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Showing posts sorted by date for query DENS. Sort by relevance Show all posts

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

XWordHint Crossword Answers September 16, 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.

Quick Navigation - Table of Contents

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. Important info to have while you're waiting in a cellphone lot, for short 3
2A 4. Fall or fell 6
3A 10. Cause of a sudden change in interest, informally? 4
4A 14. Close 4
5A 15. Pho soup garnishes 7
6A 16. Conduit of neural signals 4
7A 17. Early models 10
8A 19. Relative of a gull 4
9A 20. "Ain't gonna happen" 4
10A 21. Big bang cause 3
11A 22. Chilling 5
12A 24. The remotest of remote jobs? 9
13A 27. Kid 5
14A 28. Supermodel Banks 4
15A 29. Break into loud cheers, as a crowd 5
16A 31. Answer to "Who's ready to go?" 3
17A 33. Broadcast 3
18A 35. Uno + due 3
19A 36. Mononymous Irish singer 4
20A 37. Animated film that was the highest-grossing movie of 1992 7
21A 41. "Impossible!" 7
22A 43. Hibernation spots 4
23A 44. Dip target, maybe 3
24A 46. Things entered in a sudoku grid: Abbr. 3
25A 47. Messy dorm room, figuratively 3
26A 48. Fruits often seen in still lifes 5
27A 50. Take back, for short 4
28A 53. City haze 4
29A 55. Canine guard? 8
30A 57. Dishwasher cycle 5
31A 59. "A form of madness," it's said 3
32A 60. Actress Pinkett Smith of "Girls Trip" 4
33A 62. Singer/songwriter Mitchell 4
34A 63. Fruits named after a mythical drink 10
35A 66. Noted cartoon dog 5
36A 67. Its first video, "Me at the zoo," has over 400 million views 7
37A 68. State whose outline can be made by connecting seven particular squares in this puzzle 4
38A 69. Valley 4
39A 70. Give a once-over 6
40A 71. Crafty 3

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. Important info to have while you're waiting in a cellphone lot, for short"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a terrorist organization organized in 1959 by student activists who were dissatisfied with the moderate nationalism of the traditional basque party; want to create an independent homeland in spain's western pyrenees
  • Similar words include: Basque Homeland and Freedom, Euskadi ta Askatasuna, Basque Fatherland and Liberty
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ETA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "4. Fall or fell"

6 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that fall down, as if collapsing
  • Similar words include: tip, tumble
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TOPPLE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "10. Cause of a sudden change in interest, informally?"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "14. Close"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that move so that an opening or passage is obstructed; make shut
  • Similar words include: closed, exclude, shut out
  • Opposite of: admit, open
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SHUT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "15. Pho soup garnishes"

7 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that any new growth of a plant such as a new branch or a bud
  • Similar words include: bourgeon, stock, sprout
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SPROUTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "16. Conduit of neural signals"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that long nerve fiber that conducts away from the cell body of the neuron
  • Similar words include: axone
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AXON

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "17. Early models"

10 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a standard or typical example
  • Similar words include: prototype, image, paradigm
  • Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PROTOTYPES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "19. Relative of a gull"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that small slender gull having narrow wings and a forked tail
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TERN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "20. "Ain't gonna happen""

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "21. Big bang cause"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that explosive consisting of a yellow crystalline compound that is a flammable toxic derivative of toluene
  • Similar words include: trinitrotoluene
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TNT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "22. Chilling"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "24. The remotest of remote jobs?"

9 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a person trained to travel in a spacecraft
  • Similar words include: cosmonaut, spaceman
  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ASTRONAUT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "27. Kid"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a young person (especially a young man or boy)
  • Similar words include: young, early days, spring chicken
  • Opposite of: aged
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: YOUTH

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "28. Supermodel Banks"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15A: "29. Break into loud cheers, as a crowd"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that start abruptly
  • Similar words include: flare, belch, burst
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ERUPT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16A: "31. Answer to "Who's ready to go?""

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17A: "33. Broadcast"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
  • Similar words include: air out, melodic phrase, air travel
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AIR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18A: "35. Uno + due"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19A: "36. Mononymous Irish singer"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20A: "37. Animated film that was the highest-grossing movie of 1992"

7 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that in the arabian nights a boy who acquires a magic lamp from which he can summon a genie
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALADDIN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21A: "41. "Impossible!""

7 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NOCANDO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22A: "43. Hibernation spots"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the habitation of wild animals
  • Similar words include: hideaway, den, hideout
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DENS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23A: "44. Dip target, maybe"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24A: "46. Things entered in a sudoku grid: Abbr."

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a radioactive transuranic element synthesized by bombarding curium with carbon ions; 7 isotopes are known
  • Similar words include: No, no, nobelium
  • Opposite of: yes
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NOS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25A: "47. Messy dorm room, figuratively"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an infection of the sebaceous gland of the eyelid
  • Similar words include: hordeolum, stye, eye infection
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26A: "48. Fruits often seen in still lifes"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that sweet juicy gritty-textured fruit available in many varieties
  • Similar words include: pear tree, pear, Pyrus communis
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PEARS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27A: "50. Take back, for short"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28A: "53. City haze"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that air pollution by a mixture of smoke and fog
  • Similar words include: smogginess
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SMOG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29A: "55. Canine guard?"

8 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a fee charged in advance to retain the services of someone
  • Similar words include: consideration, servant
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RETAINER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30A: "57. Dishwasher cycle"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a liquid preparation used on wet hair to give it a tint
  • Similar words include: rinsing, wash, gargle
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RINSE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31A: "59. "A form of madness," it's said"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the waging of armed conflict against an enemy
  • Similar words include: warfare, state of war
  • Opposite of: make peace, peace
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: WAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32A: "60. Actress Pinkett Smith of "Girls Trip""

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33A: "62. Singer/songwriter Mitchell"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34A: "63. Fruits named after a mythical drink"

10 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that variety or mutation of the peach bearing fruit with smooth skin and (usually) yellow flesh
  • Similar words include: Prunus persica nectarina, nectarine tree, nectarine
  • Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NECTARINES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35A: "66. Noted cartoon dog"

5 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a cartoon character created by walt disney
  • Similar words include: Aides, Aidoneus, Hades
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PLUTO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36A: "67. Its first video, "Me at the zoo," has over 400 million views"

7 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: YOUTUBE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37A: "68. State whose outline can be made by connecting seven particular squares in this puzzle"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

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: Mormon State, Beehive State, UT
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: UTAH

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38A: "69. Valley"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a narrow secluded valley (in the mountains)
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GLEN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

39A: "70. Give a once-over"

6 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that evaluate or estimate the nature, quality, ability, extent, or significance of
  • Similar words include: value, appraise, tax
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ASSESS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

40A: "71. Crafty"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that marked by skill in deception
  • Similar words include: cunning, wily, guileful
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SLY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No. Clue Letters
1D 1. Channel with "2" and "U" spinoffs 4
2D 2. Pharynx setting 6
3D 3. Post-mortem 7
4D 4. General on a Chinese menu 3
5D 5. Decide one will 5
6D 6. Hester of "The Scarlet Letter" 6
7D 7. Grab-and-go breakfast option 7
8D 8. Guitar relative 4
9D 9. Gas brand seen in Edward Hopper's "Portrait of Orleans" 4
10D 10. Betting odds, e.g. 5
11D 11. Concern for a gymnastics judge 9
12D 12. Certain pickleball shot 8
13D 13. Greenwich Village's Stonewall, e.g. 3
14D 18. Groups of four 7
15D 23. Paper competing with the W.S.J. 3
16D 25. Debugger? 4
17D 26. Remedy for a missed exit 5
18D 30. Lowly worker 4
19D 32. Farm sound 3
20D 34. Ready to eat 4
21D 36. Small hound that doesn't bark 7
22D 37. What a premium subscription may help you avoid 3
23D 38. "Time to go!" 8
24D 39. Very soon 9
25D 40. By 4
26D 42. What "Coco" is a nickname for, for tennis's Coco Gauff 4
27D 45. Military hairstyles 8
28D 48. Family-friendly movie ratings 3
29D 49. The Sphinx, for one 6
30D 51. Classic comic strip that's the source for nine Emmys and two Tonys 7
31D 52. Folding a fitted sheet, it may seem 6
32D 54. Edible bulb 5
33D 56. Many Moroccans 5
34D 58. Mononymous Irish singer 4
35D 61. Grayish 4
36D 62. Profile pic format, in brief 3
37D 64. Dawn deity 3
38D 65. In medias ___ 3

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Channel with "2" and "U" spinoffs"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. Pharynx setting"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the passage to the stomach and lungs; in the front part of the neck below the chin and above the collarbone
  • Similar words include: pharynx
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: THROAT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. Post-mortem"

7 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an examination and dissection of a dead body to determine cause of death or the changes produced by disease
  • Similar words include: post-mortem, PM, post-mortem examination
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AUTOPSY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. General on a Chinese menu"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. Decide one will"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Hester of "The Scarlet Letter""

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PRYNNE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. Grab-and-go breakfast option"

7 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: POPTART

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. Guitar relative"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a substance for packing a joint or coating a porous surface to make it impervious to gas or liquid
  • Similar words include: luting
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LUTE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. Gas brand seen in Edward Hopper's "Portrait of Orleans""

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Betting odds, e.g."

5 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the relative magnitudes of two quantities (usually expressed as a quotient)
  • Similar words include: proportion
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RATIO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. Concern for a gymnastics judge"

9 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that putting a condemned person to death
  • Similar words include: instruction execution, writ of execution, execution of instrument
  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EXECUTION

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. Certain pickleball shot"

8 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (sports) a return made with the palm of the hand facing the direction of the stroke (as in tennis or badminton or squash)
  • Similar words include: forehanded, forehand stroke, forehand shot
  • Opposite of: backhand
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FOREHAND

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "13. Greenwich Village's Stonewall, e.g."

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a hotel providing overnight lodging for travelers
  • Similar words include: hostel, lodge, hostelry
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: INN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "18. Groups of four"

7 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
  • Similar words include: IV, tetrad, quaternity
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TETRADS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "23. Paper competing with the W.S.J."

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "25. Debugger?"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a sudden short attack
  • Similar words include: foray, bust, maraud
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RAID

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "26. Remedy for a missed exit"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "30. Lowly worker"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a laborer who is obliged to do menial work
  • Similar words include: navvy, drudge, galley slave
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PEON

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "32. Farm sound"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the sound made by a cow or bull
  • Similar words include: low
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MOO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "34. Ready to eat"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that fully developed or matured and ready to be eaten or used
  • Similar words include: mature, good, advanced
  • Opposite of: green
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RIPE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "36. Small hound that doesn't bark"

7 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that small smooth-haired breed of african origin having a tightly curled tail and the inability to bark
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BASENJI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "37. What a premium subscription may help you avoid"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a public promotion of some product or service
  • Similar words include: ad, advert, advertizing
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ADS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "38. "Time to go!""

8 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24D: "39. Very soon"

9 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25D: "40. By"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that move towards
  • Similar words include: dear, draw near, approach
  • Opposite of: far
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NEAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26D: "42. What "Coco" is a nickname for, for tennis's Coco Gauff"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "45. Military hairstyles"

8 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "48. Family-friendly movie ratings"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "49. The Sphinx, for one"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a sculpture representing a human or animal
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STATUE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "51. Classic comic strip that's the source for nine Emmys and two Tonys"

7 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an insignificant sum of money; a trifling amount
  • Similar words include: peanut, goober, peanut vine
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PEANUTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "52. Folding a fitted sheet, it may seem"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a severe or trying experience
  • Similar words include: trial by ordeal
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ORDEAL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32D: "54. Edible bulb"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the bulb of an onion plant
  • Similar words include: onion plant, Allium cepa
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ONION

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "56. Many Moroccans"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a member of a semitic people originally from the arabian peninsula and surrounding territories who speaks arabic and who inhabits much of the middle east and northern africa
  • Similar words include: Arab, Arabian
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ARABS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34D: "58. Mononymous Irish singer"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35D: "61. Grayish"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that of a light grey
  • Similar words include: ash-grey, ash-gray
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ASHY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36D: "62. Profile pic format, in brief"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37D: "64. Dawn deity"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (greek mythology) the winged goddess of the dawn in ancient mythology; daughter of hyperion; identified with roman aurora
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EOS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38D: "65. In medias ___"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a widely distributed system consisting of all the cells able to ingest bacteria or colloidal particles etc, except for certain white blood cells
  • Similar words include: Re, rhenium, re
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RES

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

40 Across Clues
38 Down Clues
78 Total Clues

More NYT Crossword Help

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Disclaimer: Crossword clues and grid © The New York Times. This site provides hints and educational content for puzzle enthusiasts. XWordHint is not affiliated with The New York Times.

Last updated: September 16, 2026 at 08:43 AM

Tuesday, August 18, 2026

XWordHint Crossword Answers August 18, 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.

Quick Navigation - Table of Contents

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. Assistance 4
2A 5. Dickens villain ___ Heep 5
3A 10. Bears' lairs 4
4A 14. Plant with many topical uses 4
5A 15. Downright unpleasant 5
6A 16. Meaning of "vidi," in Caesar's boast 4
7A 17. Classic Beethoven piano piece 15
8A 20. Fed. agency overseeing the stock market 3
9A 21. To blame 7
10A 22. Online Q&A 3
11A 25. ___ ex machina 4
12A 28. Home to Kosovo and Monaco: Abbr. 3
13A 29. Academy Award-winning tune from "La La Land" 11
14A 32. "Chiseled" muscles 3
15A 35. Of yore 5
16A 36. Snippet in a film review show 9
17A 38. "Looper" director Johnson 4
18A 39. Sarcastic title girl of 1990s-2000s MTV 5
19A 40. Utah skiing destination 4
20A 41. Coverers of current events 9
21A 43. Boss (around) 5
22A 44. Phoenix basketball player 3
23A 45. 1983 Eurythmics hit whose full title includes "(Are Made of This)" 11
24A 47. Popular fantasy role-playing game, in brief 3
25A 48. Spies 4
26A 49. "___-haw!" 3
27A 50. It has its x's and y's 7
28A 54. T-shirt or blouse 3
29A 56. Iconic number from "The Phantom of the Opera" ... or an apt title for this puzzle 15
30A 62. Story of one's life? 4
31A 63. Beforehand 5
32A 64. Singer Kahan with the 2026 #1 album "The Great Divide" 4
33A 65. Hot 4
34A 66. 17-, 29-, 45- and 56-Across 5
35A 67. Person regularly sought out for advice 4

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. Assistance"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
  • Similar words include: service, serve, assistance
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HELP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "5. Dickens villain ___ Heep"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (old testament) the husband of bathsheba and a soldier who was sent to die in battle so that king david could marry his wife (circa 10th century bc)
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: URIAH

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "10. Bears' lairs"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the habitation of wild animals
  • Similar words include: hideout, hideaway, den
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DENS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "14. Plant with many topical uses"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that succulent plants having rosettes of leaves usually with fiber like hemp and spikes of showy flowers; found chiefly in africa
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALOE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "15. Downright unpleasant"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that offensive or even (of persons) malicious; ; ; ; ; ; - ezra pound
  • Similar words include: tight, awful, smutty
  • Opposite of: nice
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NASTY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "16. Meaning of "vidi," in Caesar's boast"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "17. Classic Beethoven piano piece"

15 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _______________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MOONLIGHTSONATA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "20. Fed. agency overseeing the stock market"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that 1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the systeme international d'unites
  • Similar words include: secant, unsweet, Securities and Exchange Commission
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEC

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "21. To blame"

7 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ATFAULT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "22. Online Q&A"

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "25. ___ ex machina"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "28. Home to Kosovo and Monaco: Abbr."

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "29. Academy Award-winning tune from "La La Land""

11 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "32. "Chiseled" muscles"

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that any of a class of composite plastics used to make car bodies and cases for computers and other appliances
  • Similar words include: Bachelor of Arts, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene, group AB
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ABS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15A: "35. Of yore"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16A: "36. Snippet in a film review show"

9 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17A: "38. "Looper" director Johnson"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18A: "39. Sarcastic title girl of 1990s-2000s MTV"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19A: "40. Utah skiing destination"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20A: "41. Coverers of current events"

9 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21A: "43. Boss (around)"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
  • Similar words include: Holy Order, tell, regulate
  • Opposite of: disorderliness, disorder
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ORDER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22A: "44. Phoenix basketball player"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the star that is the source of light and heat for the planets in the solar system
  • Similar words include: Lord's Day, sunlight, insolate
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SUN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23A: "45. 1983 Eurythmics hit whose full title includes "(Are Made of This)""

11 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24A: "47. Popular fantasy role-playing game, in brief"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25A: "48. Spies"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the seat within a bishop's diocese where his cathedral is located
  • Similar words include: discover, realize, meet
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26A: "49. "___-haw!""

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27A: "50. It has its x's and y's"

7 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the mathematics of generalized arithmetical operations
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALGEBRA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28A: "54. T-shirt or blouse"

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the upper part of anything
  • Similar words include: tip, pinnacle, circus tent
  • Opposite of: bottom
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TOP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29A: "56. Iconic number from "The Phantom of the Opera" ... or an apt title for this puzzle"

15 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: _______________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MUSICOFTHENIGHT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30A: "62. Story of one's life?"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a notice of someone's death; usually includes a short biography
  • Similar words include: necrology, obituary
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OBIT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31A: "63. Beforehand"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the head of a religious order; in an abbey the prior is next below the abbot
  • Similar words include: anterior
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PRIOR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32A: "64. Singer Kahan with the 2026 #1 album "The Great Divide""

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the hebrew patriarch who saved himself and his family and the animals by building an ark in which they survived 40 days and 40 nights of rain; the story of noah and the flood is told in the book of genesis
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NOAH

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33A: "65. Hot"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that marked by or tending to arouse sexual desire or interest
  • Similar words include: aphrodisiac, aphrodisiacal
  • Opposite of: unsexy, anaphrodisiac
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEXY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34A: "66. 17-, 29-, 45- and 56-Across"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a short musical composition with words
  • Similar words include: vocal, birdsong, Sung
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SONGS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35A: "67. Person regularly sought out for advice"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No. Clue Letters
1D 1. Scene stealer 3
2D 2. Eponym of a chess rating system 3
3D 3. British bathroom 3
4D 4. Writes 4
5D 5. International aid org. 6
6D 6. Cloth covered in dust, say 3
7D 7. "... or so" 3
8D 8. Lead-in to "boy!" or "girl!" 4
9D 9. Madness 8
10D 10. Kuwaiti currency 5
11D 11. The elder of a pair of biblical twins 4
12D 12. The "N" of N.A.A.C.P.: Abbr. 4
13D 13. Smack, as flies 4
14D 18. Gave false hopes 5
15D 19. Coming in handy 5
16D 22. Nuts whose shells look like they have little berets 6
17D 23. Environs 6
18D 24. When Hamilton and Burr had their duel 6
19D 26. Manufactured in America 6
20D 27. What gossipers and tall buildings are full of 7
21D 30. Desires 4
22D 31. Fly in the sky 6
23D 32. Like some theme park passes 6
24D 33. "Oh, buzz off" 6
25D 34. Thin on the ground 6
26D 37. Give a hoot 4
27D 39. Morning condensation 8
28D 42. Channel that rebranded with "NOW" in its name in 2025 5
29D 43. "Citizen Kane" director Welles 5
30D 46. Forfends 6
31D 47. Part of a pantheon 5
32D 50. "Famous" cookie baker 4
33D 51. Anti-friction fluid 4
34D 52. High-end private jet, familiarly 4
35D 53. Hairstyle associated with Jimi Hendrix and Angela Davis 4
36D 55. Send an instant message 4
37D 57. Sardine container 3
38D 58. Refuse to share 3
39D 59. Glop 3
40D 60. Mario has a red "M" on his 3
41D 61. Howe'er 3

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Scene stealer"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that meat cut from the thigh of a hog (usually smoked)
  • Similar words include: gammon, overplay, jambon
  • Opposite of: underact
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HAM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. Eponym of a chess rating system"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. British bathroom"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a toilet in britain
  • Similar words include: W.C., closet, water closet
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LOO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. Writes"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a writing implement with a point from which ink flows
  • Similar words include: pen, compose, write
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PENS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. International aid org."

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an agency of the united nations responsible for programs to aid education and the health of children and mothers in developing countries
  • Similar words include: United Nations Children's Fund, United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: UNICEF

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Cloth covered in dust, say"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a small piece of cloth or paper
  • Similar words include: annoy, nettle, bawl out
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RAG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. "... or so""

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. Lead-in to "boy!" or "girl!""

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. Madness"

8 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that state of violent mental agitation
  • Similar words include: hysterical neurosis, fury, craze
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HYSTERIA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Kuwaiti currency"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that 100 dinars equal 1 rial in iran
  • Similar words include: Tunisian dinar, Libyan dinar, Yugoslavian dinar
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DINAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. The elder of a pair of biblical twins"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (old testament) the eldest son of isaac who would have inherited the covenant that god made with abraham and that abraham passed on to isaac; he traded his birthright to his twin brother jacob for a mess of pottage
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ESAU

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. The "N" of N.A.A.C.P.: Abbr."

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "13. Smack, as flies"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a sharp blow
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SWAT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "18. Gave false hopes"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "19. Coming in handy"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "22. Nuts whose shells look like they have little berets"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that fruit of the oak tree: a smooth thin-walled nut in a woody cup-shaped base
  • Similar words include: acorn
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ACORNS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "23. Environs"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the environmental condition
  • Similar words include: surroundings
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MILIEU

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "24. When Hamilton and Burr had their duel"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ATDAWN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "26. Manufactured in America"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: USMADE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "27. What gossipers and tall buildings are full of"

7 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
  • Similar words include: narration, storey, tale
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STORIES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "30. Desires"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a yearning for something or to do something
  • Similar words include: hankering, yen, yearn
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: YENS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "31. Fly in the sky"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that operate an airplane
  • Similar words include: pilot, fly
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AVIATE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "32. Like some theme park passes"

6 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALLDAY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24D: "33. "Oh, buzz off""

6 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BITEME

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25D: "34. Thin on the ground"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Similar words include: thin
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SPARSE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26D: "37. Give a hoot"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the work of providing treatment for or attending to someone or something
  • Similar words include: maintenance, wish, worry
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CARE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "39. Morning condensation"

8 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a drop of dew
  • Similar words include: dewdrop
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DEWDROPS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "42. Channel that rebranded with "NOW" in its name in 2025"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "43. "Citizen Kane" director Welles"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "46. Forfends"

6 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that try to prevent; show opposition to
  • Similar words include: dissuade, discourage, deter
  • Opposite of: persuade
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DETERS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "47. Part of a pantheon"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that any supernatural being worshipped as controlling some part of the world or some aspect of life or who is the personification of a force
  • Similar words include: immortal, divinity, god
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DEITY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32D: "50. "Famous" cookie baker"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a hebrew shepherd and minor prophet
  • Similar words include: Book of Amos
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AMOS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "51. Anti-friction fluid"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a substance capable of reducing friction by making surfaces smooth or slippery
  • Similar words include: lubricating substance, lubricator, lubricate
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LUBE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34D: "52. High-end private jet, familiarly"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35D: "53. Hairstyle associated with Jimi Hendrix and Angela Davis"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a rounded thickly curled hairdo
  • Similar words include: Afro hairdo
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AFRO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36D: "55. Send an instant message"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a river in western thailand; a major tributary of the chao phraya
  • Similar words include: pink, Ping River, knock
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PING

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37D: "57. Sardine container"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a silvery malleable metallic element that resists corrosion; used in many alloys and to coat other metals to prevent corrosion; obtained chiefly from cassiterite where it occurs as tin oxide
  • Similar words include: can, atomic number 50, canister
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TIN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38D: "58. Refuse to share"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a person regarded as greedy and pig-like
  • Similar words include: hogget, grunter, squealer
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HOG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

39D: "59. Glop"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

40D: "60. Mario has a red "M" on his"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that headdress that protects the head from bad weather; has shaped crown and usually a brim
  • Similar words include: chapeau, lid
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HAT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

41D: "61. Howe'er"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a branch of the tai languages
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: THO

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

35 Across Clues
41 Down Clues
76 Total Clues

More NYT Crossword Help

Looking for more puzzle solutions? Check out our comprehensive archive of NYT crossword hints and answers. We update daily with expert analysis and solving strategies.

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Last updated: August 18, 2026 at 04:03 AM