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Thursday, May 21, 2026

XWordHint Crossword Answers May 21, 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. Gossiped-about duo 4
2A 5. River whose southernmost source is found in Burundi 4
3A 9. Animal that expresses anger by spitting 5
4A 14. Curbside call 4
5A 15. Egg's outline 4
6A 16. Traditional Vietnamese garment whose name means "long shirt" 5
7A 17. 2000 Eminem single with lines from his "biggest fan" 4
8A 18. St. Benedict, for one 4
9A 19. Central meeting points 5
10A 20. timiL 12
11A 23. 50¢ or $1: Abbr. 3
12A 24. Fish more formally known as a batomorph 3
13A 25. Capital of Portugal, to natives 6
14A 29. Crown of jewels 6
15A 31. Penultimate Greek letter 3
16A 33. One of four seen on Leonardo da Vinci's "Vitruvian Man" 3
17A 34. Goat's cry 3
18A 35. Golfer's suppor- 9
19A 38. Move like a fox 5
20A 40. Get a lode of this! 3
21A 41. John from Britain 5
22A 42. Evade 9
23A 44. "Bad" beginning 3
24A 45. Like news that everyone already knows 3
25A 46. Legal boundaries? 3
26A 47. Kind of cat with a black-and-white coat 6
27A 50. More melted, as a marshmallow 6
28A 53. Tree alongside a ski run 3
29A 54. Bro, e.g. 3
30A 55. P | u | n | c | h | e | s 12
31A 59. Sound of a perfect basketball shot 5
32A 62. "Beware the ___ of a patient man": John Dryden 4
33A 63. Ordered 4
34A 64. Increase, as interest 5
35A 65. German Ms. 4
36A 66. Pupil's surroundings 4
37A 67. Environmentalist Adams 5
38A 68. Site for many stars? 4
39A 69. Sounds of disapproval 4

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. Gossiped-about duo"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a distinct part that can be specified separately in a group of things that could be enumerated on a list
  • Similar words include: point, particular, detail
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ITEM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "5. River whose southernmost source is found in Burundi"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the world's longest river (4150 miles); flows northward through eastern africa into the mediterranean; the nile river valley in egypt was the site of the world's first great civilization
  • Similar words include: Nile River
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NILE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "9. Animal that expresses anger by spitting"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that wild or domesticated south american cud-chewing animal related to camels but smaller and lacking a hump
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LLAMA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "14. Curbside call"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a car driven by a person whose job is to take passengers where they want to go in exchange for money
  • Similar words include: cab, hack, taxicab
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TAXI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "15. Egg's outline"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a closed plane curve resulting from the intersection of a circular cone and a plane cutting completely through it
  • Similar words include: ovoid, elliptical, ovate
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OVAL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "16. Traditional Vietnamese garment whose name means "long shirt""

5 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "17. 2000 Eminem single with lines from his "biggest fan""

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "18. St. Benedict, for one"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a male religious living in a cloister and devoting himself to contemplation and prayer and work
  • Similar words include: Thelonious Sphere Monk, Thelonious Monk, monastic
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MONK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "19. Central meeting points"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a connecting point at which several lines come together
  • Similar words include: client, node, knob
  • Opposite of: antinode
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NODES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "20. timiL"

12 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "23. 50¢ or $1: Abbr."

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "24. Fish more formally known as a batomorph"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a column of light (as from a beacon)
  • Similar words include: shaft of light, irradiation, light beam
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RAY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "25. Capital of Portugal, to natives"

6 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that capital and largest city and economic and cultural center of portugal; a major port in western portugal on tagus river where it broadens and empties into the atlantic
  • Similar words include: Lisbon, capital of Portugal
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LISBOA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "29. Crown of jewels"

6 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an ornamental jeweled headdress signifying sovereignty
  • Similar words include: crown
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DIADEM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15A: "31. Penultimate Greek letter"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a unit of pressure
  • Similar words include: pounds per square inch
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PSI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16A: "33. One of four seen on Leonardo da Vinci's "Vitruvian Man""

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
  • Similar words include: build up, sleeve, gird
  • Opposite of: disarm
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ARM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17A: "34. Goat's cry"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18A: "35. Golfer's suppor-"

9 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19A: "38. Move like a fox"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that lie in wait, lie in ambush, behave in a sneaky and secretive manner
  • Similar words include: malinger, lurk
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SKULK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20A: "40. Get a lode of this!"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

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!

21A: "41. John from Britain"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22A: "42. Evade"

9 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a very short skirt
  • Similar words include: mini
  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MINISKIRT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23A: "44. "Bad" beginning"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24A: "45. Like news that everyone already knows"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that past times (especially in the phrase `in days of old')
  • Similar words include: sometime, former, one-time
  • Opposite of: young, new
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OLD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25A: "46. Legal boundaries?"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that angular distance above the horizon (especially of a celestial object)
  • Similar words include: EL, elevated railway, elevated
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ELS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26A: "47. Kind of cat with a black-and-white coat"

6 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that semiformal evening dress for men
  • Similar words include: dinner jacket, black tie, tux
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TUXEDO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27A: "50. More melted, as a marshmallow"

6 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that soft and sticky
  • Similar words include: icky, gooey
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GOOIER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28A: "53. Tree alongside a ski run"

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that nonresinous wood of a fir tree
  • Similar words include: fir tree, true fir
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FIR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29A: "54. Bro, e.g."

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a person's brother or sister
  • Similar words include: blood relation, blood relative, cognate
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SIB

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30A: "55. P | u | n | c | h | e | s"

12 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31A: "59. Sound of a perfect basketball shot"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a brushing or rustling sound
  • Similar words include: lap, swoosh, posh
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SWISH

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32A: "62. "Beware the ___ of a patient man": John Dryden"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a feeling of intense anger
  • Similar words include: fierceness, madness, hysteria
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FURY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33A: "63. Ordered"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a chadic language spoken in northern nigeria
  • Similar words include: bid, entreat, press
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BADE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34A: "64. Increase, as interest"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that tightly woven fabric with raised cords
  • Similar words include: temper, irritation, offend
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PIQUE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35A: "65. German Ms."

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a german courtesy title or form of address for an adult woman
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FRAU

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36A: "66. Pupil's surroundings"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that plants with sword-shaped leaves and erect stalks bearing bright-colored flowers composed of three petals and three drooping sepals
  • Similar words include: fleur-de-lis, sword lily, iris diaphragm
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IRIS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37A: "67. Environmentalist Adams"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38A: "68. Site for many stars?"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a sharp high-pitched cry (especially by a dog)
  • Similar words include: yelping, yap, yip
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: YELP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

39A: "69. Sounds of disapproval"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that utter `tsk,' `tut,' or `tut-tut,' as in disapproval
  • Similar words include: tut, tut-tut, tsk
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TSKS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No. Clue Letters
1D 1. Short negative review 6
2D 2. Floor covering in a Japanese tearoom 6
3D 3. "Bingo!" 11
4D 4. Stole material 4
5D 5. Southern denial 6
6D 6. Something tickled on a piano 5
7D 7. "Buy ___. They're not making it anymore" (old saying) 4
8D 8. Philanthropic group with a clock face in its logo 4
9D 9. The so-called "Pineapple Isle" 5
10D 10. Goes around and around 5
11D 11. Make sense, with "up" 3
12D 12. "Maggie ___," classic folk song covered by the Beatles 3
13D 13. ChatGPT, Claude, etc. 3
14D 21. Inflicts 6
15D 22. Muse of history 4
16D 26. Lasting damage from a tough experience, metaphorically 11
17D 27. Milkshake flavor 4
18D 28. Gospel shout 4
19D 30. "Fountain of Milk Spreading Itself Uselessly on Three Shoes" painter, 1945 4
20D 31. Contented sounds 5
21D 32. "Changed my mind," in editing notation 4
22D 35. Curl 4
23D 36. Hip-knee connectors 6
24D 37. Source of linseed oil 4
25D 38. It's all a haze 4
26D 39. Drug bust unit 4
27D 43. Model Miranda 4
28D 47. Make neat 6
29D 48. Large-eyed African antelope with a duplicative name 6
30D 49. Fixate 6
31D 51. Give out 5
32D 52. Neighbor of Ricky and Lucy, on 1950s TV 5
33D 53. Far from house-trained 5
34D 56. Dodgy 4
35D 57. 100% 4
36D 58. End piece? 4
37D 59. Belinda's business on "The White Lotus" 3
38D 60. Prevail 3
39D 61. Some test figs. 3

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Short negative review"

6 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. Floor covering in a Japanese tearoom"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. "Bingo!""

11 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. Stole material"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the expensive fur of a mink
  • Similar words include: mink coat
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MINK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. Southern denial"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Something tickled on a piano"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a hard smooth ivory colored dentine that makes up most of the tusks of elephants and walruses
  • Similar words include: pearl, tusk, bone
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IVORY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. "Buy ___. They're not making it anymore" (old saying)"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the land on which real estate is located
  • Similar words include: realm, down, commonwealth
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LAND

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. Philanthropic group with a clock face in its logo"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that large northern deer with enormous flattened antlers in the male; called `elk' in europe and `moose' in north america
  • Similar words include: Cervus elaphus, Alces alces, Cervus elaphus canadensis
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ELKS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. The so-called "Pineapple Isle""

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an island of central hawaii; a pineapple-growing area
  • Similar words include: Lanai Island
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LANAI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Goes around and around"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that fastener consisting of a metal ring for lining a small hole to permit the attachment of cords or lines
  • Similar words include: iteration, intertwine, loop topology
  • Opposite of: open circuit, uncoil
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LOOPS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. Make sense, with "up""

3 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a condition (mostly in boys) characterized by behavioral and learning disorders
  • Similar words include: minimal brain damage, append, sum
  • Opposite of: subtract, take away
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ADD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. "Maggie ___," classic folk song covered by the Beatles"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "13. ChatGPT, Claude, etc."

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an agency of the united states army responsible for providing timely and relevant and accurate and synchronized intelligence to tactical and operational and strategic level commanders
  • Similar words include: Army Intelligence, three-toed sloth, artificial insemination
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AIS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "21. Inflicts"

6 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that cause to happen or to occur as a consequence
  • Similar words include: wreak, work, play
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: WREAKS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "22. Muse of history"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (greek mythology) the muse of history
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CLIO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "26. Lasting damage from a tough experience, metaphorically"

11 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "27. Milkshake flavor"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that chocolate cookie with white cream filling
  • Similar words include: oreo cookie
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OREO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "28. Gospel shout"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a primeval egyptian personification of air and breath; worshipped especially at thebes
  • Similar words include: Amun, Amon
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AMEN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "30. "Fountain of Milk Spreading Itself Uselessly on Three Shoes" painter, 1945"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that surrealist spanish painter (1904-1989)
  • Similar words include: Salvador Dali
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DALI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "31. Contented sounds"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a low vibrating sound typical of a contented cat
  • Similar words include: birr, whir, whiz
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PURRS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "32. "Changed my mind," in editing notation"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that printing: cancel, as of a correction or deletion
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STET

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "35. Curl"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a structure consisting of something wound in a continuous series of loops
  • Similar words include: scroll, curlicue, gyre
  • Opposite of: uncoil
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: COIL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "36. Hip-knee connectors"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the longest and thickest bone of the human skeleton; extends from the pelvis to the knee
  • Similar words include: thighbone, femoris, femur
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FEMURS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24D: "37. Source of linseed oil"

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!

25D: "38. It's all a haze"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

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!

26D: "39. Drug bust unit"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that one thousand grams; the basic unit of mass adopted under the systeme international d'unites
  • Similar words include: kg, kilogram
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: KILO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "43. Model Miranda"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "47. Make neat"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "48. Large-eyed African antelope with a duplicative name"

6 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "49. Fixate"

6 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that haunt like a ghost; pursue
  • Similar words include: haunt, ghost
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OBSESS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "51. Give out"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an important question that is in dispute and must be settled
  • Similar words include: topic, egress, subject
  • Opposite of: recall
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ISSUE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32D: "52. Neighbor of Ricky and Lucy, on 1950s TV"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "53. Far from house-trained"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that wild and menacing
  • Similar words include: ferine, savage
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FERAL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34D: "56. Dodgy"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that subject to accident or chance or change
  • Similar words include: fluky, flukey, chancy
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IFFY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35D: "57. 100%"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that free of extraneous elements of any kind
  • Similar words include: everlasting, thoroughgoing, sodding
  • Opposite of: unsaturated, impure
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PURE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36D: "58. End piece?"

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!

37D: "59. Belinda's business on "The White Lotus""

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a health resort near a spring or at the seaside
  • Similar words include: health spa, watering hole, resort hotel
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SPA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38D: "60. Prevail"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a victory (as in a race or other competition)
  • Similar words include: bring home the bacon, acquire, advance
  • Opposite of: fall back, losings
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: WIN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

39D: "61. Some test figs."

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a measure of a person's intelligence as indicated by an intelligence test; the ratio of a person's mental age to their chronological age (multiplied by 100)
  • Similar words include: IQ, intelligence quotient, I.Q.
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IQS

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

39 Across Clues
39 Down Clues
78 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: May 21, 2026 at 07:05 AM

Saturday, May 16, 2026

XWordHint Crossword Answers May 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. Modern "go-to's" 4
2A 5. Curtain for silhouetting on stage 5
3A 10. Bird on the South Carolina state quarter 4
4A 14. Capote or chesterfield 4
5A 15. Emulates E.T., in a way 10
6A 17. Roman goddess who drives a two-horse chariot 4
7A 18. Precious self-reference 10
8A 19. Name shared by the singer of the #1 hit "Rock Me Gently" (1974) and the first Korean American elected to the U.S. Senate (2024) 7
9A 21. Double-___ cassowary (bird of Indonesia and Australia) 7
10A 22. Matches with forensics 14
11A 24. Occasions to relax and recharge 6
12A 25. Obama's third secretary of defense (2013-15) 5
13A 26. Gasoline brand that offered the Torch Club credit card 5
14A 27. Aid in making salsa 5
15A 28. Operculum, e.g. 3
16A 31. Capital of Greenland 4
17A 32. They're hard to pull off 5
18A 33. Spa service, in brief 4
19A 34. Up to snuff, facetiously 3
20A 35. Trickles 5
21A 36. Cup holders 5
22A 37. Many a Porsche 911 5
23A 38. Practical types who are often perfectionists, it's said 6
24A 39. Don't start with me! 14
25A 43. Difficult effort 7
26A 44. Cut out 7
27A 46. Setting for Seurat's "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte" 10
28A 48. Cold-smoked lox 4
29A 49. 7 up, perhaps 10
30A 50. Gulf of ___, waters that abut Djibouti and Somaliland 4
31A 51. Vanilla units 4
32A 52. Spouts 5
33A 53. Romp 4

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. Modern "go-to's""

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the address of a web page on the world wide web
  • Similar words include: universal resource locator, URL, uniform resource locator
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: URLS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "5. Curtain for silhouetting on stage"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a firm open-weave fabric used for a curtain in the theater
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SCRIM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "10. Bird on the South Carolina state quarter"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that english architect who designed more than fifty london churches (1632-1723)
  • Similar words include: Sir Christopher Wren, jenny wren
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: WREN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "14. Capote or chesterfield"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an outer garment that has sleeves and covers the body from shoulder down; worn outdoors
  • Similar words include: surface, coating, pelage
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: COAT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "15. Emulates E.T., in a way"

10 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PHONESHOME

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "17. Roman goddess who drives a two-horse chariot"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (roman mythology) the goddess of the moon; counterpart of greek selene
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LUNA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "18. Precious self-reference"

10 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LITTLEOLME

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "19. Name shared by the singer of the #1 hit "Rock Me Gently" (1974) and the first Korean American elected to the U.S. Senate (2024)"

7 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "21. Double-___ cassowary (bird of Indonesia and Australia)"

7 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that build of or with wattle
  • Similar words include: wattle
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: WATTLED

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "22. Matches with forensics"

14 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "24. Occasions to relax and recharge"

6 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "25. Obama's third secretary of defense (2013-15)"

5 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "26. Gasoline brand that offered the Torch Club credit card"

5 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "27. Aid in making salsa"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a mechanical device used for dicing food
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DICER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15A: "28. Operculum, e.g."

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that either of two folds of skin that can be moved to cover or open the eye
  • Similar words include: palpebra, hat, eyelid
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LID

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16A: "31. Capital of Greenland"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17A: "32. They're hard to pull off"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18A: "33. Spa service, in brief"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19A: "34. Up to snuff, facetiously"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20A: "35. Trickles"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that pass gradually or leak through or as if through small openings
  • Similar words include: ooze, seep
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEEPS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21A: "36. Cup holders"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an ornamental metal cup-shaped holder for a hot coffee cup
  • Similar words include: zarf
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ZARFS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22A: "37. Many a Porsche 911"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a car with two doors and front seats and a luggage compartment
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: COUPE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23A: "38. Practical types who are often perfectionists, it's said"

6 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in virgo
  • Similar words include: Virgo, Virgin, Virgo the Virgin
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: VIRGOS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24A: "39. Don't start with me!"

14 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25A: "43. Difficult effort"

7 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that concluding state of pregnancy; from the onset of contractions to the birth of a child
  • Similar words include: exertion, labour, toil
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TRAVAIL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26A: "44. Cut out"

7 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that remove by erasing or crossing out or as if by drawing a line
  • Similar words include: expunge, excise, strike
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EXCISED

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27A: "46. Setting for Seurat's "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte""

10 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RIVERSEINE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28A: "48. Cold-smoked lox"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a star that ejects some of its material in the form of a cloud and become more luminous in the process
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NOVA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29A: "49. 7 up, perhaps"

10 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EVENSTEVEN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30A: "50. Gulf of ___, waters that abut Djibouti and Somaliland"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an important port of yemen; located on the gulf of aden; its strategic location has made it a major trading center of southern arabia since ancient times
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ADEN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31A: "51. Vanilla units"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the vessel that contains the seeds of a plant (not the seeds themselves)
  • Similar words include: cod, pod, seedpod
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PODS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32A: "52. Spouts"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that expel or eject (saliva or phlegm or sputum) from the mouth
  • Similar words include: disgorge, cat, eruct
  • Opposite of: keep down
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SPEWS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33A: "53. Romp"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that north american songbirds having a yellow breast
  • Similar words include: frisk, escapade, gambol
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LARK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No. Clue Letters
1D 1. Victor over Washington on 11/12/1955 in "Back to the Future, Pt. II" — and in real life 4
2D 2. Cattle call 9
3D 3. Went wide or long, as a tennis ball 9
4D 4. "No closer!" 8
5D 5. Takes off 6
6D 6. Wind pipe? 5
7D 7. Blight 3
8D 8. Getting a break on Broadway? 9
9D 9. Medleys 8
10D 10. Marriott property with the slogan "Whatever Whenever" 6
11D 11. Triumphs smoothly 5
12D 12. ___ Brickowski ("The Lego Movie" protagonist) 5
13D 13. "What this country ___ ..." 5
14D 16. Certain volleyballer 6
15D 20. Deck 4
16D 23. Once-popular terra-cotta figurine 7
17D 24. Trigger hair 4
18D 27. State in which Gulliver is discovered by the Lilliputians 9
19D 28. Combo meal upgrade 9
20D 29. Going back ages 9
21D 30. ___ track 4
22D 32. Folks who enjoy a well-aged beef? 8
23D 33. Borderline 8
24D 35. Echolocation systems 6
25D 36. Element between copper and gallium on the periodic table 4
26D 37. Spelling combinations? 6
27D 38. They're concerned with feeding kits 6
28D 39. Pharyngeal woe 5
29D 40. Cynthia ___, Tony winner for "The Color Purple" 5
30D 41. Buckled 5
31D 42. Extend, in a way 5
32D 45. Chilly and damp 4
33D 47. "___ noticed" 3

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Victor over Washington on 11/12/1955 in "Back to the Future, Pt. II" — and in real life"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. Cattle call"

9 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. Went wide or long, as a tennis ball"

9 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. "No closer!""

8 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. Takes off"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that extending the legs at right angles to the trunk (one in front and the other in back)
  • Similar words include: Split, tear, split up
  • Opposite of: unite
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SPLITS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Wind pipe?"

5 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a percussion instrument consisting of a set of tuned bells that are struck with a hammer; used as an orchestral instrument
  • Similar words include: gong, bell
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CHIME

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. Blight"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a state of decay usually accompanied by an offensive odor
  • Similar words include: putrefaction, rotting, bunkum
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ROT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. Getting a break on Broadway?"

9 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. Medleys"

8 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a motley assortment of things
  • Similar words include: hodgepodge, ragbag, melange
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MELANGES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Marriott property with the slogan "Whatever Whenever""

6 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. Triumphs smoothly"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that rotary motion of an object around its own axis
  • Similar words include: revolve, bun, rolling wave
  • Opposite of: unwind
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ROLLS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. ___ Brickowski ("The Lego Movie" protagonist)"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

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: ant, pismire
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EMMET

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "13. "What this country ___ ...""

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a condition requiring relief
  • Similar words include: penury, involve, want
  • Opposite of: obviate
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NEEDS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "16. Certain volleyballer"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that one who sets written material into type
  • Similar words include: typesetter, typographer, compositor
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SETTER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "20. Deck"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a blow that renders the opponent unconscious
  • Similar words include: knockout, knock out, KO
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: KAYO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "23. Once-popular terra-cotta figurine"

7 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "24. Trigger hair"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that long coarse hair growing from the crest of the animal's neck
  • Similar words include: head of hair
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MANE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "27. State in which Gulliver is discovered by the Lilliputians"

9 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "28. Combo meal upgrade"

9 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "29. Going back ages"

9 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "30. ___ track"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that god of the underworld; counterpart of greek pluto
  • Similar words include: affront, Dis, Orcus
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DISS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "32. Folks who enjoy a well-aged beef?"

8 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "33. Borderline"

8 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that at or constituting a border or edge
  • Similar words include: bare, borderline, fringy
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MARGINAL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24D: "35. Echolocation systems"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a measuring instrument that sends out an acoustic pulse in water and measures distances in terms of the time for the echo of the pulse to return
  • Similar words include: echo sounder, asdic, sonar
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SONARS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25D: "36. Element between copper and gallium on the periodic table"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a bluish-white lustrous metallic element; brittle at ordinary temperatures but malleable when heated; used in a wide variety of alloys and in galvanizing iron; it occurs naturally as zinc sulphide in zinc blende
  • Similar words include: Zn, atomic number 30
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ZINC

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26D: "37. Spelling combinations?"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an assembly of witches; usually 13 witches
  • Similar words include: coven
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: COVENS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "38. They're concerned with feeding kits"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a malicious woman with a fierce temper
  • Similar words include: hellcat, vixen, harpy
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: VIXENS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "39. Pharyngeal woe"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that spherical gram-positive bacteria occurring in pairs or chains; cause e.g. scarlet fever and tonsillitis
  • Similar words include: streptococcal, streptococcus, streptococcic
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STREP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "40. Cynthia ___, Tony winner for "The Color Purple""

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "41. Buckled"

5 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that hollow out as if making a cave or opening
  • Similar words include: spelunk, undermine, cave
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CAVED

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "42. Extend, in a way"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

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!

32D: "45. Chilly and damp"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that unpleasantly cool and humid
  • Similar words include: clammy
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DANK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "47. "___ noticed""

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

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

33 Across Clues
33 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: May 16, 2026 at 06:11 AM