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Wednesday, August 5, 2026

XWordHint Crossword Answers August 05, 2026 | Expert Breakdown & Tips

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.

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Today's Puzzle Difficulty: Medium

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. & 6 #1 hit 11
2A 12. & 14 Ultimately fruitless 14
3A 15. & 16 Beverage sold in pastel-colored cans 14
4A 17. & 18 Measures of search engine optimization 9
5A 20. & 22 Pocket ID holder 8
6A 26. & 28 Temple services? 12
7A 32. & 34 Sequestration of a greenhouse gas 13
8A 35. & 36 Sparsely populated African land 13
9A 37. & 39 Web Crawlers, e.g. 12
10A 40. & 41 Loses all one's dough 8
11A 43. & 46 Starbuck vis-Γ -vis Captain Ahab 9
12A 50. & 54 Math that underpins computer logic 14
13A 57. & 58 Member of the last undefeated N.C.A.A. Division I men's basketball team (1976) 14
14A 59. & 60 Tallies attendees 11

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. & 6 #1 hit"

11 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CHARTTOPPER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "12. & 14 Ultimately fruitless"

14 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ______________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LEADINGNOWHERE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "15. & 16 Beverage sold in pastel-colored cans"

14 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ______________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ARIZONAICEDTEA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "17. & 18 Measures of search engine optimization"

9 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PAGERANKS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "20. & 22 Pocket ID holder"

8 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a small case for carrying business cards
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CARDCASE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "26. & 28 Temple services?"

12 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HEADMASSAGES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "32. & 34 Sequestration of a greenhouse gas"

13 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _____________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CARBONSTORAGE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "35. & 36 Sparsely populated African land"

13 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _____________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: WESTERNSAHARA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "37. & 39 Web Crawlers, e.g."

12 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: INTERNETBOTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "40. & 41 Loses all one's dough"

8 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GOESBUST

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "43. & 46 Starbuck vis-Γ -vis Captain Ahab"

9 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FIRSTMATE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "50. & 54 Math that underpins computer logic"

14 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ______________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BOOLEANALGEBRA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "57. & 58 Member of the last undefeated N.C.A.A. Division I men's basketball team (1976)"

14 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ______________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: INDIANAHOOSIER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "59. & 60 Tallies attendees"

11 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: COUNTSNOSES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No. Clue Letters
1D 1. Michael of "Barbie" 4
2D 2. Alexander who served under Reagan, Nixon and Ford 4
3D 3. Axlike tool depicted in hieroglyphs 4
4D 4. City on Guanabara Bay, familiarly 3
5D 5. Paramount ancestor, in brief 3
6D 6. Apt rhyme of "clock" 4
7D 7. Isn't settled up 4
8D 8. High degree 3
9D 9. Word with project or peeve 3
10D 10. Before, in a hymnbook 3
11D 11. Stephen of "V for Vendetta" 3
12D 12. One of 25 in a track 10K 3
13D 13. Actress Teri 4
14D 14. Writer AnaΓ―s whose name is hidden in this clue 3
15D 19. Capt.'s superior 3
16D 20. Pole tossed in a Scottish game 5
17D 21. Beautify 5
18D 22. Stone figure? 5
19D 23. Petri dish gels 5
20D 24. Company that debuted Sonic the Hedgehog 4
21D 25. Legal termination? 3
22D 26. Proverbial waste maker 5
23D 27. Some Deco works 5
24D 29. "Well, I have to save my ___" (Shrek line) 3
25D 30. Total guesses 5
26D 31. πŸ”₯ "Ooh-la-la!" πŸ”₯ 5
27D 32. Our "-zoic" 4
28D 33. Florence-to-Venice dir. 3
29D 35. Part of a George Washington costume (though he rarely wore one) 3
30D 38. Cable channel with many reruns 3
31D 42. Site of the 2002 and 2034 Winter Olympics 4
32D 43. Big success 4
33D 44. Actors McKellen and McShane 4
34D 45. Messenger ___ 3
35D 46. Imbroglio 4
36D 47. Rose's lover of 1920s Broadway 4
37D 48. NΓΊmero de Caballeros in a 1944 film 4
38D 49. Something that may be lent or bent 3
39D 50. Pen letters? 3
40D 51. Musical Yoko 3
41D 52. Sch. in Norfolk, Va. 3
42D 53. "Hamilton" star ___-Manuel Miranda 3
43D 55. Apt name for a groundskeeper? 3
44D 56. Word that becomes its own synonym when "p" is added to the end 3

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Michael of "Barbie""

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CERA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. Alexander who served under Reagan, Nixon and Ford"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HAIG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. Axlike tool depicted in hieroglyphs"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an edge tool used to cut and shape wood
  • Similar words include: adz
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ADZE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. City on Guanabara Bay, familiarly"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the former capital and 2nd largest city of brazil; chief brazilian port; famous as a tourist attraction
  • Similar words include: Rio de Janeiro
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RIO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. Paramount ancestor, in brief"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TNN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Apt rhyme of "clock""

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TOCK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. Isn't settled up"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that be obliged to pay or repay
  • Similar words include: owe
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OWES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. High degree"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a doctorate usually based on at least 3 years graduate study and a dissertation; the highest degree awarded graduate study
  • Similar words include: Ph.D.
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PHD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. Word with project or peeve"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a domesticated animal kept for companionship or amusement
  • Similar words include: darling, favored, deary
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PET

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Before, in a hymnbook"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ERE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. Stephen of "V for Vendetta""

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: REA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. One of 25 in a track 10K"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the upper side of the thighs of a seated person
  • Similar words include: wash, circle, swoosh
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LAP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "13. Actress Teri"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GARR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "14. Writer AnaΓ―s whose name is hidden in this clue"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NIN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "19. Capt.'s superior"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ADM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "20. Pole tossed in a Scottish game"

5 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a heavy wooden pole (such as the trunk of a young fir) that is tossed as a test of strength (in the highlands of northern scotland)
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CABER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "21. Beautify"

5 letters πŸ’­ Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that make more attractive by adding ornament, colour, etc.
  • Similar words include: embellish, grace, decorate
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ADORN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "22. Stone figure?"

5 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a unit of weight for precious stones = 200 mg
  • Similar words include: karat, kt
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CARAT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "23. Petri dish gels"

5 letters πŸ’­ Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that any culture medium that uses agar as the gelling agent
  • Similar words include: agar, agar-agar, nutrient agar
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AGARS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "24. Company that debuted Sonic the Hedgehog"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEGA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "25. Legal termination?"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the compass point midway between east and southeast
  • Similar words include: east southeast
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ESE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "26. Proverbial waste maker"

5 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that overly eager speed (and possible carelessness)
  • Similar words include: hurriedness, hurry, precipitation
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HASTE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "27. Some Deco works"

5 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ERTES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24D: "29. "Well, I have to save my ___" (Shrek line)"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the fleshy part of the human body that you sit on
  • Similar words include: tail end, tush, fundament
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ASS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25D: "30. Total guesses"

5 letters πŸ’­ Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a sudden sharp feeling
  • Similar words include: stab, shot, knife
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STABS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26D: "31. πŸ”₯ "Ooh-la-la!" πŸ”₯"

5 letters πŸ’­ Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SOHOT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "32. Our "-zoic""

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CENO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "33. Florence-to-Venice dir."

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the compass point that is midway between north and northeast
  • Similar words include: north northeast, nor'-nor'-east
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NNE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "35. Part of a George Washington costume (though he rarely wore one)"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that hairpiece covering the head and made of real or synthetic hair
  • Similar words include: wigging
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: WIG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "38. Cable channel with many reruns"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a metallic element of the rare earth group; used in lasers; occurs in apatite and monazite and xenotime and ytterbite
  • Similar words include: tebibyte, Tbit, TiB
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TBS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "42. Site of the 2002 and 2034 Winter Olympics"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a state in the western united states; settled in 1847 by mormons led by brigham young
  • Similar words include: UT, Beehive State, Mormon State
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: UTAH

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32D: "43. Big success"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a notable achievement
  • Similar words include: effort, exploit
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FEAT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "44. Actors McKellen and McShane"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IANS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34D: "45. Messenger ___"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (biochemistry) a long linear polymer of nucleotides found in the nucleus but mainly in the cytoplasm of a cell where it is associated with microsomes; it transmits genetic information from dna to the cytoplasm and controls certain chemical processes in the cell
  • Similar words include: ribonucleic acid
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RNA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35D: "46. Imbroglio"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a state of confusion and disorderliness
  • Similar words include: fix, pile, passel
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MESS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36D: "47. Rose's lover of 1920s Broadway"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ABIE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37D: "48. NΓΊmero de Caballeros in a 1944 film"

4 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TRES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38D: "49. Something that may be lent or bent"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium
  • Similar words include: auricle, pinna, spike
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

39D: "50. Pen letters?"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BIC

Remember this word for future puzzles!

40D: "51. Musical Yoko"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that united states musician (born in japan) who married john lennon and collaborated with him on recordings (born in 1933)
  • Similar words include: Yoko Ono
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ONO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

41D: "52. Sch. in Norfolk, Va."

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ODU

Remember this word for future puzzles!

42D: "53. "Hamilton" star ___-Manuel Miranda"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that united states sculptor and architect whose public works include the memorial to veterans of the vietnam war in washington (born in 1959)
  • Similar words include: Maya Lin
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LIN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

43D: "55. Apt name for a groundskeeper?"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LON

Remember this word for future puzzles!

44D: "56. Word that becomes its own synonym when "p" is added to the end"

3 letters πŸ’­ Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that any thick, viscous matter
  • Similar words include: slime, muck, ooze
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GOO

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

14 Across Clues
44 Down Clues
58 Total Clues

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Last updated: August 05, 2026 at 06:04 AM

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