keegan $2,800
Keegan and Ben were correct in Final, but Sarah’s runaway means she’s the new champ! She’ll be back tomorrow to defend.
Tonight’s results:
Keegan $2,800 + $2,800 = $5,600 (What is…visceral)
Ben $3,600 + $2,001 = $5,601 (What is visceral Love you mom + dad)
Sarah $7,400 – $100 = $7,300 (What is ? Thanks Hel) (1-day total: $7,300)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) HOWDY, NEIGHBOR! $800 (clue #10)
Sarah 1400 +1400 (Ben 1800 Keegan 1200)
2) FLAGS $1600 (clue #2)
Keegan 6600 -4000 (Ben 2800 Sarah 3400)
3) COLD WAR TIMES $1200 (clue #12, $19600 left on board)
Keegan 10200 -10200 (Ben 3600 Sarah 6600)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: -61
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Ben 4 5 5 5 4
Sarah 2 1 4*
Keegan 3 1
DJ! Round:
Ben 5 5
Sarah 4 2
Keegan 4* 3† 2† 1† 5 3 4 3*
† – selection in same category as Daily Double
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Sarah 2.60
Ben 4.71
Keegan 2.90
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 30 (0.17 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Sarah $6,800 Coryat, 13 correct, 4 incorrect, 24.56% in first on buzzer (14/57), 1/2 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
Ben $3,600 Coryat, 16 correct, 5 incorrect, 35.09% in first on buzzer (20/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
Keegan $17,000 Coryat, 20 correct, 4 incorrect, 36.84% in first on buzzer (21/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $27,400
Lach Trash: $11,000 (on 9 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $15,600
Lead Changes: 8
Times Tied: 3
Player Statistics:
Ben Ganger, career statistics:
151 correct, 29 incorrect
15/18 on rebound attempts (on 36 rebound opportunities)
42.40% in first on buzzer (145/342)
9/11 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $23,200)
3/6 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $15,333
Sarah Gillis, career statistics:
13 correct, 5 incorrect
1/2 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
24.56% in first on buzzer (14/57)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $1,400)
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $6,800
Keegan Olson, career statistics:
21 correct, 4 incorrect
1/1 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities)
36.84% in first on buzzer (21/57)
0/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$14,200)
1/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $17,000
Sarah Gillis, to win:
2 games: 17.921%
3: 3.212%
4: 0.576%
5: 0.103%
6: 0.018%
Avg. streak: 1.218 games.
Andy’s Thoughts:
- Regarding DD2: The rules of the show only permit a contestant one opportunity to be more specific. If a response is still insufficiently specific at that point (and Kalashnikov makes more than just AK-47s), it is ruled incorrect. Thus, as per the rules of the show, Keegan’s response on that Daily Double was ruled insufficiently specific. Editorially, the ruling was correct within the context of the show’s rules, and I think the rule is fine as it is, as multiple prompts feels like it could turn the show into a farce.
- I disagree with Ken’s assertion that DD3 was difficult for a Canadian: this Canadian had no problem with it. That being said, I would much rather see players lose because they went too aggressive on a Daily Double than players lose because they went too conservative on a Daily Double. Aggressive Daily Double bets make for more dramatic television and a better show overall.
- Today’s box score will be linked to when posted by the show.
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I just used the word eviscerated yesterday because my cat had eviscerated a vole that had gotten into the house – and yet I did not get this final jeopardy.
Oh, that’s so funny! The first term that entered my head was “gob-smacked” and I just couldn’t get past it to come up with any more possibilities.
It’s funny that you mentioned a vole, because I read an article a while back that squirrels are starting to eat more than nuts and such and have been consuming voles. Until I read that article, I didn’t know what a vole was. Now your cat eviscerating a vole just adds to my thoughts. 😉
I read that, too! [I had already known what a vole was, though I don’t think I have ever seen one.] Just last week on a PBS gardening show they said that people often mistake voles for moles because they will move into abandoned mole runs.
Immediate one for me with my anatomy and physiology background and teaching!
It took me longer than 30 seconds to come up with “visceral.”
I used to watch the Seniors Tournament, but I don’t really miss it. What I don’t watch is Celebrity Jeopardy!, because I don’t see the need for a dumbed-down version of the game in prime time. I do enjoy Jeopardy! Masters but would prefer that it air no later than 8:00.
It doesn’t make sense that the younger contestants generate more interest. This is because the age range of Jeopardy! viewers is diverse, but the show generally appeals to an older demographic. While some viewers are under 35, the majority are 65 or older. In fact, some reports indicate that the median age of Jeopardy! viewers is around 65 or even 71.
Lauren:
As I said above, I believe Liam was a popular contestant because he reminded so many viewers of their grandchildren. And that is why contestants that are about his age resonate with the older audience of the show.
I’d like to make a motion for a second chance for Keegan.
I second that. He seemed very upset with himself. A wrong preposition in daily double. And wrong rhyming word in insane in the brain. So, close.
I third that – the “(Net Earned: -$14,200)” in the Daily Double section of Keegan’s statistics would already be reason enough as far as I’m concerned, but considering how close he came on both Daily Double misses… yeah, it’s a no-brainer. (And unlike what a certain person on Twitter believes, it’s possible to feel sympathy for him while also agreeing that both rulings were correct.)
I’m not holding my breath, especially considering Aaron Brown didn’t get an invite to the last SCC despite being in similar circumstances, but my point still stands. If there’s any contestant from the last month who is deserving of a second chance, it’s Keegan. Full stop.
I fourth that.
Agree! I liked him!
Sorry, Jeopardy, a Kalashnikov IS an AK47!
Please read the post above regarding this ruling. Chiefly, contestants are only allowed one opportunity to be more specific, and Kalashnikov makes more than AK-47s. Thus, it was not specific enough and thus incorrect.
(Further complaints regarding this ruling will be removed.)
I agree with your comment on Ryan Bilgar.
Apropos of Andy’s comment regarding 41 consecutive games with all clues revealed, I wonder if the show is making a concerted effort to have all clues revealed ever since they did that for tournament play. Through proper editing, it does become possible to work in all the clues. For example, sometimes viewers notice that we don’t always hear the proper phrasing for a response in the form of a question. That can sometimes be the result of editing in order to fit in all the clues. To me, it seems quite possible that the show is making an effort to have all clues revealed whenever possible. Just a thought that others may or may not agree with.
“Visceral” is a familiar enough word that it was easily discernible from today’s clue.
Also, it seems, in a way, that Sarah sort of won by default as the other contestants knocked themselves out. You might say they lost by unforced errors. Still, a win is a win, no matter how you obtain it. That’s what makes the game great.
I, for one, welcome our new 61-clues games.
Having fewer video/on-location categories apparently helps.
I would think there’d be issues with S&P if they decided to do that without telling the contestants that they were ensuring all 61 clues, as that could disadvantage players who are trying to be more, uh, deliberate.
Typically, edits during the show are not detectable but I think I noticed a distinctive cut after Keegan’s DD miss.
Keegan is a shoo-in for Second Chance, in my opinion.
Yes Abe, I noticed that as well.
I think Ben’s “tugging my leg” response should have been allowed, which would have given him the possibility of beating Sarah in FJ.
In a case where “tugging” was already in the clue and “pulling” was a substantive part of the response, the rules of the show do not permit “tugging” to be accepted here.
I have noticed that a lot in game shows where contestants get multiple (rapid) tries [such as in $100,000 Pyramid] — that they will give answers that were among the clues they’ve been given. The ONE thing you immediately know CANNOT be the correct response is a word in the clue(s)!
I didn’t get FJ. 🙁
Great run Ben and retro congrats to Sarah on win #1!
Based on some of the contestants we’ve had lately, I feel that the next ToC is going to be great TV!