NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for December 15, 2003

Q: Can I see past crossword answers?

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

Monday, December 15, 2003

By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated Nov 3, 2026 at 3:57 PM ETHow we make hints

This archive page covers the The Crossword from Monday, December 15, 2003. 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.

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

Across clues & answers

1
Coffee with body
6
Greta who said, "I vant to be alone"
11
Relaxing resort
14
Sing like Crosby
15
Ancient Greek marketplace
16
President Coolidge
17
"Peter Pan" villain
19
Assayer's material
20
Dressed
21
Suggestions on food labels: Abbr.
22
Three-toed animal
24
"There's a problem!"
26
Flock leader
27
Country dance
32
Demean
33
Missing companionship
37
Droop
38
Cope with
40
Write quickly
41
More reliable
44
Abstract visual images
46
Efficient manufacturing process
49
Dwarfed tree
52
Ascent
53
Less cordial
54
Fiendish
56
Artist Salvador
60
Comic's bit
61
Water locator
64
Encouragement at the bullring
65
Big ape
66
Christopher who played the Man of Steel
67
___ and feather
68
Horse features
69
Horse relatives

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

Sunday, December 14, 2003

across

1. Creepy sort, for short: LECH
5. View from a lighthouse: SEA
8. Lobster ___ diavolo: FRA
11. Pit stop can: STP
14. Fountain treat: MALT
18. Native Nebraskan: OTOE
19. Antiapartheid org.: ANC
20. Scale notes: RES
21. Onassis, in tabloids: ARI
22. Skating star Kulik: ILIA
23. "___ it the truth!": AINT
24. Oxford, for one: Abbr.: HMO
25. Phone no. add-on: EXT
26. Magazine article: GUN
27. Healthful retreats: SPAS
28. Sandy tract, in Britain: DENE
29. Movie cowboy Lash ___: LARUE
31. "Halt!" to a salt: AVAST
33. What that isn't: THIS
34. Mortimer, a real dummy: SNERD
36. Maximally chi-chi: SNAZZIEST
38. Clear the slate: ERASE
39. No longer stops?: UNCORKS
41. Tuckered out: WEARY
42. Airport city near Montreal: MIRABEL
44. Rover and Tabby, e.g.: PETNAMES
46. Tiny Tim played it: UKE
47. Scrooge overcame this: MEANNESS
48. Get-up: TOGS
49. Software program, briefly: APP
51. Sermon subject: SIN
53. Cozy retreat: NEST
54. Noodlehead: SCHMO
56. N.F.C. gridder: BUC
57. Lush: SOT
59. Diets: SLIMS
62. Attach with laces: TIEON
63. Gift exchange requirement: Abbr.: RCPT
65. Not an orig.: REPR
66. Undeclared: TACIT
67. It's heard in Islamabad: URDU
68. Kind of date: DUE
69. ___-Mère-Église, France: STE
71. Abu ___ Bay, site of Horatio Nelson's naval victory, 1798: QIR
73. "The Gift of the Magi," e.g.: TALE
74. Sgt. and sgt. maj.: NCOS
75. Done, to Donne: OER
76. Rainbow: ARC
77. Itinerary abbr.: RTE
78. Allure competitor: ELLE
79. King in a 1978 pop hit: TUT
80. Pudding ingredient: FIG
81. Antique auto: REO
82. Directly across from: Abbr.: OPP
84. Spearheaded: LED
85. Sound from a wok: SSS
86. Hurrah for El Farruco: OLE
87. Leg bone: TIBIA
89. Hide-hair link: NOR
90. Timeline info: Abbr.: YRS
91. Salute: HAIL
92. Starting Harvard law students: ONELS
93. Without exception, after "to": AMAN
95. Choir practice: SCALES
97. Croupiers' tools: RAKES
98. "Leave me alone!": LAYOFF
101. Colors in cave paintings: OCHRES
102. Bourbon and others: Abbr.: STS
103. "Law & Order" type: Abbr.: DET
105. "Nobody's Fool" star Paul: NEWMAN
107. Window item: BLIND
108. Skater Midori: ITO
109. Satisfied: MET
111. One with a thick skin: RHINO
112. Ballet leap: JETE
113. Seasonal air that celebrates this puzzle's theme: OTANNENBAUM
118. Carbon compound: ENOL
119. Love symbol: EROS
120. Not give a definite answer: STRINGALONG
121. Huge win: ROUT
122. Beach shades: TANS
123. Western-themed films: HORSEOPERAS
124. Art Deco designer: ERTE

down

1. Fills: LOADSUP
2. Stephen, in France: ETIENNE
3. With 15-Down, what to do to reveal this puzzle's theme: CONNECTTHEDOTS
4. Subject to external controls: HETERONOMOUS
5. Satirist Mort: SAHL
6. How lemmings move: ENMASSE
7. It's often squirreled away: ACORN
8. Succumb to stage fright: FREEZEUP
9. Name fit for a king?: REX
10. Dancing siblings: ASTAIRES
11. Big stories: SAGAS
12. "Would I lie?!": TRUSTME
13. Amount of eggnog: PINT
14. Botch the subtitles, maybe: MISTRANSLATE
15. See 3-Down: ALPHABETICALLY
16. Is a go-between: LIAISES
17. Fringe material: TASSELS
30. Motor City org.: UAW
32. "Oy ___!": VEY
35. Chinese zodiac sign: DRAGON
37. Drummer Starkey, Ringo's son: ZAK
38. English poet Dowson: ERNEST
40. Tour de France units: Abbr.: KMS
43. "At Seventeen" singer Janis: IAN
45. It holds one cup: SAUCER
47. Alphabet sextet: MNOPQR
50. Narc's find, for short: PCP
52. British verb ending: ISE
54. Evel doings?: STUNTS
55. Ring setting: CIRCUS
56. Noted family of Flemish painters: BRUEGELS
58. Like some chords: TRITONAL
60. One whose job is a grind?: MILLER
61. War horses: STEEDS
64. Winter Palace residents: TSARINAS
65. Sprang back: RECOILED
68. Linen closet stack: DOILIES
70. Game show host who was once a CBC newsman: TREBEK
72. Car tower: REPOMAN
80. Gave birth, as on a ranch: FOALED
83. "God bless us every one," e.g.: PRAYER
87. Trattoria desserts: TORTONIS
88. Rally: ASSEMBLE
91. It will hold your horses: HARNESS
94. The boonies: NOWHERE
95. White of the eye: SCLERA
96. Ancient Greek tunic: CHITON
99. Key of Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2: FMINOR
100. Disperse: FANOUT
101. Antiquaire's item: OBJET
102. Brenda of the comics: STARR
104. "Coffee, ___ Me?": TEAOR
106. Nick of "Lorenzo's Oil": NOLTE
108. Stick ___: ITTO
110. ___ sandwich: TUNA
113. Kyrgyz city: OSH
114. Phoenix-to-Flagstaff dir.: NNE
115. Mania subject?: EGO
116. Brief time out?: NAP
117. Some old roadsters: MGS

Hints and full breakdown for Dec 14

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.