NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for March 20, 1997
Thursday, March 20, 1997
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Thursday, March 20, 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
- 20
- 27
- 31
- 33
- 38
- 58
- 60
Down clues & answers
- 36
- 48
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Wednesday, March 19, 1997
across
- 1. ___ center: REC
- 4. Protection against chills: SHAWL
- 9. Biting: ACERB
- 14. Listening device: EAR
- 15. Shire of "For Richer, For Poorer": TALIA
- 16. Paint ingredient: LATEX
- 17. Saddam Hussein's title: PRESIDENTOFIRAQ
- 20. Playful water animal: OTTER
- 21. "Speed" name: KEANU
- 22. Popular N.B.A. nickname: SHAQ
- 23. They avail themselves of Vail: SKIERS
- 26. ___ Canals: SOO
- 29. "The Joy Luck Club" author: TAN
- 30. A & W rival: BARQS
- 31. Con job: SCAM
- 32. This is one for the books: AUDIT
- 33. Dwellers along the Volga: TATARS
- 35. Informative dialogues: QANDASESSIONS
- 38. Not moving: ATREST
- 39. Resell at inflated prices: SCALP
- 40. Run amok: RIOT
- 41. Marquee names: STARS
- 42. %: Abbr.: PCT
- 45. Computer's "guts," for short: CPU
- 46. Bomb tryouts: ATESTS
- 48. Prefix with space or stat: AERO
- 49. Title for Cervantes: SENOR
- 51. Persian Gulf nation: QATAR
- 52. Most typewriters have them: QWERTYKEYBOARDS
- 57. Spine-tingling: EERIE
- 58. Freeze: ICEUP
- 59. "Hold On Tight" rock group: ELO
- 60. Office furniture: DESKS
- 61. Part of a spool: NOTCH
- 62. "___ Miserables": LES
down
- 1. Send another E-mail message: REPOST
- 2. Actress Kitt: EARTHA
- 3. Canea resident: CRETAN
- 4. Move a muscle: STIR
- 5. "It ___ to Be You": HAD
- 6. Pintful, perhaps: ALE
- 7. Take the gold: WIN
- 8. Potato pancakes: LATKES
- 9. Code words for "A": ALFAS
- 10. He went east of Eden: CAIN
- 11. Ancient Italian: ETRUSCAN
- 12. Stephen of "The Crying Game": REA
- 13. Diagonal chess capture: BXQ
- 18. Et ___ (and the following): SEQ
- 19. "The Star-Spangled Banner" preposition: OER
- 23. 1978 Peace Prize winner: SADAT
- 24. Actor Kristofferson: KRIS
- 25. Mensa hurdles: IQTESTS
- 27. Galley items: OARS
- 28. Meditation syllables: OMS
- 30. Signs of winter's end: BUDS
- 31. Word in an octagon: STOP
- 32. Work without ___ (risk injury): ANET
- 33. Some Romanovs: TSARS
- 34. Suffers: AILS
- 35. Common swab: QTIP
- 36. Firebrands: AROUSERS
- 37. Imitate Mel Torme: SCAT
- 38. Pinball path: ARC
- 41. Pianist Rudolf: SERKIN
- 42. "Stormy" sea bird: PETREL
- 43. Hold protectively: CRADLE
- 44. Some sculptures: TORSOS
- 46. Poker payments: ANTES
- 47. Slinky or yo-yo: TOY
- 48. Motel approver, briefly: AAA
- 50. Estrada of "CHiPs": ERIK
- 51. Hebrew letter before resh: QOPH
- 52. Proof finale: QED
- 53. Minuscule: WEE
- 54. "The Island of the Day Before" author: ECO
- 55. To date: YET
- 56. Tampa Bay player, for short: BUC
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.