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Tuesday, July 21, 2026

XWordHint Crossword Answers July 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: Tricky

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. "Chocolate" pets 4
2A 5. Genome component 3
3A 8. Breaks in winter weather 5
4A 13. ___ vera 4
5A 14. Gave a hand 5
6A 16. Greet someone informally 5
7A 17. "Easy-peasy!" 16
8A 20. Attire for an infant 6
9A 21. Awe-inspiring solar phenomenon 6
10A 22. Severity 5
11A 23. Urban environmental hazard 4
12A 24. Pen tips 4
13A 28. Clean with a rough spray 9
14A 31. Blood ___ 5
15A 32. Acorn producer 3
16A 33. The 12 angry men in "12 Angry Men," e.g. 6
17A 34. Finish flamboyantly ... like 17-, 28-, 43- and 56-Across? 14
18A 40. 2000-09, with "the" 6
19A 41. ___ and haw 3
20A 42. Jumbo 5
21A 43. Colorful taffy candy brand 9
22A 49. Laptop brand 4
23A 50. Tons 4
24A 51. Not having quite enough money 5
25A 53. "Really?" 6
26A 55. Backside 6
27A 56. 2023 double-platinum Chappell Roan record 16
28A 60. Toyota hybrid 5
29A 61. Plumbing fixture found under the sink 5
30A 62. Things assayers assay 4
31A 63. Reactions akin to "OMG!" 5
32A 64. Pigs' digs 3
33A 65. Fill up 4

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. "Chocolate" pets"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a workplace for the conduct of scientific research
  • Similar words include: research laboratory, laboratory, science laboratory
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LABS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "5. Genome component"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (biochemistry) a long linear polymer found in the nucleus of a cell and formed from nucleotides and shaped like a double helix; associated with the transmission of genetic information
  • Similar words include: desoxyribonucleic acid, deoxyribonucleic acid
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DNA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "8. Breaks in winter weather"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the process whereby heat changes something from a solid to a liquid
  • Similar words include: warming, melt, dissolve
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: THAWS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "13. ___ vera"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "14. Gave a hand"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that act on verbally or in some form of artistic expression
  • Similar words include: portion out, share, deal
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DEALT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "16. Greet someone informally"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "17. "Easy-peasy!""

16 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ________________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BADABINGBADABOOM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "20. Attire for an infant"

6 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "21. Awe-inspiring solar phenomenon"

6 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the first light of day
  • Similar words include: morning, dawning, cockcrow
  • Opposite of: sunset
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AURORA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "22. Severity"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that something hard to endure
  • Similar words include: hardness, asperity, rigorousness
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RIGOR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "23. Urban environmental hazard"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "24. Pen tips"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the writing point of a pen
  • Similar words include: neb, pen nib, bill
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NIBS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "28. Clean with a rough spray"

9 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a blast of wind laden with sand
  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SANDBLAST

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "31. Blood ___"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an amber, watery fluid, rich in proteins, that separates out when blood coagulates
  • Similar words include: blood serum
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SERUM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15A: "32. Acorn producer"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the hard durable wood of any oak; used especially for furniture and flooring
  • Similar words include: oak tree
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OAK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16A: "33. The 12 angry men in "12 Angry Men," e.g."

6 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that someone who serves (or waits to be called to serve) on a jury
  • Similar words include: juryman, jurywoman, juror
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: JURORS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17A: "34. Finish flamboyantly ... like 17-, 28-, 43- and 56-Across?"

14 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18A: "40. 2000-09, with "the""

6 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a quantity of no importance
  • Similar words include: cipher, goose egg, nix
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AUGHTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19A: "41. ___ and haw"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the edge of a piece of cloth; especially the finished edge that has been doubled under and stitched down
  • Similar words include: ahem
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HEM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20A: "42. Jumbo"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a garment size for a large person
  • Similar words include: with child, vauntingly, declamatory
  • Opposite of: little, small
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LARGE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21A: "43. Colorful taffy candy brand"

9 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22A: "49. Laptop brand"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that type genus of the aceraceae; trees or shrubs having winged fruit
  • Similar words include: genus Acer
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ACER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23A: "50. Tons"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24A: "51. Not having quite enough money"

5 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the location on a baseball field where the shortstop is stationed
  • Similar words include: forgetful, abruptly, poor
  • Opposite of: tall, long
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SHORT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25A: "53. "Really?""

6 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26A: "55. Backside"

6 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27A: "56. 2023 double-platinum Chappell Roan record"

16 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Pattern: ________________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: REDWINESUPERNOVA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28A: "60. Toyota hybrid"

5 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29A: "61. Plumbing fixture found under the sink"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30A: "62. Things assayers assay"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a mineral that contains metal that is valuable enough to be mined
  • Similar words include: ore
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ORES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31A: "63. Reactions akin to "OMG!""

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a short labored intake of breath with the mouth open
  • Similar words include: puff, gasp, pant
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GASPS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32A: "64. Pigs' digs"

3 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33A: "65. Fill up"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that fill to satisfaction
  • Similar words include: satiate, replete, fill
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SATE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No. Clue Letters
1D 1. Hard work 5
2D 2. Morissette with the 1996 hit "Ironic" 6
3D 3. Corner store 6
4D 4. Fall, e.g. 6
5D 5. Reading room 3
6D 6. Japanese city that's home to the Chinese Sofukuji Temple 8
7D 7. Subjects of some Billboard charts 6
8D 8. Old Russian ruler 4
9D 9. Cuban dance style 8
10D 10. Actress Edebiri 3
11D 11. "Which person are you referring to?" 3
12D 12. ___ card 3
13D 14. A standard one has 21 pips 3
14D 15. Fortune-telling deck 5
15D 18. Aviary inhabitant 4
16D 19. Hound 3
17D 25. It's "pumped" by bodybuilders 4
18D 26. Town 4
19D 27. Texting format, in brief 3
20D 29. Many internet spammers 4
21D 30. Rule 3
22D 31. Teacher for a day 3
23D 33. Part of a doorframe 4
24D 34. Tortilla chip dip, informally 4
25D 35. Shrek, e.g. 4
26D 36. "Wow, real mature" 8
27D 37. Sport-___ 3
28D 38. "Ow! Watch it!" 8
29D 39. "___/she" (chocolate bar's pronouns in a corny joke) 3
30D 40. In the manner of 3
31D 43. Power-saving computer mode 5
32D 44. They're often made at weddings 6
33D 45. One may accept the terms and conditions 4
34D 46. Heavyweight beasts, familiarly 6
35D 47. Mexican state bordering Chihuahua 6
36D 48. Hot pot holder 6
37D 50. Novelist Rand 3
38D 52. Backcomb 5
39D 54. Cat's warning 4
40D 55. Old-school term for "cool" 3
41D 56. World of Warcraft, e.g., in brief 3
42D 57. Long period 3
43D 58. Put down 3
44D 59. Salary 3

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Hard work"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a social class comprising those who do manual labor or work for wages
  • Similar words include: fag, toil, DoL
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LABOR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. Morissette with the 1996 hit "Ironic""

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. Corner store"

6 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a small hispanic shop selling wine and groceries
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BODEGA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. Fall, e.g."

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a period of the year marked by special events or activities in some field
  • Similar words include: flavor, harden, flavour
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEASON

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. Reading room"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Japanese city that's home to the Chinese Sofukuji Temple"

8 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a city in southern japan on kyushu; a leading port and shipbuilding center; on august 9, 1945 nagasaki became the second populated area to receive an atomic bomb
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NAGASAKI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. Subjects of some Billboard charts"

6 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that one or more recordings issued together; originally released on 12-inch phonograph records (usually with attractive record covers) and later on cassette audiotape and compact disc
  • Similar words include: album, record album
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALBUMS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. Old Russian ruler"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a male monarch or emperor (especially of russia prior to 1917)
  • Similar words include: tzar, czar
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TSAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. Cuban dance style"

8 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that music composed in duple time for dancing the habanera
  • Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HABANERA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Actress Edebiri"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. "Which person are you referring to?""

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a united nations agency to coordinate international health activities and to help governments improve health services
  • Similar words include: World Health Organization
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: WHO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. ___ card"

3 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "14. A standard one has 21 pips"

3 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a small cube with 1 to 6 spots on the six faces; used in gambling to generate random numbers
  • Similar words include: give-up the ghost, drop dead, buy the farm
  • Opposite of: be born
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DIE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "15. Fortune-telling deck"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that any of a set of (usually 72) cards that include 22 cards representing virtues and vices and death and fortune etc.; used by fortunetellers
  • Similar words include: tarot card
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TAROT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "18. Aviary inhabitant"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings
  • Similar words include: birdwatch, hiss, snort
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BIRD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "19. Hound"

3 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a member of the genus canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds
  • Similar words include: go after, cad, chase after
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DOG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "25. It's "pumped" by bodybuilders"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a heavy ductile magnetic metallic element; is silver-white in pure form but readily rusts; used in construction and tools and armament; plays a role in the transport of oxygen by the blood
  • Similar words include: atomic number 26, iron out, Fe
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IRON

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "26. Town"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that colloquial american term for a town
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BURG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "27. Texting format, in brief"

3 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a grey lustrous metallic element of the rare earth group; is used in special alloys; occurs in monazite and bastnasite
  • Similar words include: Sm, MS, Master of Science
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SMS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "29. Many internet spammers"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that botfly larva; typically develops inside the body of a horse or sheep or human
  • Similar words include: bot
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BOTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "30. Rule"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the collection of rules imposed by authority
  • Similar words include: legal philosophy, police, natural law
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LAW

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "31. Teacher for a day"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a large sandwich made of a long crusty roll split lengthwise and filled with meats and cheese (and tomato and onion and lettuce and condiments); different names are used in different sections of the united states
  • Similar words include: substitute, Cuban sandwich, submarine
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SUB

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "33. Part of a doorframe"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that upright consisting of a vertical side member of a door or window frame
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: JAMB

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24D: "34. Tortilla chip dip, informally"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25D: "35. Shrek, e.g."

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a cruel wicked and inhuman person
  • Similar words include: monster, fiend, demon
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OGRE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26D: "36. "Wow, real mature""

8 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "37. Sport-___"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a member of the shoshonean people of utah and colorado and new mexico
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: UTE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "38. "Ow! Watch it!""

8 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "39. "___/she" (chocolate bar's pronouns in a corny joke)"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "40. In the manner of"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "43. Power-saving computer mode"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
  • Similar words include: eternal sleep, nap, kip
  • Opposite of: wake
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SLEEP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32D: "44. They're often made at weddings"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that slices of bread that have been toasted
  • Similar words include: toast, drink, salute
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TOASTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "45. One may accept the terms and conditions"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a person who makes use of a thing; someone who uses or employs something
  • Similar words include: substance abuser, drug user, exploiter
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: USER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34D: "46. Heavyweight beasts, familiarly"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that massive powerful herbivorous odd-toed ungulate of southeast asia and africa having very thick skin and one or two horns on the snout
  • Similar words include: rhino, rhinoceros
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RHINOS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35D: "47. Mexican state bordering Chihuahua"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that ground snakes
  • Similar words include: genus Sonora
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SONORA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36D: "48. Hot pot holder"

6 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a three-legged metal stand for supporting a cooking vessel in a hearth
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TRIVET

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37D: "50. Novelist Rand"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38D: "52. Backcomb"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that someone given to teasing (as by mocking or stirring curiosity)
  • Similar words include: minx, twit, ribbing
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TEASE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

39D: "54. Cat's warning"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a fricative sound (especially as an expression of disapproval)
  • Similar words include: snort, whoosh, bird
  • Opposite of: applaud
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HISS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

40D: "55. Old-school term for "cool""

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that informed about the latest trends
  • Similar words include: hip, hip to
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HEP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

41D: "56. World of Warcraft, e.g., in brief"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

42D: "57. Long period"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a period marked by distinctive character or reckoned from a fixed point or event
  • Similar words include: geological era, earned run average, epoch
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ERA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

43D: "58. Put down"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

44D: "59. Salary"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that something that remunerates
  • Similar words include: make up, earnings, yield
  • Opposite of: default
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PAY

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
44 Down Clues
77 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: July 21, 2026 at 06:09 AM

Tuesday, April 28, 2026

XWordHint Crossword Answers April 28, 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: Tricky

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. Sore 4
2A 5. Nail polish brand 3
3A 8. Some cantina fare 5
4A 13. "Hip hip hooray!," e.g. 5
5A 15. Sink-or-swim competition? 9
6A 17. Handles a few unresolved issues 15
7A 19. Like tears 6
8A 20. Site to build on 3
9A 21. Gossip, slangily 3
10A 22. Build on 5
11A 24. Welcome at the door, say 5
12A 27. Linguist's concern 7
13A 30. Serious in manner 5
14A 31. Bagel topping 3
15A 32. Not perfect, but acceptable 11
16A 36. Bickering 4
17A 38. Blade that's pulled 3
18A 39. Casual farewell often used outside its language of origin 4
19A 40. Station set up in a kitchen 11
20A 45. Bit of intel 3
21A 46. Coins of Cuba 5
22A 47. Ingredients in some tropical smoothies 7
23A 49. Foreign Service assignments 5
24A 50. Madrid mister 5
25A 51. Church seat 3
26A 52. Promise to pay 3
27A 54. Journalist, informally 6
28A 58. Like children, ideally, in an old adage ... or a hint to a four-letter word hidden in 17-, 32- and 40-Across 15
29A 62. Rigorous 9
30A 63. Astronomer Carl 5
31A 64. Irritable 5
32A 65. [As written] 3
33A 66. Civil rights activist Parks 4

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. Sore"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that causing a dull and steady pain
  • Similar words include: aching
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ACHY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "5. Nail polish brand"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "8. Some cantina fare"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (ethnic slur) offensive term for a person of mexican descent
  • Similar words include: greaser, wetback, taco
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TACOS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "13. "Hip hip hooray!," e.g."

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a cry or shout of approval
  • Similar words include: sunshine, barrack, jolly up
  • Opposite of: complain, dishearten
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CHEER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "15. Sink-or-swim competition?"

9 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "17. Handles a few unresolved issues"

15 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "19. Like tears"

6 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an isotonic solution of sodium chloride and distilled water
  • Similar words include: saline solution
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SALINE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "20. Site to build on"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (often followed by `of') a large number or amount or extent
  • Similar words include: quite a little, sight, band
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LOT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "21. Gossip, slangily"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a beverage made by steeping tea leaves in water
  • Similar words include: Camellia sinensis, tea leaf, teatime
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TEA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "22. Build on"

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "24. Welcome at the door, say"

5 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "27. Linguist's concern"

7 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the branch of linguistics that deals with syntax and morphology (and sometimes also deals with semantics)
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GRAMMAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "30. Serious in manner"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the rear part of a ship
  • Similar words include: posterior, unforgiving, exacting
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STERN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "31. Bagel topping"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a bluish translucent magnetic liquid obtained by compressing gaseous oxygen and then cooling it below its boiling point; used as an oxidizer in rocket propellants
  • Similar words include: liquid oxygen
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LOX

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15A: "32. Not perfect, but acceptable"

11 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16A: "36. Bickering"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17A: "38. Blade that's pulled"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an implement used to propel or steer a boat
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18A: "39. Casual farewell often used outside its language of origin"

4 letters Category: Common Word

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19A: "40. Station set up in a kitchen"

11 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20A: "45. Bit of intel"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the extreme end of something; especially something pointed
  • Similar words include: steer, bakshish, summit
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TIP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21A: "46. Coins of Cuba"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the basic unit of money in uruguay; equal to 100 centesimos
  • Similar words include: Uruguayan peso, Dominican peso, Mexican peso
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PESOS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22A: "47. Ingredients in some tropical smoothies"

7 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that tropical american shrub or small tree having huge deeply palmately cleft leaves and large oblong yellow fruit
  • Similar words include: papaya, Carica papaya, papaya tree
  • Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PAPAYAS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23A: "49. Foreign Service assignments"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the position where someone (as a guard or sentry) stands or is assigned to stand
  • Similar words include: station, military post, billet
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: POSTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24A: "50. Madrid mister"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a spanish title or form of address for a man; similar to the english `mr' or `sir'
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SENOR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25A: "51. Church seat"

3 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that long bench with backs; used in church by the congregation
  • Similar words include: church bench
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PEW

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26A: "52. Promise to pay"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

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!

27A: "54. Journalist, informally"

6 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that french playwright (1791-1861)
  • Similar words include: penman, scrivener, scriber
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SCRIBE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28A: "58. Like children, ideally, in an old adage ... or a hint to a four-letter word hidden in 17-, 32- and 40-Across"

15 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29A: "62. Rigorous"

9 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that demanding strict attention to rules and procedures
  • Similar words include: tight, rigorous
  • Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STRINGENT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30A: "63. Astronomer Carl"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31A: "64. Irritable"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that easily irritated or annoyed
  • Similar words include: cranky, nettlesome, irritable
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TESTY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32A: "65. [As written]"

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that urge to attack someone
  • Similar words include: set
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SIC

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33A: "66. Civil rights activist Parks"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that large genus of erect or climbing prickly shrubs including roses
  • Similar words include: genus Rosa
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ROSA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No. Clue Letters
1D 1. Play parts 4
2D 2. Kind of seed or pet 4
3D 3. Sometimes-raised part of a shoe 4
4D 4. Emphatic confirmation 6
5D 5. Nocturnal hooter 3
6D 6. Painter Veronese 5
7D 7. Langston Hughes poem 4
8D 8. Due + 1 3
9D 9. Mimic 3
10D 10. Script supervisor's concern 10
11D 11. ___ days 5
12D 12. Slugger Sammy 4
13D 14. "Raising Hell" rap trio 6
14D 16. Council ___ (British equivalent of a housing project) 6
15D 18. Part of a piano or loom 5
16D 23. Boots on the ground 6
17D 25. Rep.'s counterpart 3
18D 26. Ray of McDonald's 4
19D 27. Genre for Ziggy Stardust, informally 4
20D 28. Naan alternative 4
21D 29. Coalition that opposed the Allies in W.W. II 10
22D 30. Mexican wrap 6
23D 33. Kid-lit girl with a blueberry pail 3
24D 34. Greek goddess of the earth 4
25D 35. Brewing need 4
26D 37. They help you drive farther 4
27D 41. Ballpark fig. 3
28D 42. Snooping (around) 6
29D 43. "___ thou not minister to a mind diseased ...?": Macbeth 5
30D 44. Significant periods 6
31D 48. Overdue debt 6
32D 49. Golfer Calvin or QB Rodney 5
33D 50. Islam's largest branch 5
34D 51. Alternative to a tap on the shoulder 4
35D 53. Works of praise 4
36D 55. "Othello" villain 4
37D 56. Some supports 4
38D 57. ___ Lewis, the "Grande Dame of Southern Cooking" 4
39D 59. Minor complaint 3
40D 60. Unspecified amount 3
41D 61. Not Rx 3

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Play parts"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a new testament book describing the development of the early church from christ's ascension to paul's sojourn at rome
  • Similar words include: play, pretend, deed
  • Opposite of: refrain
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ACTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. Kind of seed or pet"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. Sometimes-raised part of a shoe"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the bottom of a shoe or boot; the back part of a shoe or boot that touches the ground and provides elevation
  • Similar words include: bounder, reheel, hound
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HEEL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. Emphatic confirmation"

6 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. Nocturnal hooter"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that nocturnal bird of prey with hawk-like beak and claws and large head with front-facing eyes
  • Similar words include: bird of night, bird of Minerva, hooter
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OWL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Painter Veronese"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. Langston Hughes poem"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. Due + 1"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. Mimic"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that any of various primates with short tails or no tail at all
  • Similar words include: copycat, imitator, caricature
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: APE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Script supervisor's concern"

10 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that uninterrupted connection or union
  • Similar words include: persistence
  • Opposite of: discontinuity
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CONTINUITY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. ___ days"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. Slugger Sammy"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "14. "Raising Hell" rap trio"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "16. Council ___ (British equivalent of a housing project)"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that everything you own; all of your assets (whether real property or personal property) and liabilities
  • Similar words include: land, the three estates, demesne
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ESTATE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "18. Part of a piano or loom"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a sustained bass note
  • Similar words include: foot lever, cycle, wheel
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PEDAL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "23. Boots on the ground"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that soldiers collectively
  • Similar words include: scout troop, scout group, military personnel
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TROOPS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "25. Rep.'s counterpart"

3 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a fractional monetary unit of japan and indonesia and cambodia; equal to one hundredth of a yen or rupiah or riel
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SEN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "26. Ray of McDonald's"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "27. Genre for Ziggy Stardust, informally"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "28. Naan alternative"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "29. Coalition that opposed the Allies in W.W. II"

10 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "30. Mexican wrap"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a long brightly colored shawl; worn mainly by mexican men
  • Similar words include: sarape
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SERAPE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "33. Kid-lit girl with a blueberry pail"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24D: "34. Greek goddess of the earth"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (greek mythology) goddess of the earth and mother of cronus and the titans in ancient mythology
  • Similar words include: Gaea, Ge
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GAIA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25D: "35. Brewing need"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that twining perennials having cordate leaves and flowers arranged in conelike spikes; the dried flowers of this plant are used in brewing to add the characteristic bitter taste to beer
  • Similar words include: skip, hop-skip, hop
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: HOPS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26D: "37. They help you drive farther"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the starting place for each hole on a golf course
  • Similar words include: golf tee, football tee, tee up
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TEES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "41. Ballpark fig."

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that standard time in the 5th time zone west of greenwich, reckoned at the 75th meridian; used in the eastern united states
  • Similar words include: Eastern Time, Eastern Standard Time
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EST

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "42. Snooping (around)"

6 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that search or inquire in a meddlesome way
  • Similar words include: horn in, intrude, nuzzle
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NOSING

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "43. "___ thou not minister to a mind diseased ...?": Macbeth"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "44. Significant periods"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a period marked by distinctive character or reckoned from a fixed point or event
  • Similar words include: date of reference, era, epoch
  • Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EPOCHS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "48. Overdue debt"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32D: "49. Golfer Calvin or QB Rodney"

5 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "50. Islam's largest branch"

5 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a member of the branch of islam that accepts the first four caliphs as rightful successors to muhammad
  • Similar words include: Sunnite, Sunni Muslim, Sunni Islam
  • Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SUNNI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34D: "51. Alternative to a tap on the shoulder"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35D: "53. Works of praise"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a lyric poem with complex stanza forms
  • Similar words include: ode
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ODES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36D: "55. "Othello" villain"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that the villain in william shakespeare's tragedy who tricked othello into murdering his wife
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IAGO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37D: "56. Some supports"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that an undergarment worn by women to support their breasts
  • Similar words include: bandeau, brassiere, bra
  • Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BRAS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38D: "57. ___ Lewis, the "Grande Dame of Southern Cooking""

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

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

Remember this word for future puzzles!

39D: "59. Minor complaint"

3 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that a luminance unit equal to 1 candle per square meter measured perpendicular to the rays from the source
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NIT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

40D: "60. Unspecified amount"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that one or some or every or all without specification
  • Similar words include: whatsoever, whatever
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ANY

Remember this word for future puzzles!

41D: "61. Not Rx"

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

  • Think of something that (of securities) not traded on a stock exchange
  • Similar words include: over-the-counter
  • Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OTC

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
41 Down Clues
74 Total Clues

More NYT Crossword Help

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Last updated: April 28, 2026 at 06:18 AM