December 23, 2021 NYT Clues Solutions | XWordHint

Quick Navigation - Table of Contents

• Puzzle Overview & Difficulty
• Across Clues (32 clues)
• Down Clues (42 clues)
• Category Breakdown
• Complete Puzzle Statistics
• Pro Solving Tips

Puzzle Overview & Difficulty Analysis

Date: Thursday, December 23, 2021

Difficulty Level: Moderate Wednesday Puzzle

Total Clues: 74 (32 Across, 42 Down)

Average Word Length: 5.1 letters

December 23, 2021 Thursday NYT - Complete Across Solutions

No.	Clue	Letters
1A	1. When said three times, how an overlong comment might be summarized	4
2A	5. Morgan Stanley acquisition of 2020	6
3A	11. Shock, in a way	3
4A	14. Let up	4
5A	15. Get something just right	6
6A	16. Word aptly hidden in "I've got this!"	3
7A	17. Reef deposit hung on the holiday tree?	15
8A	20. Is unobliged to	7
9A	21. Popular web browser	6
10A	22. Something an Australian might throw on the barbie	6
11A	25. Beats (out)	5
12A	26. Heath genus that's also a woman's name	5
13A	29. Certain international soccer championship, familiarly	5
14A	31. Noble gas you can't live without?	10
15A	33. It's 1 for 90°	4
16A	37. Occasion on which to sing the hymn "Up From the Grave He Arose"	6
17A	38. Word with candy or ball	6
18A	40. Things caught at a beach	4
19A	41. Starbucks order for a man's man?	10
20A	45. True	5
21A	46. Essential character	5
22A	47. Cause of the moon hitting your eye like a big pizza pie, in song	5
23A	51. Sugar or flour	6
24A	53. Car model with a musical name	6
25A	55. Miami five	7
26A	59. Buys tickets for a couple of friends for a Polynesian getaway?	15
27A	62. Something it's good to get a hole in?	3
28A	63. Archers	6
29A	64. Trash day reminder	4
30A	65. Passage blocker, maybe	3
31A	66. New citizen, perhaps	6
32A	67. What cynophobia is the fear of	4

Let's Solve the Across Clues Together!

Here are helpful hints to solve each clue. Remember, crossword puzzles are like word games - have fun with them!

Clue 1 Across: "1. When said three times, how an overlong comment might be summarized"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that pompous or pretentious talk or writing
• Words that mean the same thing: claptrap, fustian, bombast
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: BLAH

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 2 Across: "5. Morgan Stanley acquisition of 2020"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ETRADE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 3 Across: "11. Shock, in a way"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a medium clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a sudden event that imparts energy or excitement, usually with a dramatic impact
• Words that mean the same thing: vaporize, nuke, atomise
• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ZAP

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 4 Across: "14. Let up"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that freedom from difficulty or hardship or effort
• Words that mean the same thing: repose, relieve, easiness
• The opposite would be: difficulty
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: EASE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 5 Across: "15. Get something just right"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: NAILIT

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 6 Across: "16. Word aptly hidden in "I've got this!""

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a medium clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that an inflated feeling of pride in your superiority to others
• Words that mean the same thing: self-importance, self, egotism
• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: EGO

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 7 Across: "17. Reef deposit hung on the holiday tree?"

Quick Info: This answer has 15 letters. It's a expert clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _______________
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ACHRISTMASCORAL

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 8 Across: "20. Is unobliged to"

Quick Info: This answer has 7 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: NEEDNOT

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 9 Across: "21. Popular web browser"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that another word for chromium when it is used in dyes or pigments
• Words that mean the same thing: chromium-plate
• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: CHROME

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 10 Across: "22. Something an Australian might throw on the barbie"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that disparaging terms for small people
• Words that mean the same thing: prawn, half-pint, runt
• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: SHRIMP

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 11 Across: "25. Beats (out)"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that the boundary of a surface
• Words that mean the same thing: inch, butt, border
• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: EDGES

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 12 Across: "26. Heath genus that's also a woman's name"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that any plant of the genus erica
• Words that mean the same thing: true heath
• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ERICA

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 13 Across: "29. Certain international soccer championship, familiarly"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a medium clue about sports.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that the basic monetary unit of most members of the european union (introduced in 1999); in 2002 twelve european nations (germany, france, belgium, luxembourg, the netherlands, italy, spain, portugal, ireland, greece, austria, finland) adopted the euro as their basic unit of money and abandoned their traditional currencies
• Words that mean the same thing: euro
• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: EUROS

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 14 Across: "31. Noble gas you can't live without?"

Quick Info: This answer has 10 letters. It's a expert clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: __________
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: VITALARGON

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 15 Across: "33. It's 1 for 90°"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that ratio of the length of the side opposite the given angle to the length of the hypotenuse of a right-angled triangle
• Words that mean the same thing: sin
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: SINE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 16 Across: "37. Occasion on which to sing the hymn "Up From the Grave He Arose""

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a christian celebration of the resurrection of christ; celebrated on the sunday following the first full moon after the vernal equinox
• Words that mean the same thing: east wind, easterly
• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: EASTER

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 17 Across: "38. Word with candy or ball"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that soft silky fibers from cotton plants in their raw state
• Words that mean the same thing: cotton plant, cotton fiber, cotton wool
• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: COTTON

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 18 Across: "40. Things caught at a beach"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a column of light (as from a beacon)
• Words that mean the same thing: electron beam, light beam, ray
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: RAYS

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 19 Across: "41. Starbucks order for a man's man?"

Quick Info: This answer has 10 letters. It's a expert clue about celebrity/entertainment.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: __________
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: CAFFEMACHO

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 20 Across: "45. True"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a easy clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that steadfast in allegiance or duty
• Words that mean the same thing: firm, patriotic, fast
• The opposite would be: disloyal, unpatriotic
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: LOYAL

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 21 Across: "46. Essential character"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that (anthropology) the distinctive spirit of a culture or an era
• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ETHOS

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 22 Across: "47. Cause of the moon hitting your eye like a big pizza pie, in song"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a hard clue about music.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: AMORE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 23 Across: "51. Sugar or flour"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that (usually plural) a necessary commodity for which demand is constant
• Words that mean the same thing: basic, raw material, staple fibre
• The opposite would be: unstaple
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: STAPLE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 24 Across: "53. Car model with a musical name"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a hard clue about music.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a musical composition of 3 or 4 movements of contrasting forms
• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: SONATA

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 25 Across: "55. Miami five"

Quick Info: This answer has 7 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: THEHEAT

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 26 Across: "59. Buys tickets for a couple of friends for a Polynesian getaway?"

Quick Info: This answer has 15 letters. It's a expert clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _______________
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: TAKESTWOTOTONGA

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 27 Across: "62. Something it's good to get a hole in?"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a hard clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that the smallest whole number or a numeral representing this number
• Words that mean the same thing: i, unity, unitary
• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ONE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 28 Across: "63. Archers"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a person who is expert in the use of a bow and arrow
• Words that mean the same thing: archer, bowman
• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: BOWMEN

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 29 Across: "64. Trash day reminder"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that any property detected by the olfactory system
• Words that mean the same thing: olfactory perception, olfactory property, olfactory sensation
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ODOR

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 30 Across: "65. Passage blocker, maybe"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a medium clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that not this merely but also; not only so but
• The opposite would be: yea
• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: NAY

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 31 Across: "66. New citizen, perhaps"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that someone who leaves one country to settle in another
• Words that mean the same thing: emigrant, outgoer, emigree
• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: EMIGRE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 32 Across: "67. What cynophobia is the fear of"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be 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
• Words that mean the same thing: tag, track, andiron
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: DOGS

  Great job if you got it right!

NYT Thursday Crossword Down Clues - December 23, 2021 Answers

No.	Clue	Letters
1D	1. Black-eyed pea, technically	4
2D	2. Get ready to skate, with "up"	4
3D	3. Lead-in to a Southern "-ville"	4
4D	4. Tries to wrangle the unwrangleable	9
5D	5. "Christ's Entry Into Brussels in 1889" artist	5
6D	6. More ragged	7
7D	7. ___ shot	3
8D	8. In the way of	3
9D	9. 45, e.g.	4
10D	10. Does some cave art	6
11D	11. Free-fall phenomenon, informally	5
12D	12. Good thing to bring to the field	5
13D	13. North and South, but not East or West	5
14D	18. Gobble down	6
15D	19. Chicago airport code	3
16D	23. ___ shot	3
17D	24. For	3
18D	26. At all	4
19D	27. Org. that gives out "gold" but fights pirates	4
20D	28. Teeny-tiny	4
21D	30. "Kiss her ___ for me" ("A Holly Jolly Christmas" lyric)	4
22D	32. Western gas brand	4
23D	33. District of Columbia advocacy subject	9
24D	34. Hankering	4
25D	35. N.Y.C. neighborhood next to the Bowery	4
26D	36. Great-great-great-great-great grandfather of Noah	4
27D	39. Dish that may be served folded	6
28D	42. Old-timey agreements	3
29D	43. Like Santa, in traditional depictions	3
30D	44. Butter up, say	7
31D	45. Doesn't disturb	6
32D	47. Start of an English auto name	5
33D	48. 2016 animated film with songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda	5
34D	49. Pitch-perfect	5
35D	50. Explorer John	3
36D	52. Give a buzz	5
37D	54. Small thing	4
38D	56. Opposite of exo-	4
39D	57. Full of anticipation	4
40D	58. Besmirches	4
41D	60. Historical event given its current name in 1939: Abbr.	3
42D	61. "!!!"	3

Now Let's Solve the Down Clues!

Down clues go from top to bottom. Use the letters from your across answers to help!

Clue 1 Down: "1. Black-eyed pea, technically"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that any of various edible seeds of plants of the family leguminosae used for food
• Words that mean the same thing: edible bean, attic, noggin
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: BEAN

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 2 Down: "2. Get ready to skate, with "up""

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a cord that is drawn through eyelets or around hooks in order to draw together two edges (as of a shoe or garment)
• Words that mean the same thing: fortify, lace up, intertwine
• The opposite would be: untwine
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: LACE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 3 Down: "3. Lead-in to a Southern "-ville""

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that united states tennis player who was the first black to win united states and english singles championships (1943-1993)
• Words that mean the same thing: Arthur Ashe, Arthur Robert Ashe
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ASHE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 4 Down: "4. Tries to wrangle the unwrangleable"

Quick Info: This answer has 9 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _________
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: HERDSCATS

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 5 Down: "5. "Christ's Entry Into Brussels in 1889" artist"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ENSOR

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 6 Down: "6. More ragged"

Quick Info: This answer has 7 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that showing signs of wear and tear
• Words that mean the same thing: gimcrack, tacky, tatty
• The word looks like this: _______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: TATTIER

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 7 Down: "7. ___ shot"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a easy clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that the shape of a raised edge of a more or less circular object
• Words that mean the same thing: brim, flange, lip
• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: RIM

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 8 Down: "8. In the way of"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a medium clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism
• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ALA

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 9 Down: "9. 45, e.g."

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that sound recording consisting of a disk with a continuous groove; used to reproduce music by rotating while a phonograph needle tracks in the groove
• Words that mean the same thing: magnetic disk, phonograph recording, disk
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: DISC

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 10 Down: "10. Does some cave art"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that make an etching of
• Words that mean the same thing: etch, engrave
• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ETCHES

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 11 Down: "11. Free-fall phenomenon, informally"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ZEROG

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 12 Down: "12. Good thing to bring to the field"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: AGAME

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 13 Down: "13. North and South, but not East or West"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a long (usually round) rod of wood or metal or plastic
• Words that mean the same thing: celestial pole, magnetic pole, Pole
• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: POLES

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 14 Down: "18. Gobble down"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that draw deep into the lungs in by breathing
• Words that mean the same thing: breathe in, inspire
• The opposite would be: exhale
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: INHALE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 15 Down: "19. Chicago airport code"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a easy clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ORD

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 16 Down: "23. ___ shot"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a easy clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that the quantity that can be held in a mug
• Words that mean the same thing: sucker, smiler, mark
• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: MUG

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 17 Down: "24. For"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a easy clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that an athlete who plays for pay
• Words that mean the same thing: professional
• The opposite would be: con, amateur
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: PRO

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 18 Down: "26. At all"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that at any time
• Words that mean the same thing: e'er, always, of all time
• The opposite would be: never
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: EVER

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 19 Down: "27. Org. that gives out "gold" but fights pirates"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: RIAA

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 20 Down: "28. Teeny-tiny"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a easy clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ITSY

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 21 Down: "30. "Kiss her ___ for me" ("A Holly Jolly Christmas" lyric)"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that on one occasion
• Words that mean the same thing: erst, erstwhile, at one time
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ONCE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 22 Down: "32. Western gas brand"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that (of instruments in the violin family) to be played with the bow
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ARCO

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 23 Down: "33. District of Columbia advocacy subject"

Quick Info: This answer has 9 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _________
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: STATEHOOD

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 24 Down: "34. Hankering"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a easy clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a contagious skin infection caused by the itch mite; characterized by persistent itching and skin irritation
• Words that mean the same thing: scratch, spoil, itchiness
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ITCH

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 25 Down: "35. N.Y.C. neighborhood next to the Bowery"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a hard clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: NOHO

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 26 Down: "36. Great-great-great-great-great grandfather of Noah"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ENOS

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 27 Down: "39. Dish that may be served folded"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a hard clue about food & drink.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that beaten eggs or an egg mixture cooked until just set; may be folded around e.g. ham or cheese or jelly
• Words that mean the same thing: omelette
• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: OMELET

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 28 Down: "42. Old-timey agreements"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a easy clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: AYS

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 29 Down: "43. Like Santa, in traditional depictions"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a medium clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that a soft greasy substance occurring in organic tissue and consisting of a mixture of lipids (mostly triglycerides)
• Words that mean the same thing: fatten up, fertile, fatty
• The opposite would be: thin, leanness
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: FAT

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 30 Down: "44. Butter up, say"

Quick Info: This answer has 7 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that praise somewhat dishonestly
• Words that mean the same thing: prostrate, matte, vapid
• The opposite would be: contrasty, natural
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: FLATTER

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 31 Down: "45. Doesn't disturb"

Quick Info: This answer has 6 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ______
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: LETSBE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 32 Down: "47. Start of an English auto name"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a hard clue about celebrity/entertainment.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ASTON

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 33 Down: "48. 2016 animated film with songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a hard clue about music.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: MOANA

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 34 Down: "49. Pitch-perfect"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a easy clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ONKEY

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 35 Down: "50. Explorer John"

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a easy clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: RAE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 36 Down: "52. Give a buzz"

Quick Info: This answer has 5 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that electronic equipment that converts sound into electrical signals that can be transmitted over distances and then converts received signals back into sounds
• Words that mean the same thing: earpiece, headphone, telephone set
• The word looks like this: _____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: PHONE

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 37 Down: "54. Small thing"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that (physics and chemistry) the smallest component of an element having the chemical properties of the element
• Words that mean the same thing: particle, molecule, speck
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ATOM

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 38 Down: "56. Opposite of exo-"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: ENDO

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 39 Down: "57. Full of anticipation"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a medium clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that highly excited
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: AGOG

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 40 Down: "58. Besmirches"

Quick Info: This answer has 4 letters. It's a easy clue about general knowledge.

Here's how to solve it:

• This could be something that any of various dark heavy viscid substances obtained as a residue
• Words that mean the same thing: old salt, Jack, seaman
• The word looks like this: ____
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: TARS

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 41 Down: "60. Historical event given its current name in 1939: Abbr."

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a medium clue about history.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: WWI

  Great job if you got it right!

Clue 42 Down: "61. "!!!""

Quick Info: This answer has 3 letters. It's a easy clue about short answer.

Here's how to solve it:

• The word looks like this: ___
• Still stuck? Remember to use the crossing words to help you!
• Ready for the answer? Click here!

  The answer is: OMG

  Great job if you got it right!

Category Breakdown

Category	Number of Clues	Percentage
General Knowledge	53	71.6%
Short Answer	13	17.6%
Music	3	4.1%
Celebrity/Entertainment	2	2.7%
Sports	1	1.4%
Food & Drink	1	1.4%
History	1	1.4%

Complete Puzzle Statistics

Metric	Value
Across Clues	32
Down Clues	42
Total Clues	74
Average Answer Length	5.1 letters
Shortest Answer	3 letters
Longest Answer	15 letters

Fun Tips to Solve Crossword Puzzles!

• Start with short words first - they're usually easier!
• Look for clues with blanks to fill in - these are like fill-in-the-blank questions at school
• When letters cross, they must be the same in both words - this helps you check if you're right!
• Today is Thursday, and these puzzles are usually moderate level
• Most clues today are about general knowledge
• The average word today has about 5 letters
• Remember: It's okay to take breaks and come back later with fresh eyes!
• Ask someone for help if you need it - crosswords are more fun with friends!

Disclaimer: Crossword clues are property of The New York Times. This educational content is designed to help puzzle enthusiasts improve their solving skills.

Last Updated: September 12, 2025 at 11:17 PM

XWordHint Crossword Answers September 15, 2025 | Expert Breakdown & Tips

Master today's NYT crossword with our expert hint system. We provide synonyms, antonyms, and strategic clues to help you solve without spoiling the fun. Perfect for crossword lovers who want that satisfying "aha!" moment.

Quick Navigation - Table of Contents

• Today's Puzzle Difficulty
• Across Clues Table (37 clues)
• Across Clues - Detailed Hints
• Down Clues Table (39 clues)
• Down Clues - Detailed Hints
• Expert Solving Strategies
• Today's Puzzle Statistics

Today's Puzzle Difficulty: Moderate

Pro Tip: Start with the fill-in-the-blank clues - they're usually the easiest entry points!

Across Clues - Complete List

No.	Clue	Letters
1A	1. Competitor of Denny's and Waffle House	4
2A	5. A red cross, for the American Red Cross	4
3A	9. Headwear for a monarch	5
4A	14. Home for a Neanderthal	4
5A	15. Apple tablet	4
6A	16. Vietnam's capital	5
7A	17. Ingenious fix (San Francisco)	15
8A	20. Popular online brokerage	6
9A	21. Reason for teens to rent a limo	4
10A	22. Poem of praise	3
11A	23. Drench	4
12A	25. Double-click, as a file	4
13A	27. Hotel discounts for conventioneers (Pittsburgh)	10
14A	32. Starting alphabet quartet	4
15A	35. Bank robbery, e.g.	5
16A	36. One of 18 on a golf course	4
17A	37. Uncommon	4
18A	38. Knee part commonly repaired by a sports doc	3
19A	39. Cracker often eaten with chowder	7
20A	42. Practical joke	3
21A	43. Yep's opposite	4
22A	45. Prompted, on stage	4
23A	46. Big concert venue	5
24A	48. Way too uptight	4
25A	49. Brief appearances by A-listers in films (Baltimore)	10
26A	51. Location	4
27A	53. Ford Explorer and Honda CR-V, for two	4
28A	54. Winter hrs. in D.C.	3
29A	56. "Really?"	4
30A	59. Hippie T-shirt technique	6
31A	63. Coaching axiom suggested by 17-, 27- and 49-Across	15
32A	66. What each letter in Roy G. Biv represents	5
33A	67. Common time for lunch	4
34A	68. Pop ___ (breakfast pastry)	4
35A	69. Zoom call V.I.P.s	5
36A	70. Shell-less gastropod	4
37A	71. Does some summing	4

Across Clues - Strategic Hints

1A: "1. Competitor of Denny's and Waffle House"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: IHOP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2A: "5. A red cross, for the American Red Cross"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a company emblem or device
• Similar words include: logotype
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: LOGO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3A: "9. Headwear for a monarch"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the crown (or the reigning monarch) as the symbol of the power and authority of a monarchy
• Similar words include: treetop, pate, crownwork
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: CROWN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4A: "14. Home for a Neanderthal"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a geological formation consisting of an underground enclosure with access from the surface of the ground or from the sea
• Similar words include: undermine, spelunk
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: CAVE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5A: "15. Apple tablet"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: IPAD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6A: "16. Vietnam's capital"

5 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the capital city of vietnam; located in north vietnam
• Similar words include: capital of Vietnam
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: HANOI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7A: "17. Ingenious fix (San Francisco)"

15 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: _______________

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ELEGANTSOLUTION

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8A: "20. Popular online brokerage"

6 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ETRADE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9A: "21. Reason for teens to rent a limo"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a formal ball held for a school class toward the end of the academic year
• Similar words include: promenade
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: PROM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10A: "22. Poem of praise"

3 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a lyric poem with complex stanza forms
• Pattern: ___

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ODE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11A: "23. Drench"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the process of becoming softened and saturated as a consequence of being immersed in water (or other liquid)
• Similar words include: plume, surcharge, intoxicate
• Opposite of: undercharge

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: SOAK

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12A: "25. Double-click, as a file"

4 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a clear or unobstructed space or expanse of land or water
• Similar words include: open air, unfold, outdoors
• Opposite of: unreceptive, covert

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: OPEN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13A: "27. Hotel discounts for conventioneers (Pittsburgh)"

10 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: __________

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: GROUPRATES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14A: "32. Starting alphabet quartet"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ABCD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15A: "35. Bank robbery, e.g."

5 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the act of stealing
• Similar words include: burgle, stickup, burglarise
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: HEIST

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16A: "36. One of 18 on a golf course"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that an opening into or through something
• Similar words include: pickle, jam, gob
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: HOLE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17A: "37. Uncommon"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that not widely known; especially valued for its uncommonness
• Similar words include: rarified, uncommon, rarefied
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: RARE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18A: "38. Knee part commonly repaired by a sports doc"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ___

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ACL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19A: "39. Cracker often eaten with chowder"

7 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a cracker sprinkled with salt before baking
• Pattern: _______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: SALTINE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20A: "42. Practical joke"

3 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
• Similar words include: quip, suffocate, muzzle
• Pattern: ___

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: GAG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21A: "43. Yep's opposite"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: NOPE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22A: "45. Prompted, on stage"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that assist (somebody acting or reciting) by suggesting the next words of something forgotten or imperfectly learned
• Similar words include: prompt, remind, cue
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: CUED

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23A: "46. Big concert venue"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a particular environment or walk of life
• Similar words include: sphere, area, field
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ARENA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24A: "48. Way too uptight"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that of or related to the anus
• Similar words include: anal retentive
• Opposite of: oral

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ANAL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25A: "49. Brief appearances by A-listers in films (Baltimore)"

10 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: __________

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: CAMEOROLES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26A: "51. Location"

4 letters Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the piece of land on which something is located (or is to be located)
• Similar words include: internet site, locate, website
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: SITE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27A: "53. Ford Explorer and Honda CR-V, for two"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a high-performance four-wheel drive car built on a truck chassis
• Similar words include: sport utility, S.U.V., SUV
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: SUVS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28A: "54. Winter hrs. in D.C."

3 letters Category: Abbreviation

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!

29A: "56. "Really?""

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ISIT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30A: "59. Hippie T-shirt technique"

6 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: TIEDYE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31A: "63. Coaching axiom suggested by 17-, 27- and 49-Across"

15 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: _______________

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: THERESNOIINTEAM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32A: "66. What each letter in Roy G. Biv represents"

5 letters Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a visual attribute of things that results from the light they emit or transmit or reflect
• Similar words include: colouration, vividness, colour
• Opposite of: discolor, colorlessness

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: COLOR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33A: "67. Common time for lunch"

4 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the middle of the day
• Similar words include: noontide, noonday, high noon
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: NOON

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34A: "68. Pop ___ (breakfast pastry)"

4 letters Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a woman who engages in sexual intercourse for money
• Similar words include: prostitute, lemony, sharp
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: TART

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35A: "69. Zoom call V.I.P.s"

5 letters Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a person who invites guests to a social event (such as a party in his or her own home) and who is responsible for them while they are there
• Similar words include: innkeeper, host, Host
• Opposite of: parasite

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: HOSTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36A: "70. Shell-less gastropod"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a projectile that is fired from a gun
• Similar words include: swig, slog, bullet
• Opposite of: work

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: SLUG

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37A: "71. Does some summing"

4 letters Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a condition (mostly in boys) characterized by behavioral and learning disorders
• Similar words include: add up, tote up, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
• Opposite of: subtract, take away

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ADDS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

Down Clues - Complete List

No.	Clue	Letters
1D	1. Summer drink that might cause a brain freeze	4
2D	2. "Not another step!"	4
3D	3. Above	4
4D	4. Winged horse of Greek myth	7
5D	5. One-dimensional, in math	6
6D	6. Make a choice	3
7D	7. Say "Oh, my God!," say	4
8D	8. Stinky smell	4
9D	9. ___ change (a measly amount)	5
10D	10. Tattletale	3
11D	11. Pungent, round deli order	10
12D	12. Alternative to an iron, in golf	4
13D	13. Three squared	4
14D	18. Brings into the family	6
15D	19. Make less tight	6
16D	24. Liqueur in a mudslide	6
17D	26. Part of the body with a lobe	3
18D	27. Its capital is Accra	5
19D	28. Spy's info-gathering mission	5
20D	29. Bright choices for artists	10
21D	30. ___ pole (Native American carving)	5
22D	31. Skips, as a syllable	6
23D	33. Common origami bird	5
24D	34. Edgar ___, "The Ballet Class" artist	5
25D	40. What security clearance grants	6
26D	41. Magic Johnson's real first name	6
27D	44. Hebrew name meaning "high"	3
28D	47. ___ Stone (relic inscribed in three languages)	7
29D	50. Special trip away from the house	6
30D	52. Echelons	5
31D	54. Engrave	4
32D	55. "Get outta here!"	4
33D	57. Places to stay overnight	4
34D	58. Item on a mechanic's belt	4
35D	60. Out of battery juice	4
36D	61. 36 inches	4
37D	62. CPR-administering crew, for short	4
38D	64. Brain ___ (low-quality internet content)	3
39D	65. "Lemme square up later" note	3

Down Clues - Strategic Hints

1D: "1. Summer drink that might cause a brain freeze"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ICEE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

2D: "2. "Not another step!""

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the state of inactivity following an interruption
• Similar words include: arrest, lame, check
• Opposite of: start

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: HALT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

3D: "3. Above"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that (cricket) the division of play during which six balls are bowled at the batsman by one player from the other team from the same end of the pitch
• Similar words include: terminated, complete, concluded
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: OVER

Remember this word for future puzzles!

4D: "4. Winged horse of Greek myth"

7 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that (greek mythology) the immortal winged horse that sprang from the blood of the slain medusa; was tamed by bellerophon with the help of a bridle given him by athena; as the flying horse of the muses it is a symbol of highflying imagination
• Pattern: _______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: PEGASUS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

5D: "5. One-dimensional, in math"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that designating or involving an equation whose terms are of the first degree
• Similar words include: analogue, additive, running
• Opposite of: planar, digital

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: LINEAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

6D: "6. Make a choice"

3 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that select as an alternative over another
• Similar words include: prefer, choose
• Pattern: ___

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: OPT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

7D: "7. Say "Oh, my God!," say"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a short labored intake of breath with the mouth open
• Similar words include: heave, pant, puff
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: GASP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

8D: "8. Stinky smell"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that any property detected by the olfactory system
• Similar words include: scent, odour, olfactory sensation
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ODOR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

9D: "9. ___ change (a measly amount)"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a person who is gullible and easy to take advantage of
• Similar words include: mark, fool, gull
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: CHUMP

Remember this word for future puzzles!

10D: "10. Tattletale"

3 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that any of various long-tailed rodents similar to but larger than a mouse
• Similar words include: shit, scum bag, dirty dog
• Pattern: ___

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: RAT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

11D: "11. Pungent, round deli order"

10 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: __________

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ONIONBAGEL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

12D: "12. Alternative to an iron, in golf"

4 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the hard fibrous lignified substance under the bark of trees
• Similar words include: woodwind, woodwind instrument, Ellen Price Wood
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: WOOD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

13D: "13. Three squared"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the cardinal number that is the sum of eight and one
• Similar words include: 9, ball club, ix
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: NINE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

14D: "18. Brings into the family"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that choose and follow; as of theories, ideas, policies, strategies or plans
• Similar words include: adopt, espouse, follow
• Pattern: ______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ADOPTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

15D: "19. Make less tight"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that make loose or looser
• Similar words include: loose, tease apart, relax
• Opposite of: stiffen

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: LOOSEN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

16D: "24. Liqueur in a mudslide"

6 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that coffee-flavored liqueur made in mexico
• Pattern: ______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: KAHLUA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

17D: "26. Part of the body with a lobe"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium
• Similar words include: pinna, spike, capitulum
• Pattern: ___

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: EAR

Remember this word for future puzzles!

18D: "27. Its capital is Accra"

5 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a republic in west africa on the gulf of guinea
• Similar words include: Gold Coast, Republic of Ghana
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: GHANA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

19D: "28. Spy's info-gathering mission"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: RECON

Remember this word for future puzzles!

20D: "29. Bright choices for artists"

10 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: __________

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: OILPASTELS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

21D: "30. ___ pole (Native American carving)"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a clan or tribe identified by their kinship to a common totemic object
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: TOTEM

Remember this word for future puzzles!

22D: "31. Skips, as a syllable"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that leave or strike out
• Similar words include: elide
• Pattern: ______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ELIDES

Remember this word for future puzzles!

23D: "33. Common origami bird"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that united states writer (1871-1900)
• Similar words include: stretch out, Harold Hart Crane, Stephen Crane
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: CRANE

Remember this word for future puzzles!

24D: "34. Edgar ___, "The Ballet Class" artist"

5 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that french impressionist painter (1834-1917)
• Similar words include: Edgar Degas, Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: DEGAS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

25D: "40. What security clearance grants"

6 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that the right to enter
• Similar words include: approach, get at, accession
• Pattern: ______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ACCESS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

26D: "41. Magic Johnson's real first name"

6 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: EARVIN

Remember this word for future puzzles!

27D: "44. Hebrew name meaning "high""

3 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ___

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ELI

Remember this word for future puzzles!

28D: "47. ___ Stone (relic inscribed in three languages)"

7 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: _______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ROSETTA

Remember this word for future puzzles!

29D: "50. Special trip away from the house"

6 letters 💭 Category: Abbreviation

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a journey taken for pleasure
• Similar words include: sashay, pleasure trip, come out of the closet
• Pattern: ______

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: OUTING

Remember this word for future puzzles!

30D: "52. Echelons"

5 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a relative position or degree of value in a graded group
• Similar words include: tier up, grade, level
• Pattern: _____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: TIERS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

31D: "54. Engrave"

4 letters 💭 Category: General Knowledge

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that make an etching of
• Similar words include: engrave
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ETCH

Remember this word for future puzzles!

32D: "55. "Get outta here!""

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that drive away by crying `shoo!'
• Similar words include: shoo away, shoo off
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: SHOO

Remember this word for future puzzles!

33D: "57. Places to stay overnight"

4 letters 💭 Category: Proper Noun

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a hotel providing overnight lodging for travelers
• Similar words include: lodge, auberge, hostelry
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: INNS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

34D: "58. Item on a mechanic's belt"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that an implement used in the practice of a vocation
• Similar words include: joyride, peter, cock
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: TOOL

Remember this word for future puzzles!

35D: "60. Out of battery juice"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that people who are no longer living
• Similar words include: perfectly, beat, utterly
• Opposite of: living, live

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: DEAD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

36D: "61. 36 inches"

4 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a unit of length equal to 3 feet; defined as 91.44 centimeters; originally taken to be the average length of a stride
• Similar words include: 1000, curtilage, pace
• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: YARD

Remember this word for future puzzles!

37D: "62. CPR-administering crew, for short"

4 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

Solving Hints:

• Pattern: ____

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: EMTS

Remember this word for future puzzles!

38D: "64. Brain ___ (low-quality internet content)"

3 letters 💭 Category: Wordplay

Solving Hints:

• Think of something that a state of decay usually accompanied by an offensive odor
• Similar words include: decompose, bunk, bunkum
• Pattern: ___

Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)

Answer: ROT

Remember this word for future puzzles!

39D: "65. "Lemme square up later" note"

3 letters 💭 Category: Common Word

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!

Expert Solving Strategies

Start Smart

Begin with fill-in-the-blank clues and short 3-4 letter words. These are your foundation.

Decode the Clues

Question marks indicate wordplay or puns. "Maybe" suggests multiple interpretations.

Use Cross-References

Let intersecting letters guide you. One correct answer unlocks several others.

Build Vocabulary

Common crossword words repeat. Learning them speeds up future solving.

Today's Puzzle Stats

37 Across Clues

39 Down Clues

76 Total Clues

More NYT Crossword Help

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

• Complete NYT Crossword Archive
• Advanced Solving Techniques
• Common Crossword Words

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

Last updated: September 15, 2025 at 03:50 AM