NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for February 25, 2005
Friday, February 25, 2005
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Friday, February 25, 2005. 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
- 16
- 21
Down clues & answers
- 11
- 14
- 16
- 25
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Thursday, February 24, 2005
across
- 1. Prefix with industry: AGRO
- 5. Pace: CLIP
- 9. Malfunction: ACTUP
- 14. City whose major league baseball team was once named the Naps: CLEVELAND
- 16. Dirt: PORNO
- 17. Domestic animal thought to bring good luck: CALICOCAT
- 18. Persian Gulf noblemen: EMIRS
- 19. Quiet end?: UDE
- 20. Was outstanding: OWED
- 21. Charge for cash: ATMFEE
- 22. Country for which a cat was named: SIAM
- 24. Readies for drilling: NUMBS
- 26. Mrs. Victor Laszlo: ILSA
- 27. "___ With Love": TOSIR
- 29. Singer Edith: PIAF
- 30. Back lot lot: SETS
- 31. "Little House on the Prairie" family name: OLESON
- 33. Airplane wing parts: SLATS
- 35. Southern title-holder: MISSMISSISSIPPI
- 40. Adagio and allegro: TEMPI
- 41. Scalding, as coffee: TOOHOT
- 42. Job for a barber: BUSH
- 45. Snookums: BABY
- 47. Fastens, in a way: SNAPS
- 48. Words that are a treat to hear?: ONME
- 49. Archangel of salvation: URIEL
- 51. One available in Mex.: SRTA
- 52. Pays off: BRIBES
- 54. Newbery-winning author ___ Lowry: LOIS
- 56. Mother: Var.: MAM
- 57. Personality: COLOR
- 58. Plan for vacations: TIMESHARE
- 60. Directly from the side: ABEAM
- 61. Vaudeville performances: STAGEACTS
- 62. Seed's exterior: TESTA
- 63. Old talk show host Joe: PYNE
- 64. Johann who wrote the Swiss national anthem: WYSS
down
- 1. Habituate: ACCUSTOM
- 2. Flowers with sword-shaped leaves: GLADIOLI
- 3. Studio output: RELEASES
- 4. Egg: Prefix: OVI
- 5. Rodeo sight: CLOWN
- 6. Prepare to skate: LACEUP
- 7. Cause for suppression of evidence: INADMISSIBILITY
- 8. July hrs. in Vegas: PDT
- 9. Adopt-___: APET
- 10. Post-disaster appointments: COMMISSIONS
- 11. Hardly anything: TRIFLE
- 12. Discord: UNREST
- 13. Stand in for: POSEAS
- 15. Prefix with system: ECO
- 21. Of equal speed: ASFAST
- 23. Blow it: MISSTHEBOAT
- 25. Vacation isle: BALI
- 28. Center of a former empire: ROME
- 32. Aura: NIMBUS
- 34. General ___ chicken: TSOS
- 36. Rigging support: SPAR
- 37. Site for people in white coats: PHARMACY
- 38. Kellogg's brand: POPTARTS
- 39. Words in "The Little Mermaid" after "The human world …": ITSAMESS
- 42. University of Ohio athlete: BOBCAT
- 43. Prepare for a massage, perhaps: UNROBE
- 44. Flexes one's zygomatic muscles: SMILES
- 46. Royal's attendant: YEOMAN
- 50. Monarch's loyal subject: LIEGE
- 53. Aretha Franklin's Grammy-nominated sister: ERMA
- 55. Dir. for a ship: SSE
- 58. Recipe amt.: TSP
- 59. Turn left: HAW
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.