NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for May 12, 2005
Thursday, May 12, 2005
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Thursday, May 12, 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
- 14
- 20
- 29
- 38
- 56
- 59
- 63
Down clues & answers
- 12
- 37
- 46
- 53
- 58
- 60
- 61
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
across
- 1. Go wide of, say: MISS
- 5. Seven-time Wimbledon champ of the 1980's and 90's: GRAF
- 9. Celeb's way around town: LIMO
- 13. Be a brat: ACTUP
- 15. Down time: LULL
- 16. From the top: ANEW
- 17. Georgian's question before a fight?: YOUMACONFUNOFME
- 20. Curry of "Today": ANN
- 21. Gad about: ROVE
- 22. Siouan speakers: OTOES
- 23. Archipelago part: ISLE
- 24. Artist Alex, leader of modern realism: KATZ
- 26. Montanan's comeback?: YOUREAREALBUTTE
- 33. Cortés victim: AZTEC
- 34. Hang in there: STAY
- 35. Neighbor of Bulg.: ROM
- 36. Charles of "Hill Street Blues": HAID
- 37. Places to find dates?: OASES
- 39. Attend: GOTO
- 40. Tolkien beast: ORC
- 41. Air: AURA
- 42. Vinegar holder: CRUET
- 43. New Yorker's dare?: OKAYTROYTOHITME
- 47. Pump sign in Canada: ESSO
- 48. Aid's partner: ABET
- 49. "___ to every purpose …": ATIME
- 52. Start to flutter one's eyes, say: STIR
- 53. From Okla. City to Mobile: ESE
- 56. Alaskan's sorry cry after a fight?: JUNEAUWHATYADID
- 60. Like most bathroom graffiti: Abbr.: ANON
- 61. Table leveler: SHIM
- 62. Moose's place: LODGE
- 63. Sari-clad royal: RANI
- 64. Traditional snake dancer: HOPI
- 65. Boston suburb: LYNN
down
- 1. Early Yucatán people: MAYA
- 2. Smiley face, e.g.: ICON
- 3. Send reeling: STUN
- 4. Cartesian "I am": SUM
- 5. Danny of "The Color Purple": GLOVER
- 6. Bit of writing on the wall?: RUNE
- 7. TV E.T.: ALF
- 8. Winter bug: FLU
- 9. Taoism founder: LAOTZU
- 10. The skinny: INFO
- 11. Same: Fr.: MEME
- 12. Is in the red: OWES
- 14. 3.26 light-years: PARSEC
- 18. Fizzy drink: COLA
- 19. ___ a long shot: NOTBY
- 23. Really steamed: IRED
- 24. Shakespeare's shrew, informally: KATE
- 25. [Sigh]: ALAS
- 26. Google competitor: YAHOO
- 27. ___ Mountains: OZARK
- 28. City on the Mohawk: UTICA
- 29. Piece in The New Republic: ESSAY
- 30. Rainbow ___: TROUT
- 31. Clan emblem: TOTEM
- 32. Overdo a scene: EMOTE
- 37. What we have: OURS
- 38. Suffix with buck: AROO
- 39. Stick-to-it-iveness: GRIT
- 41. Tahiti-bound, perhaps: ATSEA
- 42. Actress Ladd: CHERYL
- 44. Sana'a citizen: YEMENI
- 45. Japanese mat: TATAMI
- 46. "In memoriam" item: OBIT
- 49. Nearly closed: AJAR
- 50. Sandwich filler: TUNA
- 51. Privy to: INON
- 52. FedEx, say: SHIP
- 53. Countercurrent: EDDY
- 54. Gemini, for one: SIGN
- 55. Scene of a fall: EDEN
- 57. Show theatergoers to their seats, informally: USH
- 58. "___ cares?": WHO
- 59. MSN competitor: AOL
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.