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 lover who want that satisfying "aha!" moment.
Today is Puzzle Difficulty: Tricky
Pro Tip: Start with the fill-in-the-blank clues - they're usually the easiest entry points!
Across Clues - Strategic Hints (33 clues)
1A: "1. Relative of upward dog, to 50-Down"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: COBRAPOSE
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2A: "10. Many Intuit employees, for short"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that an accountant who has passed certain examinations and met all other statutory and licensing requirements of a united states state to be certified by that state
- Similar words include: CPA, certified public accountant
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CPAS
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3A: "14. Noted line in Buddhism"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DALAILAMAS
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4A: "15. International grocery chain founded in Germany"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALDI
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5A: "16. Galaxy program, e.g."
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ANDROIDAPP
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6A: "17. Break"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that something left after other parts have been taken away
- Similar words include: quietus, eternal sleep, residuum
- Opposite of: be active, change
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: REST
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7A: "18. Rapper whose father is the jazz musician Olu Dara"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a silvery soft waxy metallic element of the alkali metal group; occurs abundantly in natural compounds (especially in salt water); burns with a yellow flame and reacts violently in water; occurs in sea water and in the mineral halite (rock salt)
- Similar words include: atomic number 11, sodium, Na
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NAS
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8A: "19. Certain tray's contents"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that the residue that remains when something is burned
- Similar words include: ash tree
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ASH
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9A: "20. Country whose name is an anagram of a common means of getting there"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a small landlocked asian country high in the himalayas between india and china
- Similar words include: Kingdom of Nepal
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NEPAL
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10A: "22. Makes rapidly, with "out""
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a bad-tempered person
- Similar words include: fruitcake, chicken feed, meth
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CRANKS
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11A: "25. Mutually accepts"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: AGREESON
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12A: "28. M.L.B. All-Star closer ___ Díaz"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that king of northumbria who was converted to christianity (585-633)
- Pattern: _____
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Answer: EDWIN
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13A: "29. Staple at a car wash"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a small piece of cloth or paper
- Similar words include: jaw, tag end, annoy
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RAG
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14A: "30. One might be fragile"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that an inflated feeling of pride in your superiority to others
- Similar words include: self-importance, self, egotism
- Pattern: ___
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Answer: EGO
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15A: "31. Product pitched by a pitcher"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: KOOLAID
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16A: "35. Drew Carey once called it "crossword puzzle cheese" on "Whose Line Is It Anyway?""
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that mild yellow dutch cheese made in balls encased in a red covering
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EDAM
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17A: "36. "I've helped all I can""
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _______________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MYJOBHEREISDONE
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18A: "40. Steven ___, Best Actor nominee for 2020's "Minari""
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: YEUN
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19A: "41. Field goal announcement"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ITSGOOD
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20A: "42. ___ Hill"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a guided missile fired from land or shipboard against an airborne target
- Similar words include: surface-to-air missile
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SAM
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21A: "43. Bit of drag attire"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a long thin fluffy scarf of feathers or fur
- Similar words include: feather boa
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BOA
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22A: "44. Hands, humorously"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
- Similar words include: mitt, baseball mitt, baseball glove
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MITTS
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23A: "48. Hit list"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TOPFORTY
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24A: "51. Eye up and down"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LEERAT
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25A: "52. Japanese healing technique"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: REIKI
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26A: "53. Medical lead-in to -scope"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a member of the siouan people inhabiting the valleys of the platte and missouri rivers in nebraska
- Similar words include: Otoe
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OTO
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27A: "55. Type of alcoholic beverage that originated in the U.K., despite its name"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: IPA
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28A: "56. Overturn"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that cancel, annul, or reverse an action or its effect
- Similar words include: unmake, untie, unwrap
- Opposite of: wrap, make
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: UNDO
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29A: "57. Plant-based meat alternative that sizzles"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: VEGANBACON
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30A: "61. One's primary character, in video game lingo"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that any very large body of (salt) water
- Similar words include: briny, primary, principal
- Opposite of: dependent
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MAIN
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31A: "62. Criminal mastermind"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: __________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EVILGENIUS
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32A: "63. Very vocal avian"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that tropical asian starlings
- Similar words include: mynah, mynah bird, minah
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MYNA
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33A: "64. Purr-fect adoptee"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RESCUECAT
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Down Clues - Strategic Hints (39 clues)
1D: "1. Unfounded rumor"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a deliberately misleading fabrication
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CANARD
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2D: "2. Tired expression"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OLDSAW
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3D: "3. Something that can be raised or passed"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a room or establishment where alcoholic drinks are served over a counter
- Similar words include: Browning automatic rifle, exclude, streak
- Opposite of: unbar
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BAR
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4D: "4. Mexico's ___ Conchos"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that the former capital and 2nd largest city of brazil; chief brazilian port; famous as a tourist attraction
- Similar words include: Rio de Janeiro
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: RIO
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5D: "5. Literally, "at another time""
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a name that has been assumed temporarily
- Similar words include: also known as, a.k.a., false name
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ALIAS
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6D: "6. Artificially inflates"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a number of sheets of paper fastened together along one edge
- Similar words include: diggings, launchpad, launch pad
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PADS
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7D: "7. City where the Men's College World Series takes place"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a member of the siouan people formerly living in the missouri river valley in northeastern nebraska
- Similar words include: Maha
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OMAHA
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8D: "8. Stuff boiled in sugar shacks"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a watery solution of sugars, salts, and minerals that circulates through the vascular system of a plant
- Similar words include: saphead, play out, cosh
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SAP
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9D: "9. Place to hear game results and analysis"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ESPNRADIO
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10D: "10. "___ noctem" (motto meaning "go enjoy the night")"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: CARPE
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11D: "11. "By all means, go ahead!""
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: PLEASEDO
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12D: "12. Jingle accompaniment"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ADSLOGAN
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13D: "13. Remain untouched"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that be around, often idly or without specific purpose
- Similar words include: posture, seat, pose
- Opposite of: arise, stand
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SIT
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14D: "14. Take a series of steps?"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that an artistic form of nonverbal communication
- Similar words include: terpsichore, trip the light fantastic toe, dancing
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: DANCE
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15D: "21. Hosp. test"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a graphical record of electrical activity of the brain; produced by an electroencephalograph
- Similar words include: encephalogram, electroencephalogram
- Pattern: ___
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Answer: EEG
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16D: "23. Japanese company whose products click with customers"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NIKON
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17D: "24. Dresser part"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a circular rounded projection or protuberance
- Similar words include: boss, thickening, node
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: KNOB
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18D: "26. Composer of "In the Hall of the Mountain King""
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that norwegian composer whose work was often inspired by norwegian folk music (1843-1907)
- Similar words include: Edvard Grieg, Edvard Hagerup Grieg
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: GRIEG
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19D: "27. Destination of an annual race since 1973"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a town in western alaska on the southern coast of the seward peninsula; an important center of an alaskan gold rush at the beginning of the 20th century
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: NOME
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20D: "32. It's formed in Pittsburgh"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: OHIORIVER
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21D: "33. Allowed to strike"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LETAT
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22D: "34. Horace's "___ Poetica""
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a colorless and odorless inert gas; one of the six inert gases; comprises approximately 1% of the earth's atmosphere
- Similar words include: are, Arkansas, Land of Opportunity
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ARS
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23D: "35. Boy on "The Munsters""
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EDDIE
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24D: "36. Island in a classic video game"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: MYST
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25D: "37. "What's your decision?""
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: YEAORNAY
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26D: "38. Joined enthusiastically"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ________
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: JUMPEDIN
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27D: "39. Word before how or where, but not who"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that quantifier; used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
- Similar words include: about, just about, close to
- Opposite of: no
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: SOME
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28D: "43. ___ choy"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BOK
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29D: "45. White House daughter of the 1960s-'70s"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TRICIA
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30D: "46. Have no more money to bet"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ______
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TAPOUT
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31D: "47. Is really into, in slang"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: STANS
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32D: "49. Animated princess of film"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: FIONA
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33D: "50. 1-Across teachers"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that united states baseball player (born 1925)
- Similar words include: Yogi, Yogi Berra, Lawrence Peter Berra
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: YOGIS
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34D: "51. Cute sound?"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: _____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: LONGU
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35D: "54. Mineral with a Mohs hardness of 1"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that a fine grained mineral having a soft soapy feel and consisting of hydrated magnesium silicate; used in a variety of products including talcum powder
- Similar words include: talcum
- Pattern: ____
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: TALC
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36D: "56. "Lemme think ...""
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: UMM
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37D: "58. Night to remember, perhaps"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that (old testament) adam's wife in judeo-christian mythology: the first woman and mother of the human race; god created eve from adam's rib and placed adam and eve in the garden of eden
- Similar words include: even, evening, eventide
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: EVE
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38D: "59. Busy ___"
Solving Hints:
- Think of something that any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: BEE
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39D: "60. Anti-apartheid party, in brief"
Solving Hints:
- Pattern: ___
Click to reveal answer (spoiler alert!)
Answer: ANC
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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
39 Down Clues
72 Total Clues
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