NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for April 3, 2001

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

Tuesday, April 3, 2001

By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated Nov 3, 2026 at 4:14 PM ETHow we make hints

This archive page covers the The Crossword from Tuesday, April 3, 2001. 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

Monday, April 2, 2001

across

1. Submarine detector: SONAR
6. Bartender's "rocks": ICE
9. Unexpected defeat: UPSET
14. The Gem State: IDAHO
15. "The A-Team" star: MRT
16. Debonair: SUAVE
17. Settle a debt: REPAY
18. Long, long time: EON
19. Hungry: UNFED
20. Running backs, often: BALLCARRIERS
23. In the past: AGO
26. Paved the way: LED
27. Relative of "Darn!": HECK
28. Cold, wind and sleet, e.g.: FOULWEATHER
32. Tiny fraction of a joule: ERG
35. Student getting one-on-one help: TUTEE
36. Decay: ROT
37. Paraphernalia: GEAR
38. Self-images: EGOS
39. Astronaut's wear: GSUIT
41. As far as: UPTO
42. Whistle blowers: REFS
43. Miner's quest: ORE
44. Attempts: TRIES
45. Sp. woman: SRA
46. Carnival's setting: FAIRGROUNDS
49. What flags do in the wind: FLAP
51. Like avaunt and prithee: Abbr.: OBS
52. Test for coll. seniors: GRE
53. Hit the jackpot: STRIKEITRICH
58. "Common Sense" writer: PAINE
59. Turf: SOD
60. Blood carrier: AORTA
64. Painful stomach problem: ULCER
65. Major-leaguer: PRO
66. Jurist Brandeis: LOUIS
67. College bigwigs: DEANS
68. Desire: YEN
69. Borders: EDGES

down

1. Knight's title: SIR
2. Keats's "Bards of Passion and of Mirth," e.g.: ODE
3. Siesta: NAP
4. Captain with a whalebone leg: AHAB
5. Formal pronoun: ROYALWE
6. Marcos of the Philippines: IMELDA
7. Gator's cousin: CROC
8. Volcano in Sicily: ETNA
9. Shylock: USURER
10. Language of ancient Carthage: PUNIC
11. Protection: SAFEKEEPING
12. Next-to-last fairy tale word: EVER
13. Slugger Williams and others: TEDS
21. Peggy who sang "Fever": LEE
22. Butler at Tara: RHETT
23. Dessert, to a Brit: AFTERS
24. Extortionist: GOUGER
25. Oscar-winning Meryl Streep film: OUTOFAFRICA
29. Not so much: LESS
30. More factual: TRUER
31. ___ polloi: HOI
33. Like "American Beauty": RATEDR
34. ___ Pointe, Mich.: GROSSE
37. Know-it-all: GURU
39. Lose it: GOAPE
40. ___ Lanka: SRI
44. Like most maps: TOSCALE
46. Charlatans: FAKERS
47. Racer Jeff: GORDON
48. Baseball stat: RBI
50. Fourth anniversary gift: LINEN
53. Tater: SPUD
54. Tall story: TALE
55. Cosby show: ISPY
56. Drove like mad: TORE
57. Engine cover: HOOD
61. Toupee: RUG
62. Backgammon impossibility: TIE
63. Donkey's cousin: ASS

Hints and full breakdown for Apr 2

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.