NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for February 8, 1998
Sunday, February 8, 1998
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Sunday, February 8, 1998. 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
- 14
- 20
- 40
- 48
- 74
- 82
- 87
- 103
- 105
- 106
- 117
- 124
Down clues & answers
- 36
- 39
- 47
- 57
- 99
- 100
- 113
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Saturday, February 7, 1998
across
- 1. It may make a pupil shrink: POPQUIZ
- 8. College in La Crosse, Wis.: VITERBO
- 15. "F Troop" sergeant: OROURKE
- 16. Raging: ONATEAR
- 17. Ethylene gas, agriculturally: RIPENER
- 18. Sitcom set in Norwich, Vt.: NEWHART
- 19. Undersides: SOLES
- 20. National Pizza Month: Abbr.: OCT
- 22. Croatian leader?: SERBO
- 23. Extended family: CLAN
- 24. Gems: DEARS
- 26. 100 dinars: RIAL
- 27. The other woman: HER
- 28. Footboard-headboard connector: BEDRAIL
- 30. Shooting match sponsor, for short: NRA
- 31. Lamb pieces: ESSAYS
- 33. U.S. Steel founder: JPMORGAN
- 35. Early winter fruit: SNOWAPPLE
- 37. Unusually harsh: DESPOTIC
- 40. Glass eels: ELVERS
- 44. ___ and run: EAT
- 45. Foreman's force: WORKERS
- 47. Kind of treatment: VIP
- 48. Whizzes: PROS
- 50. Favorites, often: SEEDS
- 51. Astral flareup: NOVA
- 52. Head dog: ALPHA
- 54. It began in A.D. 800: HRE
- 55. 1979 Pontius Pilate portrayer: PALIN
- 56. Santa ___ (Baja California port): ROSALIA
- 58. Avoided a pothole, perhaps: SWERVED
- 60. Georgia's capital: TBILISI
- 61. Undissembling: SINCERE
- 62. Summoned: SENTFOR
- 63. Charlie Parker's piece: ALTOSAX
down
- 1. Alfa Romeo alternative: PORSCHE
- 2. "Crying in the Chapel" combo, with "the": ORIOLES
- 3. Rocky Mountain trees: POPLARS
- 4. Fairy ___: QUEEN
- 5. Sizable servers: URNS
- 6. A Turner: IKE
- 7. Killed, as a Congressional bill: ZEROED
- 8. Family name in a hit musical: VONTRAPP
- 9. Like Bruckner's Symphony No. 7: INE
- 10. Fancy marbles: TAWS
- 11. Common solvent: ETHER
- 12. Raising, in a way: REARING
- 13. Bush once seen around the White House: BARBARA
- 14. Old World bird eaten as a delicacy: ORTOLAN
- 21. Motorist's menace: CARJACKER
- 24. FireDome and Adventurer, e.g.: DESOTOS
- 25. Smirks: SIMPERS
- 28. Already: BYNOW
- 29. Reclines: LOLLS
- 32. Hooded menace: ASP
- 34. Sermonizer, for short: REV
- 36. Terrier type: WIREHAIR
- 37. Breaks camp: DEPARTS
- 38. Stud site: EARLOBE
- 39. Visits: STOPSIN
- 41. Develops: EVOLVES
- 42. Saint-Tropez locale: RIVIERA
- 43. Hip hugger?: SPANDEX
- 46. Early center of Christianity: EDESSA
- 49. Ten Commandments word: SHALT
- 51. Snow seizer: NARCO
- 53. It comes before ba: ALIF
- 55. Shut in: PENT
- 57. Prefix with -gon: ISO
- 59. He played Wesley on "Star Trek: T.N.G.": WIL
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.