NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for January 24, 1997
Friday, January 24, 1997
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Friday, January 24, 1997. The daily crossword is the classic: a 15×15 grid on weekdays and a larger Sunday puzzle, with difficulty rising from a gentle Monday to a fiendish Saturday. Hints come first and the solution stays hidden until you ask for it.
Across clues & answers
- 18
- 20
- 21
- 23
- 37
Down clues & answers
- 36
- 44
- 46
- 53
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Thursday, January 23, 1997
across
- 1. Composer ___ Carlo Menotti: GIAN
- 5. So-and-sos: SOBS
- 9. "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" star, 1939: DONAT
- 14. Liking: INTO
- 15. Semicircular room: APSE
- 16. Balearic resort isle: IBIZA
- 17. Flop: BUST
- 18. ___ to the throne: HEIR
- 19. Locker art: PINUP
- 20. Basic: BREADANDBUTTER
- 23. Fish of which the male carries the fertilized eggs: SEAHORSE
- 24. Cocktail ingredient: RYE
- 25. ___ toot: ONA
- 26. Germ: MICROBE
- 30. Gentleman's evening clothes: SOUPANDFISH
- 35. Topper: LID
- 36. Car bar: AXLE
- 37. Agreeable word: YES
- 38. Enthralled: AGOG
- 39. Writer Hecht: BEN
- 40. Maugham satire: CAKESANDALE
- 44. Ignorant (of): UNAWARE
- 46. Revivalist, informally: NEO
- 47. Brian of rock: ENO
- 48. Person with hives: APIARIST
- 53. 1953 play, or consolation for a meatless meal?: TEAANDSYMPATHY
- 56. Kind of board: CHESS
- 57. Where Ron Howard was born: Abbr.: OKLA
- 58. Betty of cartoons: BOOP
- 59. Printing mark: CARET
- 60. Laugh ___: RIOT
- 61. Like some tennis games: LOVE
- 62. Walter Trampler's instrument: VIOLA
- 63. Elizabeth II's only daughter: ANNE
- 64. Made do: EKED
down
- 1. The Bee Gees: GIBBS
- 2. Harden: INURE
- 3. Confused: ATSEA
- 4. "Forget it!": NOTAHOPE
- 5. Extremely arid: SAHARAN
- 6. Broaches, in a way: OPENS
- 7. Backing vocal?: BSIDE
- 8. Author Ivo Andric, for one: SERB
- 9. Hinged pair of pictures: DIPTYCH
- 10. ___ dictum: OBITER
- 11. Emergency CB channel: NINE
- 12. France's Cote d'___: AZUR
- 13. Designate: TAP
- 21. Spanish lady's title: DONA
- 22. "Trinity" author: URIS
- 26. Failure: MISS
- 27. "Eugene Onegin" sister: OLGA
- 28. Junior high subj.: BIOL
- 29. Touchiness: EDGE
- 30. Elephant Boy of 30's film: SABU
- 31. Team members: OXEN
- 32. Arm part: ULNA
- 33. Director W. S. Van ___: DYKE
- 34. Charge: FEE
- 38. Darling: ADORABLE
- 40. Popular game from Uruguay: CANASTA
- 41. Schoenberg's "Moses und ___": ARON
- 42. Pep up: ANIMATE
- 43. One of the tides: NEAP
- 45. Toad Hall vandal: WEASEL
- 48. Show politeness at the door: ASKIN
- 49. Traffic cone: PYLON
- 50. "___ a trip on a train..." (Benny Goodman lyric): ITOOK
- 51. Leave, with "off": SHOVE
- 52. Pounded the Underwood: TYPED
- 53. Cuisine choice: THAI
- 54. A Saarinen: EERO
- 55. ___ Maar (Picasso subject): DORA
- 56. Year in Septimius Severus's reign: CCV
More daily puzzle hints
- WordleGuess the five-letter word in six triesGuide & tips
- ConnectionsSort 16 words into four hidden groupsGuide & tips
- StrandsFind the themed words hidden in a letter gridGuide & tips
- Spelling BeeMake words from seven letters around a center letterGuide & tips
- Mini CrosswordA bite-size crossword you can finish over coffeeGuide & tips
- Connections: Sports EditionConnections with a sports-only word poolGuide & tips
- Letter BoxedChain words around a square using all 12 lettersGuide & tips
- Midi CrosswordThe mid-size crossword between the Mini and the dailyGuide & tips
How the week is built
- Monday and Tuesday: straightforward definitions and familiar answers. These are the best days to learn.
- Wednesday: a step up, often with a playful theme.
- Thursday: the trick day, with rebus squares (several letters in one square) and answers that turn corners or skip squares.
- Friday and Saturday: themeless and tough, with sly clues and long open sections.
- Sunday: a bigger 21×21 grid with a theme, about as hard as a Wednesday or Thursday.
Crossword-solving habits worth building
- Learn the common fill. Short vowel-heavy words such as ERA, OREO, ALOE and ETNA appear constantly because they help constructors connect sections.
- Read clue signals. "?" means wordplay, "Abbr." means an abbreviation, "e.g." means an example of a category, and a foreign word in the clue hints at a foreign answer.
- Find the theme. The longest answers usually share a gimmick; the title (on Sundays) or a "revealer" clue explains it.
- Erase without fear. When crossings don't work, the wrong letter is usually in the answer you were most confident about.
- Use targeted help. Reveal one letter here, or try our crossword solver with a pattern like ?R?S?.
The Crossword FAQ
When is the next crossword released?
Weekday puzzles go live at 10 p.m. Eastern Time the night before; weekend puzzles are released earlier in the evening.
What is a rebus square?
A square that holds more than one letter. Sometimes it holds a whole word or a symbol. They are most common on Thursdays.
Which day is the hardest?
Saturday is generally the hardest, followed by Friday. Sunday is larger but closer to midweek difficulty.
Can I see past crossword answers?
Yes. Each date we have covered is in the crossword archive.