Master today's NYT crossword with our expert hint system. We provide synonyms, antonyms, and strategic clues to help you solve without spoiling the fun. Perfect for crossword lovers who want that satisfying "aha!" moment.
Quick Navigation - Table of Contents
- Today's Puzzle Difficulty
- Across Clues Table (34 clues)
- Across Clues - Detailed Hints
- Down Clues Table (34 clues)
- Down Clues - Detailed Hints
- Expert Solving Strategies
- Today's Puzzle Statistics
Today's Puzzle Difficulty: Challenging
Pro Tip: Start with the fill-in-the-blank clues - they're usually the easiest entry points!
Across Clues - Complete List
| No. | Clue | Letters |
|---|---|---|
| 1A | 1. Thin underlayer | 4 |
| 2A | 5. Comment often made with an eye roll | 4 |
| 3A | 9. African capital whose name translates to "ants" | 5 |
| 4A | 14. Derby, e.g. | 9 |
| 5A | 16. Commit a library taboo | 5 |
| 6A | 17. Ship-to-ship communication | 9 |
| 7A | 18. Lacks | 5 |
| 8A | 19. Parent whose child is taking steps to improve? | 8 |
| 9A | 20. Backbiter? | 4 |
| 10A | 21. Puts in a protected place | 9 |
| 11A | 23. They arose from Ra's tears, according to Egyptian mythology | 4 |
| 12A | 24. Cries of disappointment | 3 |
| 13A | 25. Components of some brick buildings | 8 |
| 14A | 28. It might be living on the edge | 5 |
| 15A | 31. Showing tough love, say | 5 |
| 16A | 32. Mash at a luau | 3 |
| 17A | 33. "Please avoid brutal honesty!" | 7 |
| 18A | 35. Wise | 7 |
| 19A | 37. Certain drug classification, in brief | 3 |
| 20A | 38. Ally of Athens during the Peloponnesian War | 5 |
| 21A | 40. Fathers | 5 |
| 22A | 41. Two-humper | 8 |
| 23A | 43. Period that begins on July 23 | 3 |
| 24A | 44. It's not an option | 4 |
| 25A | 45. Zest source | 9 |
| 26A | 50. Brown alternative | 4 |
| 27A | 51. Enterprise enterprise | 8 |
| 28A | 52. WWE star Randy ___ | 5 |
| 29A | 54. Part of a high-tech security system | 9 |
| 30A | 55. "Lift ___ Voice and Sing" (protest anthem) | 5 |
| 31A | 56. They go from season to season | 9 |
| 32A | 57. Short | 5 |
| 33A | 58. Hibernation stations | 4 |
| 34A | 59. Seven ___ | 4 |
Across Clues - Strategic Hints
1A: "1. Thin underlayer"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a socially awkward or tactless act
- Similar words include: drop away, fall away, berth
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SLIP
Remember this word for future puzzles!
2A: "5. Comment often made with an eye roll"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ASIF
Remember this word for future puzzles!
3A: "9. African capital whose name translates to "ants""
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that the capital and largest city of ghana with a deep-water port
- Similar words include: capital of Ghana
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ACCRA
Remember this word for future puzzles!
4A: "14. Derby, e.g."
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HORSERACE
Remember this word for future puzzles!
5A: "16. Commit a library taboo"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
- Similar words include: holler, hollo, yell
- Opposite of: whisper
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SHOUT
Remember this word for future puzzles!
6A: "17. Ship-to-ship communication"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AHOYMATEY
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7A: "18. Lacks"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HASNT
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8A: "19. Parent whose child is taking steps to improve?"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DANCEMOM
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9A: "20. Backbiter?"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that any wingless bloodsucking parasitic insect noted for ability to leap
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FLEA
Remember this word for future puzzles!
10A: "21. Puts in a protected place"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that enclose in a shrine
- Similar words include: saint, enshrine, shrine
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ENSHRINES
Remember this word for future puzzles!
11A: "23. They arose from Ra's tears, according to Egyptian mythology"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species
- Similar words include: equal, be, follow
- Opposite of: differ
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BEES
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12A: "24. Cries of disappointment"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OYS
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13A: "25. Components of some brick buildings"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LEGOSETS
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14A: "28. It might be living on the edge"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a low woody perennial plant usually having several major stems
- Similar words include: bush
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SHRUB
Remember this word for future puzzles!
15A: "31. Showing tough love, say"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that the rear part of a ship
- Similar words include: derriere, fundament, severe
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STERN
Remember this word for future puzzles!
16A: "32. Mash at a luau"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that hawaiian dish of taro root pounded to a paste and often allowed to ferment
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: POI
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17A: "33. "Please avoid brutal honesty!""
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LIETOME
Remember this word for future puzzles!
18A: "35. Wise"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that careful and sensible; marked by sound judgment
- Opposite of: imprudent
- Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PRUDENT
Remember this word for future puzzles!
19A: "37. Certain drug classification, in brief"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that (of securities) not traded on a stock exchange
- Similar words include: over-the-counter
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OTC
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20A: "38. Ally of Athens during the Peloponnesian War"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that an ancient city in southeastern greece; dominated the peloponnese in the 7th century bc
- Similar words include: Argo
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ARGOS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
21A: "40. Fathers"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a title of address formerly used for a man of rank and authority
- Similar words include: beget, sire, engender
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SIRES
Remember this word for future puzzles!
22A: "41. Two-humper"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BACTRIAN
Remember this word for future puzzles!
23A: "43. Period that begins on July 23"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that (astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in leo
- Similar words include: Leo the Lion, Lion
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LEO
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24A: "44. It's not an option"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a condition requiring relief
- Similar words include: require, involve, penury
- Opposite of: obviate
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NEED
Remember this word for future puzzles!
25A: "45. Zest source"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LEMONRIND
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26A: "50. Brown alternative"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that englishman and quaker who founded the colony of pennsylvania (1644-1718)
- Similar words include: University of Pennsylvania, William Penn, Pennsylvania
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PENN
Remember this word for future puzzles!
27A: "51. Enterprise enterprise"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RENTACAR
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28A: "52. WWE star Randy ___"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ORTON
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29A: "54. Part of a high-tech security system"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LASERMAZE
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30A: "55. "Lift ___ Voice and Sing" (protest anthem)"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that (used of count nouns) each and all of the members of a group considered singly and without exception
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EVERY
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31A: "56. They go from season to season"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STORYARCS
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32A: "57. Short"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that brief and to the point; effectively cut short
- Similar words include: curt, laconic, crisp
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TERSE
Remember this word for future puzzles!
33A: "58. Hibernation stations"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that the habitation of wild animals
- Similar words include: hideaway, hideout, den
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DENS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
34A: "59. Seven ___"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
- Similar words include: ocean, sea
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEAS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
Down Clues - Complete List
| No. | Clue | Letters |
|---|---|---|
| 1D | 1. Contempt, in slang | 5 |
| 2D | 2. Actress with a dual role in 1998's "The Parent Trap" | 5 |
| 3D | 3. Tends to some pressing matters | 5 |
| 4D | 4. Punk | 8 |
| 5D | 5. The first Musketeer, alphabetically | 6 |
| 6D | 6. Kept hidden, as information | 5 |
| 7D | 7. Product for winter sidewalk safety | 7 |
| 8D | 8. "Mean Girls" writer | 3 |
| 9D | 9. Firewood choice, or its destiny | 3 |
| 10D | 10. Rubs the wrong way | 6 |
| 11D | 11. Alternative to a crib | 9 |
| 12D | 12. Classic rock? | 9 |
| 13D | 13. Paratha flour | 4 |
| 14D | 15. Digital file? | 10 |
| 15D | 22. Runs slowly | 5 |
| 16D | 23. Kind of contest with multiple chances to participate | 10 |
| 17D | 26. [This makes me mad!] | 3 |
| 18D | 27. Is on the bottom? | 4 |
| 19D | 28. One who's slow to pick things up | 4 |
| 20D | 29. What an insensitive joke might do | 9 |
| 21D | 30. Locale for many community courts | 9 |
| 22D | 31. "Love Story" author Erich | 5 |
| 23D | 34. Diagnostic tool, in brief | 3 |
| 24D | 36. Natural history museum collection | 8 |
| 25D | 39. Simplest possible phone plan | 7 |
| 26D | 42. Sam Cooke and Marvin Gaye, among others | 6 |
| 27D | 43. Solo sorts | 6 |
| 28D | 46. Particle accelerator byproduct | 5 |
| 29D | 47. Statement that might follow a hug | 5 |
| 30D | 48. ___ Lines (ancient Peruvian geoglyphs) | 5 |
| 31D | 49. Bandage | 5 |
| 32D | 50. Burns, e.g. | 4 |
| 33D | 53. What comes before 1/1 | 3 |
| 34D | 54. Drug discussed in Aldous Huxley's "Heaven and Hell" | 3 |
Down Clues - Strategic Hints
1D: "1. Contempt, in slang"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that relative darkness caused by light rays being intercepted by an opaque body
- Similar words include: shade off, tincture, nicety
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SHADE
Remember this word for future puzzles!
2D: "2. Actress with a dual role in 1998's "The Parent Trap""
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a buddhist who has attained nirvana
- Similar words include: Arhat, Arhant
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LOHAN
Remember this word for future puzzles!
3D: "3. Tends to some pressing matters"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that metal shackles; for hands or legs
- Similar words include: smoothing iron, iron, atomic number 26
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IRONS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
4D: "4. Punk"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PSYCHOUT
Remember this word for future puzzles!
5D: "5. The first Musketeer, alphabetically"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ARAMIS
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6D: "6. Kept hidden, as information"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SATON
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7D: "7. Product for winter sidewalk safety"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ICEMELT
Remember this word for future puzzles!
8D: "8. "Mean Girls" writer"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that slightly insane
- Similar words include: touched, elfin
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FEY
Remember this word for future puzzles!
9D: "9. Firewood choice, or its destiny"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that the residue that remains when something is burned
- Similar words include: ash tree
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ASH
Remember this word for future puzzles!
10D: "10. Rubs the wrong way"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that soreness and warmth caused by friction
- Similar words include: gravel, fret, rile
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CHAFES
Remember this word for future puzzles!
11D: "11. Alternative to a crib"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: COSLEEPER
Remember this word for future puzzles!
12D: "12. Classic rock?"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RUNESTONE
Remember this word for future puzzles!
13D: "13. Paratha flour"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ATTA
Remember this word for future puzzles!
14D: "15. Digital file?"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EMERYBOARD
Remember this word for future puzzles!
15D: "22. Runs slowly"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that pass gradually or leak through or as if through small openings
- Similar words include: ooze, seep
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEEPS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
16D: "23. Kind of contest with multiple chances to participate"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BONUSENTRY
Remember this word for future puzzles!
17D: "26. [This makes me mad!]"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GRR
Remember this word for future puzzles!
18D: "27. Is on the bottom?"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that be around, often idly or without specific purpose
- Similar words include: sit around, sit, pose
- Opposite of: arise, stand
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SITS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
19D: "28. One who's slow to pick things up"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a coarse obnoxious person
- Similar words include: slovenly person, sloven, pig
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SLOB
Remember this word for future puzzles!
20D: "29. What an insensitive joke might do"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HITANERVE
Remember this word for future puzzles!
21D: "30. Locale for many community courts"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RECCENTER
Remember this word for future puzzles!
22D: "31. "Love Story" author Erich"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that united states sculptor (born in 1924)
- Similar words include: George Segal
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEGAL
Remember this word for future puzzles!
23D: "34. Diagnostic tool, in brief"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that the use of nuclear magnetic resonance of protons to produce proton density images
- Similar words include: magnetic resonance imaging
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MRI
Remember this word for future puzzles!
24D: "36. Natural history museum collection"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a picture (or series of pictures) representing a continuous scene
- Similar words include: diorama, panorama, cyclorama
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DIORAMAS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
25D: "39. Simplest possible phone plan"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ONERATE
Remember this word for future puzzles!
26D: "42. Sam Cooke and Marvin Gaye, among others"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that the adult male singing voice above baritone
- Similar words include: strain, tenor, tenor voice
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TENORS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
27D: "43. Solo sorts"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a person who avoids the company or assistance of others
- Similar words include: lone wolf, lone hand, loner
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LONERS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
28D: "46. Particle accelerator byproduct"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that an elementary particle responsible for the forces in the atomic nucleus; a hadron with a baryon number of 0
- Similar words include: mesotron
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MESON
Remember this word for future puzzles!
29D: "47. Statement that might follow a hug"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ICARE
Remember this word for future puzzles!
30D: "48. ___ Lines (ancient Peruvian geoglyphs)"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NAZCA
Remember this word for future puzzles!
31D: "49. Bandage"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a one-piece garment for a woman; has skirt and bodice
- Similar words include: curry, clothes, full-dress
- Opposite of: undress
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DRESS
Remember this word for future puzzles!
32D: "50. Burns, e.g."
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a writer of poems (the term is usually reserved for writers of good poetry)
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: POET
Remember this word for future puzzles!
33D: "53. What comes before 1/1"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NYE
Remember this word for future puzzles!
34D: "54. Drug discussed in Aldous Huxley's "Heaven and Hell""
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a powerful hallucinogenic drug manufactured from lysergic acid
- Similar words include: lysergic acid diethylamide
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LSD
Remember this word for future puzzles!
Expert Solving Strategies
Start Smart
Begin with fill-in-the-blank clues and short 3-4 letter words. These are your foundation.
Decode the Clues
Question marks indicate wordplay or puns. "Maybe" suggests multiple interpretations.
Use Cross-References
Let intersecting letters guide you. One correct answer unlocks several others.
Build Vocabulary
Common crossword words repeat. Learning them speeds up future solving.
Today's Puzzle Stats
34 Across Clues
34 Down Clues
68 Total Clues
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