NYT Crossword Answers Today, November 12, 2026

The New York Times (NYT) Crossword for Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026 by Jared Cappel: a hint for all 78 clues, six wordplay clues explained, then answers.

By Fresh Calendars News Desk, Editorial team, daily puzzles

Published November 11, 2026, 10:31 p.m. ET 13 min read

A Thursday crossword grid for Nov. 12, 2026 — The New York Times Thursday Crossword for Nov. 12, 2026; a hint for each of the 78 clues sits above the answer list. Illustration: Fresh Calendars

In this article

Six question-mark clues and how each one misleads
How Thursday’s theme is laid out
What the 15-by-17 shape means
Hints for every clue
Today’s NYT Crossword answers (spoilers)

The New York Times (NYT) Crossword for Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, was constructed by Jared Cappel and edited by Will Shortz: 78 clues in a grid the puzzle data lists as 15 columns by 17 rows. Thursday brings a revealer and a missing-letters trick, six clues carry a question mark, and one entry is 15 squares wide. A hint for every clue comes first, each behind a tap, and the answers close the page.

Six question-mark clues and how each one misleads

A question mark flags a clue that means something other than its plain reading. Two of today’s six sit in the Across list and four in the Down list. None of the notes below names an answer.

4-Across, “What’s never heard in indictments?” (3 letters). The word is long and legal, and one of its letters is never pronounced. The entry is that letter written out the way you would say its name.
52-Across, “In which students might seek the root of their problems?” (4 letters). “Problems” are homework questions here, and “root” is a number operation, not something under a plant. The entry is the class where both belong.
9-Down, “People who are told what to say?” (6 letters). Someone hands these people a script. The entry is their job title, in the plural.
29-Down, “Bed rock item?” (6 letters). Read “bed” as a piece of furniture for a baby and “rock” as a verb, and the geology reading drops away.
55-Down, “Move quickly?” (4 letters). The question mark asks you to make a word quick: a longer word for relocating has been clipped. Nothing here involves speed.
60-Down, “Diesel in a muscle car?” (3 letters). “Diesel” is not a fuel. It is a surname, and the entry is the first name that goes with it.

34-Down is a double-duty clue without a question mark: it names a Greek letter and an airline’s service in one line, and a single three-letter entry satisfies both.

How Thursday’s theme is laid out

Four Down slots carry the theme: 3-Down (11 letters, column 3), 5-Down (8, column 6), 8-Down (8, column 10) and 10-Down (11, column 13). All four start in row 2, the first row with letters. Their clues describe whole phrases, but the grid holds each phrase without its opening word or syllable, three or four letters short in every case. The 55-Across revealer says those starts have “grown” in the plot it describes, and 60-Across, the 15-letter entry in row 15, is clued as a dish made from what grew there. The answer section names each missing start. Solve 55-Across and 60-Across first and the four short entries fall into line.

What the 15-by-17 shape means

The data holds 255 squares: 15 columns and 17 rows. The first row is black from end to end, which leaves a solving area of 15 by 16, or 240 squares. Of those, 40 are black and 200 hold a letter, a black share of 16.7 percent. Wednesday’s grid was 15 by 15 with 36 black squares and 189 letters, a black share of 16.0 percent. Counting the empty top row, Thursday has 55 black squares, 21.6 percent of 255, but only 40 of them shape the puzzle.

Both days have 78 entries. Today’s split is 40 Across and 38 Down, where Wednesday’s was 39 and 39. Every letter square is crossed by one Across and one Down entry, and every square holds a single letter, so there is no rebus. The black pattern does not match itself when the grid is turned upside down.

The length profile runs from 3 to 15 letters:

Length	Across	Down	Total
3	13	6	19
4	6	12	18
5	10	4	14
6	4	10	14
7	5	0	5
8	0	4	4
11	0	2	2
13	1	0	1
15	1	0	1

All five 7-letter entries run across, and every 8-letter and 11-letter entry runs down. The two longest entries, 55-Across in row 14 and 60-Across in row 15, are stacked on top of each other, and the 15-letter one spans the full width with no black square in that row. Wednesday’s longest entries ran 11 squares. The daily rules are on our NYT Crossword page, and the stacked pair in rows 14 and 15 is the place to start today.

Hints for every clue

Across

1-Across (3 letters), “Unbelievable,” in a text
a texting shorthand for a disbelieving shake of the head; three consonants, no vowel.
Show the answer
Smh
4-Across (3 letters), What’s never heard in indictments?
a trick of silence: one letter in the long legal word is never pronounced, and the entry is that letter’s spelled-out name; ends in a double E.
Show the answer
Cee
7-Across (3 letters), Absent, for short
military initials for someone who cannot be found; begins with M and ends with A.
Show the answer
Mia
10-Across (3 letters), John of 2018’s “Searching”
the surname of the actor who led a 2018 thriller about a father searching online for his daughter; begins with C.
Show the answer
Cho
13-Across (7 letters), Skintight activewear
a close-fitting one-piece worn by dancers and gymnasts; begins with L.
Show the answer
Leotard
15-Across (7 letters), Intrusive marketing issue
the creepy feeling that commercials follow you around the web; two words run together; begins with A.
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Adcreep
17-Across (7 letters), Overhauls
gives something a fresh look; a verb in its third-person form, beginning with RE.
Show the answer
Revamps
18-Across (7 letters), 0%
“not even slightly” in three words run together; begins with N and ends with T.
Show the answer
Notabit
19-Across (6 letters), Boom box, e.g.
a two-speaker sound system; its vowels are E, E and O.
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Stereo
20-Across (6 letters), Dries out, with “up”
clears the head after a night out, completing the phrase with the clue’s “up”; begins and ends with S.
Show the answer
Sobers
21-Across (5 letters), Image Awards org.
initials of a civil rights organization behind an awards show; two A’s in a row after the first letter.
Show the answer
Naacp
23-Across (5 letters), One of the six so-called “simple machines”
a ramp wound around a rod, and what you turn with a driver; begins with S.
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Screw
24-Across (3 letters), Scores that usually occur on fourth downs, in brief
plural abbreviation for kicks through the uprights; three consonants, begins with F and ends with S.
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Fgs
26-Across (7 letters), Some snowmobiles
a snow-vehicle brand name used as a plural; ends with a double O and an S.
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Skidoos
28-Across (3 letters), ___ factor
a reaction of disgust, as in the clue’s phrase; begins with I and ends with K.
Show the answer
Ick
31-Across (4 letters), Turns
spoils, as fruit does when left too long in a warm kitchen; begins with R.
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Rots
33-Across (5 letters), Furnish (with)
provide with tools or gear; begins with E and contains a Q.
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Equip
34-Across (4 letters), French verb with a circumflex
the French infinitive meaning “to be”; begins and ends with E.
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Etre
35-Across (4 letters), Contented sighs
sounds of pleasure at a good massage; begins with a double A.
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Aahs
36-Across (5 letters), Bridal shop fabric
sheer netting used for veils and tutus; double L; begins with T.
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Tulle
37-Across (4 letters), ”___ she blows!”
a dialect spelling of “there” in the whaler’s cry; begins with T and ends with R.
Show the answer
Thar
38-Across (5 letters), Stay tight (to)
hold on tight; rhymes with “sing”; begins with C.
Show the answer
Cling
40-Across (3 letters), Word with red, pink or Golden
a body part that reads the same backward as forward; begins and ends with E.
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Eye
41-Across (5 letters), “Surprise Symphony” composer
an 18th-century Austrian composer of symphonies; begins with H and ends with N.
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Haydn
42-Across (3 letters), It’s all around you
what we breathe; begins with A and ends with R.
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Air
43-Across (3 letters), Drinks that might be hand-squeezed, informally
plural abbreviation for glasses of breakfast juice; the middle letter is J.
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Ojs
45-Across (3 letters), “To ___ will be an awfully big adventure”: Peter Pan
the verb Peter Pan calls an awfully big adventure; also the singular of “dice”.
Show the answer
Die
47-Across (3 letters), Flamenco shout
a “bravo” shouted at a flamenco dance, written without its accent; begins with O.
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Ole
48-Across (6 letters), Tranquil
calm and dignified, or to calm with a drug; ends with the three letters A, T and E.
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Sedate
50-Across (6 letters), Novelist Butler
a man’s first name, shared with a Biblical prophet and a Victorian novelist named Butler; begins with S and ends with L.
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Samuel
52-Across (4 letters), In which students might seek the root of their problems?
the school subject where “root” means something numerical; begins with M.
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Math
54-Across (4 letters), Alan of “Marriage Story”
the surname of the actor who played an army surgeon on a long-running TV comedy set in the Korean War; begins and ends with A.
Show the answer
Alda
55-Across (13 letters), Site of some urban greenery … or where the starts of four Down answers have “grown”
the revealer: a plot of plants on top of a building; written as one compound word plus a second word, run together; begins with R and ends with N.
Show the answer
Rooftopgarden
60-Across (15 letters), Dish with ingredients from this puzzle’s 55-Across
the harvest of the plot at 55-Across, cooked into a mixed dish; two words run together; fills the whole row; begins with V and ends with Y.
Show the answer
Vegetablemedley
62-Across (5 letters), “Imagine that!”
the start of a mild exclamation of surprise: a contraction of “I will” plus a verb for existing, run together; double L.
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Illbe
63-Across (3 letters), Bargain ___
a store container for marked-down goods; begins with B.
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Bin
64-Across (5 letters), Followers of quarters
short name for the rounds that come just before a final; begins and ends with S.
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Semis
65-Across (5 letters), Lack of musical talent
completes “has ___ for music”: a negative word plus a body part used to hear, run together; begins with N.
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Noear
66-Across (3 letters), As of now
“up to now”, as in “not ___”; begins with Y.
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Yet
67-Across (5 letters), “Don’t feed the ___” (message board advice)
an online provocateur, or a mythical creature under a bridge; double L; begins with T.
Show the answer
Troll

Down

1-Down (4 letters), Some Nikons, for short
plural initials of a camera type that swaps lenses; four consonants, begins with S.
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Slrs
2-Down (4 letters), Rendezvous
come together at an appointed place; double E; begins with M.
Show the answer
Meet
3-Down (11 letters), Symphony known as “Eroica”
theme entry: a composer’s name with a number, with the opening letters missing from the grid; a possessive name and an ordinal, run together; begins with H and ends with D.
Show the answer
Hovensthird
4-Down (6 letters), Dressed like, at a costume party
“dressed like” in the past tense, two words run together; begins with C.
Show the answer
Cameas
5-Down (8 letters), One of four on a pool table
theme entry: a spot where billiard balls drop, with the front of its first word missing; begins with E and ends with T.
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Erpocket
6-Down (3 letters), Mag staffers
short for the people who run a magazine’s pages, in the plural; begins with E.
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Eds
7-Down (3 letters), “Street Fighting ___” (Rolling Stones song)
a word for a guy, completing the Rolling Stones title; begins with M.
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Man
8-Down (8 letters), Toy meant to be looked into
theme entry: a tube toy of mirrors and colored bits, with its opening letters missing; begins with I and ends with E.
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Idoscope
9-Down (6 letters), People who are told what to say?
performers who recite scripted lines; begins with A and ends with S.
Show the answer
Actors
10-Down (11 letters), Meaning of the Arabic greeting “As-salamu alaykum”
theme entry: the wording of a blessing, with its opening letters missing; four words run together; its last word is a pronoun for the listener.
Show the answer
Cebewithyou
11-Down (4 letters), Next in line, maybe
the person next to inherit the throne or the estate; begins with a silent H.
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Heir
12-Down (4 letters), Stops vacillating
chooses; the third-person verb begins with O.
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Opts
14-Down (4 letters), Actress Reid of “The Big Lebowski”
a woman’s first name, also the plantation in “Gone With the Wind”; begins with T and ends with A.
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Tara
16-Down (4 letters), Broccoli ___
a bitter leafy green sold under the name “broccoli ___”; begins with R and ends with E.
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Rabe
22-Down (6 letters), Arouses
stirs, as curiosity or interest; spelled with QU; begins with P.
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Piques
23-Down (6 letters), In need of laundering, perhaps
dirty, as a shirt in the hamper; begins with S and ends with ED.
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Soiled
24-Down (6 letters), Big altercation
a noisy brawl; begins with F.
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Fracas
25-Down (6 letters), Lacrosse player with specialized padding
the player who guards the net in lacrosse; four vowels, begins with G.
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Goalie
27-Down (4 letters), As is fitting
in the proper manner, as in ”___ noted”; begins with D.
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Duly
29-Down (6 letters), Bed rock item?
where a baby is rocked to sleep; begins with C.
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Cradle
30-Down (6 letters), Germ, as of an idea
the seed or core of an idea, or a grain of popcorn before it pops; begins with K.
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Kernel
32-Down (3 letters), 1040 fig.
three consonants that identify a taxpayer on a US tax form; begins with S.
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Ssn
34-Down (3 letters), Info from Delta, or a letter soon after delta
an airline’s estimate of when a flight lands, in initials, which is also a Greek letter three places after delta; begins with E and ends with A.
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Eta
39-Down (8 letters), Nagged
pestered, in two words run together: a past tense of “get” plus a preposition meaning “behind”; begins with G.
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Gotafter
41-Down (8 letters), Adjustable feature of a car seat
the cushion behind your neck in a car seat; two words run together; begins with H.
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Headrest
44-Down (5 letters), Volkswagen compact
a Volkswagen model; double T; begins with J.
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Jetta
46-Down (5 letters), Ibadism is a branch of this
a world religion, whose Ibadi branch is named in the clue; begins with I and ends with M.
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Islam
49-Down (6 letters), Shape-shifting organism
a single-celled blob that changes shape; four vowels, begins with A.
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Amoeba
51-Down (6 letters), More insane
the comparative of “crazy” or “angry”; double D; begins with M.
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Madder
53-Down (5 letters), Beekeeping or birdwatching
a pastime pursued for fun; double B; begins with H.
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Hobby
54-Down (5 letters), Representative
someone who acts on another’s behalf, like a literary or secret one; begins with A.
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Agent
55-Down (4 letters), Move quickly?
a clipped word for a move to a new home or office; begins with R.
Show the answer
Relo
56-Down (4 letters), Bad look
stare at in a way that makes people uncomfortable; begins with O.
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Ogle
57-Down (4 letters), Ballerina’s move
a ballet bend of the knees, written without its accent; begins with P.
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Plie
58-Down (4 letters), Children’s TV character who refers to himself in the third person
a red furry puppet who talks about himself by name; begins with E and ends with O.
Show the answer
Elmo
59-Down (4 letters), Simon or Diamond
a first name shared by a playwright named Simon and the singer of “Sweet Caroline”; begins with N.
Show the answer
Neil
60-Down (3 letters), Diesel in a muscle car?
“Diesel” is a surname here, and the entry is the first name of the actor who carries it; begins with V.
Show the answer
Vin
61-Down (3 letters), Parisian fashion monogram
initials of a Paris fashion house founded by Yves Saint Laurent; three consonants, begins with Y.
Show the answer
Ysl

Mark the solving days on our printable calendar for November 2026 or the weekly calendar to print.

More puzzles for Thursday: Wordle hints and Connections hints. The smaller grids for the same date are our Mini answers for Nov. 12 and Midi answers for Nov. 12. Wednesday’s grid is in our Crossword answers for Nov. 11.

Today’s NYT Crossword answers (spoilers)

Stop here if you still want to solve it yourself.

Clue	Answer
1-Across	Smh
4-Across	Cee
7-Across	Mia
10-Across	Cho
13-Across	Leotard
15-Across	Adcreep
17-Across	Revamps
18-Across	Notabit
19-Across	Stereo
20-Across	Sobers
21-Across	Naacp
23-Across	Screw
24-Across	Fgs
26-Across	Skidoos
28-Across	Ick
31-Across	Rots
33-Across	Equip
34-Across	Etre
35-Across	Aahs
36-Across	Tulle
37-Across	Thar
38-Across	Cling
40-Across	Eye
41-Across	Haydn
42-Across	Air
43-Across	Ojs
45-Across	Die
47-Across	Ole
48-Across	Sedate
50-Across	Samuel
52-Across	Math
54-Across	Alda
55-Across	Rooftopgarden
60-Across	Vegetablemedley
62-Across	Illbe
63-Across	Bin
64-Across	Semis
65-Across	Noear
66-Across	Yet
67-Across	Troll
1-Down	Slrs
2-Down	Meet
3-Down	Hovensthird
4-Down	Cameas
5-Down	Erpocket
6-Down	Eds
7-Down	Man
8-Down	Idoscope
9-Down	Actors
10-Down	Cebewithyou
11-Down	Heir
12-Down	Opts
14-Down	Tara
16-Down	Rabe
22-Down	Piques
23-Down	Soiled
24-Down	Fracas
25-Down	Goalie
27-Down	Duly
29-Down	Cradle
30-Down	Kernel
32-Down	Ssn
34-Down	Eta
39-Down	Gotafter
41-Down	Headrest
44-Down	Jetta
46-Down	Islam
49-Down	Amoeba
51-Down	Madder
53-Down	Hobby
54-Down	Agent
55-Down	Relo
56-Down	Ogle
57-Down	Plie
58-Down	Elmo
59-Down	Neil
60-Down	Vin
61-Down	Ysl

The filled grid, with each clue number in its first square. Drawn from the official puzzle data published by The New York Times.

The four missing starts, and the phrase each one completes:

3-Down, Hovensthird: Beet is missing, giving Beethoven’s Third.
5-Down, Erpocket: Corn is missing, giving Corner Pocket.
8-Down, Idoscope: Kale is missing, giving Kaleidoscope.
10-Down, Cebewithyou: Pea is missing, giving Peace Be With You.

The answers come from the puzzle’s official data.

Yesterday's Crossword answer

The Crossword on Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2026: Across 1 Gimme, 6 Lace, 10 Gdp, 13 Altar, 14 Earls, 16 Ora, 17 Playinghost, 19 Oar, 20 Ikea, 21 Maandpa, 23 Bets, 26 Ella, 28 Robed, 29 Agreed, 31 Egg, 33 Eyre, 34 Baaed, 35 Janelle, 37 Adv, 38 Youfool, 40 Tar, 43 Easedin, 45 Drive, 47 Salt, 49 Dye, 50 Asimov, 51 Levis, 53 Brat, 55 Mews, 56 Initial, 58 Utes, 60 Nes, 61 Blurryphoto, 66 Kia, 67 Samba, 68 Polar, 69 Yds, 70 Neil, 71 Steps; Down 1 Gap, 2 Ill, 3 Mta, 4 Mayisee, 5 Erik, 6 Legal, 7 Aah, 8 Cromagnon, 9 Elsa, 10 Goodbyetime, 11 Draper, 12 Parade, 15 Star, 18 Need, 22 Noel, 23 Baba, 24 Egad, 25 Travelvisas, 27 Leafier, 30 Edys, 32 Geo, 35 Judyblume, 36 Llds, 39 Oed, 41 Avow, 42 Revs, 44 Atit, 46 Rimshot, 47 Slinky, 48 Aeneid, 50 Atty, 52 Sibs, 54 Aural, 57 Alan, 59 Epps, 62 Rbi, 63 Ole, 64 Tap, 65 Ors. Yesterday's hints and full solution.

Frequently asked questions

Who made today's NYT Crossword?

Jared Cappel constructed the Nov. 12, 2026 grid and Will Shortz edited it, according to the puzzle data.

Why does the Nov. 12, 2026 Crossword data have 17 rows when Wednesday's had 15?

The first of the 17 rows holds no letters at all: all 15 squares are black, and clue number 1 sits in row 2. The solving area is 15 columns by 16 rows, which is 240 squares, 40 of them black.

Which clues end in a question mark in the Nov. 12, 2026 Crossword?

Six: 4-Across, 52-Across, 9-Down, 29-Down, 55-Down and 60-Down. Each one is explained, without its answer, in the section above the hints.

What are the NYT Crossword answers for Nov. 12, 2026?

Spoilers: Across, Smh, Cee, Mia, Cho, Leotard, Adcreep, Revamps, Notabit, Stereo, Sobers, Naacp, Screw, Fgs, Skidoos, Ick, Rots, Equip, Etre, Aahs, Tulle, Thar, Cling, Eye, Haydn, Air, Ojs, Die, Ole, Sedate, Samuel, Math, Alda, Rooftopgarden, Vegetablemedley, Illbe, Bin, Semis, Noear, Yet, Troll, Down, Slrs, Meet, Hovensthird, Cameas, Erpocket, Eds, Man, Idoscope, Actors, Cebewithyou, Heir, Opts, Tara, Rabe, Piques, Soiled, Fracas, Goalie, Duly, Cradle, Kernel, Ssn, Eta, Gotafter, Headrest, Jetta, Islam, Amoeba, Madder, Hobby, Agent, Relo, Ogle, Plie, Elmo, Neil, Vin, Ysl.

Sources

The Crossword (The New York Times)

Fresh Calendars News Desk

Editorial team, daily puzzles

The Fresh Calendars News Desk is the editorial team behind Fresh Calendars News. It publishes the daily puzzle pages for games such as Wordle, NYT Connections, Strands, Pips, Spelling Bee, the Mini Crossword and Contexto, each with graded hints first and a clearly marked answer section after them. Answers come from the publisher's own game data where it exists and are checked against that saved data before a page goes live; for games without official data, a page waits until two independent published solutions agree. The desk also handles reader tips and correction reports for the whole site, works with the editors who cover holidays, school calendars, money, time changes and seasonal events, and notes each correction at the end of the article with the date it was made.