NY Times Crossword Complete Solution: May 20, 2025
Our expert breakdown helps you solve the May 20 NYT crossword while expanding your vocabulary. Learn answer strategies and discover word connections.
Across Clues and Answers (35)
Clue #1: 1. Bit or byte
Clue #2: 5. Laundry collectors
Clue #3: 9. Good thing to bring to a competition
Clue #4: 14. Comedian Trevor with the memoir "Born a Crime"
Clue #5: 15. Give off
Antonyms: absorb
Clue #6: 16. Ring-tailed primate
Clue #7: 17. Consistent with party policy
Clue #8: 19. Court colleague of Kagan and Kavanaugh
Clue #9: 20. "Eye on the ball," "Get under it!," "I got it!," etc.
Clue #10: 22. Like some ground balls
Clue #11: 25. CPR pro
Clue #12: 26. Queen of Olympus
Clue #13: 27. Pet rescue grp.
Clue #14: 31. Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan
Clue #15: 35. Mink, ferret, stoat, etc.
Clue #16: 38. Indiana or Independence, in D.C.
Clue #17: 39. Detroit dud of the 1950s
Clue #18: 40. Wall St. debut
Clue #19: 41. "You're just too complimentary!"
Clue #20: 43. 4G ___ (letters on a cellphone screen)
Clue #21: 44. "Ta-da," "All done," "There you have it," etc.
Clue #22: 47. Poet Byron, for one
Antonyms: noblewoman, Lady
Clue #23: 49. Like pound cake
Clue #24: 50. Bird whose name sounds like a hip-hop dance move
Clue #25: 51. Employ
Clue #26: 53. Crafters' knives
Clue #27: 55. Yield, Stop, Dead End, etc.
Clue #28: 61. Tennis champ Naomi
Clue #29: 62. Freighter
Clue #30: 66. On the up and up
Clue #31: 67. Too
Clue #32: 68. Vibe
Clue #33: 69. College V.I.P.s
Clue #34: 70. Cryptanalyst Turing
Clue #35: 71. What spring may bring
Across Clues and Answers (35)
Clue #1: 1. Card game shout
Clue #2: 2. Oui's opposite
Clue #3: 3. Response to "Who's going?"
Clue #4: 4. Action film climax one might "cut to," in a saying
Clue #5: 5. Closest confidant
Clue #6: 6. Apple all-in-one
Clue #7: 7. Walt Whitman's "As the Time Draws ___"
Antonyms: far
Clue #8: 8. Call repeated in an aerobics class
Clue #9: 9. Wake-up call
Clue #10: 10. Dessert served with the query "Cono o coppetta?" in Italy
Clue #11: 11. Somme friends
Clue #12: 12. Silence on Zoom
Clue #13: 13. Cherubic Greek god
Clue #14: 18. ___ Paulo, Brazil
Clue #15: 21. Circle at the top of a stick figure
Antonyms: foot, tail
Clue #16: 22. "Such is life!"
Clue #17: 23. Must
Clue #18: 24. Chalk accompanier
Clue #19: 28. Consumers of hogwash
Clue #20: 29. Stop by
Clue #21: 30. Hybridize
Antonyms: uncross
Clue #22: 32. Souvenir for a refrigerator
Clue #23: 33. Moisturizer brand
Clue #24: 34. ___ Pieces
Clue #25: 36. Fey figure of folklore
Clue #26: 37. Khan who founded Khan Academy
Clue #27: 42. Flinches in response to
Clue #28: 45. Brainstorm
Clue #29: 46. Utah, geometrically speaking
Clue #30: 48. What "America runs on," in a franchise slogan
Clue #31: 52. Bed supports
Clue #32: 54. "Give it ___"
Clue #33: 55. Auctioned off, e.g.
Antonyms: buy, unsold
Clue #34: 56. "Oh, OK"
Clue #35: 57. Crazy (about)
Clue #36: 58. March Madness org.
Clue #37: 59. Chutzpah
Clue #38: 60. ___ Major
Clue #39: 63. "What'd you say?"
Clue #40: 64. Public radio host Glass
Clue #41: 65. Where to find a kitten's "toe beans"
Expert Solving Strategies
- Look for fill-in-the-blank clues first (they're often easiest)
- Watch for question marks indicating wordplay
- Check vowel patterns in partially solved words
