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Saturday, January 24, 2026

XWordHint Crossword Answers January 24, 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: Moderate

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. Used as a rendezvous point 5
2A 6. Put to rest 6
3A 12. Hangouts for golden agers 13
4A 14. Feeling that a new haircut or a new set of clothes might bring 14
5A 15. Child support? 15
6A 16. "The Addams Family" member voiced by Snoop Dogg in 2019 3
7A 17. ___ Ivanovic, former #1-ranked female tennis player 3
8A 18. Copa Mundial chant 3
9A 19. Afghans, e.g. 6
10A 21. Empty vehicle weight 4
11A 23. Horn-heavy genre 3
12A 26. Practice 4
13A 27. Very flimsy, as an argument 9
14A 29. What a stein might hold 4
15A 30. How change comes in the Baltics 5
16A 31. Bevy 4
17A 32. "Enough already!" 9
18A 34. Knocks the top off of 4
19A 35. Not remain loose 3
20A 36. 1960s protest singer Phil 4
21A 37. It may wind up at the top of one's head 6
22A 39. "Again?!!" 3
23A 40. Home for the winter, say 3
24A 41. Approx. 25% of it consists of national forests 3
25A 42. Penultimate film in a series of 23 15
26A 48. Scene for a skeleton crew? 14
27A 49. Where one might hope to find good deals on the internet? 13
28A 50. Chucked, informally 6
29A 51. Roll over, in a way 5

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. Used as a rendezvous point"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "6. Put to rest"

6 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that force to go away; used both with concrete and metaphoric meanings
  • Similar words include: drive away, drive out, scatter
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DISPEL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "12. Hangouts for golden agers"

13 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "14. Feeling that a new haircut or a new set of clothes might bring"

14 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "15. Child support?"

15 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "16. "The Addams Family" member voiced by Snoop Dogg in 2019"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "17. ___ Ivanovic, former #1-ranked female tennis player"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that mother of the ancient irish gods; sometimes identified with danu
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ANA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "18. Copa Mundial chant"

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "19. Afghans, e.g."

6 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a native or inhabitant of asia
  • Similar words include: Asian, Asiatic
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ASIANS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "21. Empty vehicle weight"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an adjustment made for the weight of the packaging in order to determine the net weight of the goods
  • Similar words include: bearded darnel, darnel, Lolium temulentum
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TARE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "23. Horn-heavy genre"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "26. Practice"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an established custom
  • Similar words include: habit
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: WONT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "27. Very flimsy, as an argument"

9 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "29. What a stein might hold"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a british imperial capacity measure (liquid or dry) equal to 4 gills or 568.26 cubic centimeters
  • Similar words include: dry pint
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PINT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15A: "30. How change comes in the Baltics"

5 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the basic monetary unit of most members of the european union (introduced in 1999); in 2002 twelve european nations (germany, france, belgium, luxembourg, the netherlands, italy, spain, portugal, ireland, greece, austria, finland) adopted the euro as their basic unit of money and abandoned their traditional currencies
  • Similar words include: euro
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EUROS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16A: "31. Bevy"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a person who invites guests to a social event (such as a party in his or her own home) and who is responsible for them while they are there
  • Similar words include: innkeeper, server, emcee
  • Opposite of: parasite
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HOST

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17A: "32. "Enough already!""

9 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18A: "34. Knocks the top off of"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a loft in a barn where hay is stored
  • Similar words include: pout, cut down, hayloft
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MOWS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19A: "35. Not remain loose"

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a colloid in a more solid form than a sol
  • Similar words include: colloidal gel, gelatin, mousse
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GEL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20A: "36. 1960s protest singer Phil"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that united states newspaper publisher (1858-1935)
  • Similar words include: Adolph Simon Ochs
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OCHS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21A: "37. It may wind up at the top of one's head"

6 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a traditional muslim headdress consisting of a long scarf wrapped around the head
  • Similar words include: pillbox, toque
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TURBAN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22A: "39. "Again?!!""

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23A: "40. Home for the winter, say"

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24A: "41. Approx. 25% of it consists of national forests"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a mineral that contains metal that is valuable enough to be mined
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ORE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25A: "42. Penultimate film in a series of 23"

15 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26A: "48. Scene for a skeleton crew?"

14 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27A: "49. Where one might hope to find good deals on the internet?"

13 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28A: "50. Chucked, informally"

6 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29A: "51. Roll over, in a way"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that reestablish on a new, usually improved, basis or make new or like new
  • Similar words include: reincarnate, regenerate
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RENEW

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No. Clue Letters
1D 1. Course catalog? 4
2D 2. Means of closing up a vent 7
3D 3. Some joint promotions 6
4D 4. Conduit from a ventricle 5
5D 5. Four minus one 4
6D 6. Really, really regrets 8
7D 7. Remedy for some intake problems 7
8D 8. Skip it! 5
9D 9. Suddenly pay attention, with "up" 4
10D 10. Native American people known as the "Nation du Chat" 4
11D 11. Exam on which 44-Down got a near-perfect score 4
12D 12. Furniture that's designed to break down? 9
13D 13. One breaking a 108-year drought in 2016 3
14D 14. Catches on 8
15D 15. Australian singer with the 2014 #1 album "1000 Forms of Fear" 3
16D 20. Prefix with piracy 4
17D 21. Staple vegetables in Hawaiian cooking 5
18D 22. Each 4
19D 23. Puts on a big display 9
20D 24. Fan group that often wears black-and-white face paint 8
21D 25. "The Dove and the ___" (Aesop fable) 3
22D 27. Charlie with the 2016 hit "We Don't Talk Anymore" 4
23D 28. God who rides in a chariot pulled by two giant magical goats 4
24D 29. It'll never fly! 3
25D 30. Forwent 8
26D 33. Dad-blasted 7
27D 34. Pedestrian 7
28D 37. Split component, at times 6
29D 38. Called on one's birthday? 3
30D 39. Dark 5
31D 40. Like tungsten 5
32D 42. Main greeting 4
33D 43. Pointer that changes with the weather 4
34D 44. Filmdom's Woods who took the 11-Down 4
35D 45. ___ league 3
36D 46. Scorch 4
37D 47. Swell 4

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Course catalog?"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a list of dishes available at a restaurant
  • Similar words include: card, computer menu, carte du jour
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MENU

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. Means of closing up a vent"

7 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. Some joint promotions"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. Conduit from a ventricle"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the large trunk artery that carries blood from the left ventricle of the heart to branch arteries
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AORTA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. Four minus one"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
  • Similar words include: trio, threesome, ternion
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TREY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Really, really regrets"

8 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that express strong disapproval of
  • Similar words include: lament, bewail, bemoan
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DEPLORES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. Remedy for some intake problems"

7 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a dispenser that produces a chemical vapor to be inhaled in order to relieve nasal congestion
  • Similar words include: inhalator
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: INHALER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. Skip it!"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
  • Similar words include: Oliver Stone, gemstone, I. F. Stone
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STONE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. Suddenly pay attention, with "up""

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an incidental benefit awarded for certain types of employment (especially if it is regarded as a right)
  • Similar words include: percolate, pick up, fringe benefit
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PERK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Native American people known as the "Nation du Chat""

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a member of an iroquoian people formerly living on the south shore of lake erie in northern ohio and northwest pennsylvania and western new york
  • Similar words include: Lake Erie
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ERIE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. Exam on which 44-Down got a near-perfect score"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. Furniture that's designed to break down?"

9 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a piece of furniture made up of sections that can be arranged individually or together
  • Similar words include: sectioned
  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SECTIONAL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "13. One breaking a 108-year drought in 2016"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an awkward and inexperienced youth
  • Similar words include: greenhorn, lad, rookie
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CUB

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "14. Catches on"

8 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "15. Australian singer with the 2014 #1 album "1000 Forms of Fear""

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "20. Prefix with piracy"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a person who is opposed (to an action or policy or practice etc.)
  • Opposite of: pro
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ANTI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "21. Staple vegetables in Hawaiian cooking"

5 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that edible starchy tuberous root of taro plants
  • Similar words include: dasheen, eddo, edda
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TAROS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "22. Each"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "23. Puts on a big display"

9 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a river steamboat on which theatrical performances could be given (especially on the mississippi river)
  • Similar words include: showboat
  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SHOWBOATS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "24. Fan group that often wears black-and-white face paint"

8 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "25. "The Dove and the ___" (Aesop fable)"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that social insect living in organized colonies; characteristically the males and fertile queen have wings during breeding season; wingless sterile females are the workers
  • Similar words include: emmet, pismire
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ANT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "27. Charlie with the 2016 hit "We Don't Talk Anymore""

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "28. God who rides in a chariot pulled by two giant magical goats"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (norse mythology) god of thunder and rain and farming; pictured as wielding a hammer emblematic of the thunderbolt; identified with teutonic donar
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: THOR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24D: "29. It'll never fly!"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that domestic swine
  • Similar words include: copper, slovenly person, Sus scrofa
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PIG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25D: "30. Forwent"

8 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that avoid and stay away from deliberately; stay clear of
  • Similar words include: shun, eschew
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ESCHEWED

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26D: "33. Dad-blasted"

7 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "34. Pedestrian"

7 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that found in the ordinary course of events; ; ; - anita diamant
  • Similar words include: everyday, unremarkable, workaday
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MUNDANE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "37. Split component, at times"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that one of the bottle-shaped pins used in bowling
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TENPIN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "38. Called on one's birthday?"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (meaning literally `born') used to indicate the maiden or family name of a married woman
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NEE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "39. Dark"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that not set afire or burning
  • Similar words include: unilluminated, unlighted, lightless
  • Opposite of: lighted
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: UNLIT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "40. Like tungsten"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that permitting little if any light to pass through because of denseness of matter
  • Similar words include: obtuse, dim, dull
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DENSE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32D: "42. Main greeting"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "43. Pointer that changes with the weather"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that mechanical device attached to an elevated structure; rotates freely to show the direction of the wind
  • Similar words include: weathervane, weather vane, wind vane
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: VANE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34D: "44. Filmdom's Woods who took the 11-Down"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35D: "45. ___ league"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36D: "46. Scorch"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that make very hot and dry
  • Similar words include: singe, dried-up, shriveled
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37D: "47. Swell"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
  • Similar words include: uprise, produce, originate
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GROW

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

29 Across Clues
37 Down Clues
66 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.

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: January 24, 2026 at 04:09 AM

Wednesday, December 3, 2025

XWordHint Crossword Answers December 03, 2025 | 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: 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. Young fellows 4
2A 5. Tied up, as hay 5
3A 10. Surrounded by 4
4A 14. Plant-based spread 4
5A 15. Echo speaker 5
6A 16. Largest company headquartered in Oregon 4
7A 17. 1967 hit by the Who, per 68-Across 15
8A 20. Words after "happily ever after" 6
9A 21. Bit of ink 3
10A 22. Lack of connectivity 3
11A 23. Long-haired bovine 3
12A 24. Anabolic steroids, e.g., informally 4
13A 27. College football rival of Michigan, for short 3
14A 29. 1978 song by Gloria Gaynor, per 68-Across 12
15A 34. Lead-in to pop or lit 4
16A 36. Award with a "Best New American Theater Work" category 4
17A 37. Midmonth time 4
18A 38. Linseed oil source 4
19A 39. Shampoo often in a green bottle 5
20A 40. Remain unresolved 4
21A 41. Cause for a miner celebration? 4
22A 42. Animal in more than 70 Bugs Bunny titles 4
23A 43. Hospital count 4
24A 44. 2008 hit by Katy Perry, per 68-Across 12
25A 47. One of a trio encountered by Ricitos de Oro 3
26A 48. Egyptian sun deity 4
27A 49. Solid-rock connector 3
28A 52. Forehead marker at the start of Lent 3
29A 54. Long-running procedural franchise 3
30A 57. Removes forcibly 6
31A 59. 1973 Bob Marley song covered by Eric Clapton, per 68-Across 15
32A 63. Currency of Yemen 4
33A 64. Language in which "maunga roa" means "long mountain" 5
34A 65. Unimpressive rating 4
35A 66. TV's Griffith, Kaufman or Samberg 4
36A 67. "Take this job and shove it!" 5
37A 68. Wise counselor of sci-fi who might not be great at karaoke? 4

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. Young fellows"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a boy or man
  • Similar words include: feller, chap, fella
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LADS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "5. Tied up, as hay"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that make into a bale
  • Similar words include: bale
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BALED

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "10. Surrounded by"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "14. Plant-based spread"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a spread made chiefly from vegetable oils and used as a substitute for butter
  • Similar words include: oleomargarine, marge, margarine
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OLEO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "15. Echo speaker"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "16. Largest company headquartered in Oregon"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (greek mythology) winged goddess of victory; identified with roman victoria
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NIKE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "17. 1967 hit by the Who, per 68-Across"

15 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "20. Words after "happily ever after""

6 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "21. Bit of ink"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that tastelessness by virtue of being cheap and vulgar
  • Similar words include: Thematic Apperception Test, cheapness, sleaze
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TAT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "22. Lack of connectivity"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a conspicuous disparity or difference as between two figures
  • Similar words include: spread, opening, disruption
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GAP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "23. Long-haired bovine"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that large long-haired wild ox of tibet often domesticated
  • Similar words include: chatter, cackle, yack
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: YAK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "24. Anabolic steroids, e.g., informally"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "27. College football rival of Michigan, for short"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "29. 1978 song by Gloria Gaynor, per 68-Across"

12 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15A: "34. Lead-in to pop or lit"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a native or inhabitant of great britain
  • Similar words include: Briton, Britisher, britt
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BRIT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16A: "36. Award with a "Best New American Theater Work" category"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17A: "37. Midmonth time"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that in the roman calendar: the 15th of march or may or july or october or the 13th of any other month
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IDES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18A: "38. Linseed oil source"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that fiber of the flax plant that is made into thread and woven into linen fabric
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FLAX

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19A: "39. Shampoo often in a green bottle"

5 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20A: "40. Remain unresolved"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21A: "41. Cause for a miner celebration?"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a deposit of valuable ore occurring within definite boundaries separating it from surrounding rocks
  • Similar words include: load
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LODE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22A: "42. Animal in more than 70 Bugs Bunny titles"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that swift timid long-eared mammal larger than a rabbit having a divided upper lip and long hind legs; young born furred and with open eyes
  • Similar words include: rabbit
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HARE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23A: "43. Hospital count"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
  • Similar words include: fuck, layer, know
  • Opposite of: turn out, get up
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BEDS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24A: "44. 2008 hit by Katy Perry, per 68-Across"

12 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25A: "47. One of a trio encountered by Ricitos de Oro"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26A: "48. Egyptian sun deity"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the sun (or solar disc) which was the deity of a monotheistic cult under the pharaoh akhenaten
  • Similar words include: Aton
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ATEN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27A: "49. Solid-rock connector"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28A: "52. Forehead marker at the start of Lent"

3 letters Category: Wordplay

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!

29A: "54. Long-running procedural franchise"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30A: "57. Removes forcibly"

6 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that put out or expel from a place
  • Similar words include: boot out, expel, exclude
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EJECTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31A: "59. 1973 Bob Marley song covered by Eric Clapton, per 68-Across"

15 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32A: "63. Currency of Yemen"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the basic unit of money in yemen; equal to 100 fils
  • Similar words include: Omani rial, Iranian rial, Yemeni rial
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RIAL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33A: "64. Language in which "maunga roa" means "long mountain""

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an ethnic minority of polynesian and melanesian descent who speak maori and live in new zealand
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MAORI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34A: "65. Unimpressive rating"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that people without possessions or wealth (considered as a group)
  • Similar words include: pitiful, wretched, short
  • Opposite of: rich, rich people
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: POOR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35A: "66. TV's Griffith, Kaufman or Samberg"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36A: "67. "Take this job and shove it!""

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37A: "68. Wise counselor of sci-fi who might not be great at karaoke?"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No. Clue Letters
1D 1. Elevated 5
2D 2. Greeting among the lei community? 5
3D 3. Jeter in Cooperstown 5
4D 4. Not too many 4
5D 5. Like Picard vis-à-vis Kirk 6
6D 6. Drink that may come in a yard 3
7D 7. Jean-Paul Sartre's "___ Chemins de la Liberté" 3
8D 8. Kind of strategy 4
9D 9. Obama-era immigration program, informally 4
10D 10. Novelist Patchett 3
11D 11. Following bad advice 9
12D 12. Store with iconic blue totes 4
13D 13. Like certain thoughts and pockets 4
14D 18. Advice 5
15D 19. Yours, in French 4
16D 25. "Slavonic Dances" composer 6
17D 26. Omsk's region 7
18D 28. Stole 6
19D 29. Philly b-ball squad 6
20D 30. Superlatively contemptible 6
21D 31. Slithering swimmer 3
22D 32. Google app with the slogan "Search what you see" 4
23D 33. Drug featured in "How to Change Your Mind" 3
24D 34. Online commentary site 4
25D 35. Band that helped popularize "pay-what-you-want" pricing with their album "In Rainbows" 9
26D 38. Home to the Tamiami Trail: Abbr. 3
27D 39. Aphrodite's second letter 3
28D 43. Golden-tan dog of multiple films 5
29D 45. Blue area on a Scottish map 4
30D 46. Think that it's appropriate 6
31D 49. Cold call? 5
32D 50. Got out of a chair 5
33D 51. "Ad ___ per aspera" (motto of Kansas) 5
34D 52. Razor brand 4
35D 53. Guarded area for many athletes 4
36D 55. 18-wheeler 4
37D 56. Modern country that includes most of ancient Mesopotamia 4
38D 58. Award with a "Best Record-Breaking Performance" category 4
39D 60. Sneakily clever 3
40D 61. Letters of indebtedness 3
41D 62. Day before taking the SAT: Abbr. 3

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Elevated"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that of high moral or intellectual value; elevated in nature or style; ; - oliver franks
  • Similar words include: majestic, proud, gallant
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LOFTY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. Greeting among the lei community?"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an acknowledgment that can be used to say hello or goodbye (aloha is hawaiian and ciao is italian)
  • Similar words include: ciao
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALOHA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. Jeter in Cooperstown"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. Not too many"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that quantifier; used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
  • Similar words include: around, more or less, just about
  • Opposite of: no
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SOME

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. Like Picard vis-à-vis Kirk"

6 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (norse mythology) god of light and peace and noted for his beauty and sweet nature; son of odin and frigg and husband of nanna; killed by hoth
  • Similar words include: bald-headed, bald-pated, bald
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BALDER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Drink that may come in a yard"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a general name for beer made with a top fermenting yeast; in some of the united states an ale is (by law) a brew of more than 4% alcohol by volume
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. Jean-Paul Sartre's "___ Chemins de la Liberté""

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a chronic inflammatory collagen disease affecting connective tissue (skin or joints)
  • Similar words include: lupus erythematosus, LE
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. Kind of strategy"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an opening that permits escape or release
  • Similar words include: way out, buy the farm, expiration
  • Opposite of: be born, enter
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EXIT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. Obama-era immigration program, informally"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Novelist Patchett"

3 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. Following bad advice"

9 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that lead someone in the wrong direction or give someone wrong directions
  • Similar words include: misdirect, mislead, ill-conceived
  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MISGUIDED

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. Store with iconic blue totes"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "13. Like certain thoughts and pockets"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the central and most intense or profound part
  • Similar words include: cryptical, deeply, late
  • Opposite of: shallow
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DEEP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "18. Advice"

5 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that signal going into an electronic system
  • Similar words include: input signal, stimulation, comment
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: INPUT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "19. Yours, in French"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "25. "Slavonic Dances" composer"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that czech composer who combined folk elements with traditional forms (1841-1904)
  • Similar words include: Antonin Dvorak
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DVORAK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "26. Omsk's region"

7 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a vast asian region of russia; famous for long cold winters
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SIBERIA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "28. Stole"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that strike with a swiping motion
  • Similar words include: cabbage, pilfer, snarf
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SWIPED

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "29. Philly b-ball squad"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the cardinal number that is the sum of five and one
  • Similar words include: 6, sextuplet, Captain Hicks
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SIXERS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "30. Superlatively contemptible"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that morally reprehensible
  • Similar words include: wretched, worthless, nauseating
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: VILEST

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "31. Slithering swimmer"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the fatty flesh of eel; an elongate fish found in fresh water in europe and america; large eels are usually smoked or pickled
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EEL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "32. Google app with the slogan "Search what you see""

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a transparent optical device used to converge or diverge transmitted light and to form images
  • Similar words include: genus Lens, lens of the eye, lense
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LENS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "33. Drug featured in "How to Change Your Mind""

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

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!

24D: "34. Online commentary site"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a shared on-line journal where people can post diary entries about their personal experiences and hobbies
  • Similar words include: web log
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BLOG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25D: "35. Band that helped popularize "pay-what-you-want" pricing with their album "In Rainbows""

9 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26D: "38. Home to the Tamiami Trail: Abbr."

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "39. Aphrodite's second letter"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the 21st letter of the greek alphabet
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PHI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "43. Golden-tan dog of multiple films"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "45. Blue area on a Scottish map"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a long narrow inlet of the sea in scotland (especially when it is nearly landlocked)
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LOCH

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "46. Think that it's appropriate"

6 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "49. Cold call?"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32D: "50. Got out of a chair"

5 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that be standing; be upright
  • Similar words include: resist, fend, endure
  • Opposite of: sit, yield
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STOOD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "51. "Ad ___ per aspera" (motto of Kansas)"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34D: "52. Razor brand"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35D: "53. Guarded area for many athletes"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the front part of the human leg between the knee and the ankle
  • Similar words include: shinny, struggle, sputter
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SHIN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36D: "55. 18-wheeler"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that one of the two competitions in the next to the last round of an elimination tournament
  • Similar words include: rig, trailer truck, semitrailer
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEMI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37D: "56. Modern country that includes most of ancient Mesopotamia"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a republic in the middle east in western asia; the ancient civilization of mesopotamia was in the area now known as iraq
  • Similar words include: Republic of Iraq, Al-Iraq, Irak
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IRAQ

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38D: "58. Award with a "Best Record-Breaking Performance" category"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that catch sight of
  • Similar words include: spot, descry, spy
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ESPY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

39D: "60. Sneakily clever"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

40D: "61. Letters of indebtedness"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an informal debt instrument; representing `i owe you'
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IOU

Remember this word for future puzzles!

41D: "62. Day before taking the SAT: Abbr."

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the sixth day of the week; the fifth working day
  • Similar words include: Friday
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FRI

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

37 Across Clues
41 Down Clues
78 Total Clues

More NYT Crossword Help

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Last updated: December 03, 2025 at 04:02 AM