NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for August 6, 1998

Q: Can I see past crossword answers?

Yes. Each date we have covered is in the crossword archive .

Thursday, August 6, 1998

By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated Nov 3, 2026 at 4:30 PM ETHow we make hints

This archive page covers the The Crossword from Thursday, August 6, 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.

74 clues · jump to Across or Down. Tap a tile for one letter, or Answer for the whole word.

Across clues & answers

Down clues & answers

Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.

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Previous The Crossword answer

Wednesday, August 5, 1998

across

1. Big sugar exporter: FIJI
5. Find repugnant: ABHOR
10. Hiking locale: PATH
14. ___ about (approximately): ONOR
15. Playground feature: SLIDE
16. Quick reply, say: ECHO
17. Start of a quip: ACHEAPUSEDCARIS
20. Chesspiece: MAN
21. Luau souvenirs: LEIS
22. Cut off: ALONE
23. Cropped photos?: PICS
24. Kind of throat: STREP
26. Part 2 of the quip: PROOFTHATIT
30. Naval inits.: HMS
33. Run out: LAPSE
34. Cuts off: LOPS
35. Alley ___: OOP
36. Provide with a hideout, perhaps: ABET
37. Breaks up, in a way: PLOWS
39. Skilled: ABLE
40. 007's creator Fleming: IAN
41. ___ Clinic: MAYO
42. Afghan or Thai: ASIAN
43. Like one in a series: NTH
44. Part 3 of the quip: ISOFTENHARD
47. Locale in western London: ACTON
49. Fringe: EDGE
50. Sitcom pioneer Desi: ARNAZ
52. Nicolas of "Con Air": CAGE
53. Humorous fellow: WAG
56. End of the quip: TODRIVEABARGAIN
60. Doomsayer's sign: OMEN
61. Knot-tying site: ALTAR
62. Gumbo vegetable: OKRA
63. Assembled: MADE
64. Thick-soled shoes: CLOGS
65. Top-quality: BEST

down

1. Shaver's purchase: FOAM
2. One in an old empire: INCA
3. Facilities: JOHN
4. Dander: IRE
5. Facet: ASPECT
6. Like robins' eggs: BLUISH
7. Greeting for the villain: HISS
8. Wordsworth work: ODE
9. Sunburned: RED
10. "Positive Thinking" proponent: PEALE
11. Woe for a high-wire walker: ACROPHOBIA
12. Dilute: THIN
13. Firefighter's handful: HOSE
18. "Get ___!" (90's catch phrase): ALIFE
19. Grocery sights: CARTS
23. Assignment: POST
24. Put into the hold: STOW
25. Loses verticality: TIPS
26. No-frills: PLAIN
27. Capital on the African coast: RABAT
28. Generous: OPENHANDED
29. Distant: ALOOF
31. Grinder: MOLAR
32. Devote, as time: SPEND
37. El ___, Tex.: PASO
38. City northeast of St.-Étienne: LYON
39. Tennis legend Arthur: ASHE
41. Actress Gaynor: MITZI
42. Inflame: ANGER
45. Item attached to a string: TEABAG
46. Mystery writers' awards: EDGARS
48. Judy of "Laugh-In": CARNE
50. Elemental particle: ATOM
51. Ancient capital: ROMA
52. Censor of 51-Down: CATO
53. Stir: WAKE
54. Superciliousness: AIRS
55. Small buzzer: GNAT
57. Hoover, e.g., informally: VAC
58. Add-on: ELL
59. Tar: GOB

Hints and full breakdown for Aug 5

More daily puzzle hints

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.