NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for May 22, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Friday, May 22, 2009. 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
- 22
- 30
- 38
Down clues & answers
- 6
- 44
- 50
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Thursday, May 21, 2009
across
- 1. 1970 hit for the Jackson 5: ABC
- 4. "Deal!": AGREED
- 10. What a loose thread might be: CLUE
- 14. Friendly term of address: BRO
- 15. Río crosser: PUENTE
- 16. Nest egg protectors: HENS
- 17. Name of Lord Rubble's feudal estate?: BARNEYFIEF
- 19. Slurs, in music: ARCS
- 20. English princess: ANNE
- 21. Sender of monthly checks: Abbr.: SSA
- 22. Fix, as a pump: RESOLE
- 24. Present addition: BOW
- 26. Air in a sooty shaft?: COALMIEN
- 28. Removed roughly: TORNOUT
- 32. Big Apple sch.: NYU
- 33. Sly little dog?: SNEAKPEKE
- 35. One stuck in the can: LIFER
- 40. Third in a Latin series: AMAT
- 41. Carefully search: SCOUR
- 43. Short evening?: NITE
- 44. Charles ___, "Brideshead Revisited" protagonist: RYDER
- 46. Celebration for a Disney dwarf?: HAPPYFETE
- 48. "The Mikado" wardrobe item: OBI
- 50. Like words?: SIMILES
- 51. Bamboozle a "Fargo" director?: SNOWCOEN
- 56. Do sum work: ADD
- 57. Picasso/Braque movement: CUBISM
- 58. ___ Lingus: AER
- 61. Title heroine described in the first sentence of her novel as "handsome, clever and rich": EMMA
- 64. It's shrinking in Asia: ARAL
- 65. Property claim along the Rio Grande?: BORDERLIEN
- 68. Realty ad abbr.: BSMT
- 69. Alchemic knowledge: ARCANA
- 70. Mungojerrie or Skimbleshanks, in a musical: CAT
- 71. Wet septet: SEAS
- 72. Toadies: YESMEN
- 73. P.G.A. Tour Rookie of the Year after Singh: ELS
down
- 1. "Money, Money, Money" band: ABBA
- 2. Muffin composition, maybe: BRAN
- 3. Hot dog coating at a county fair: CORNBREAD
- 4. Mirror: APE
- 5. "___ and Dolls": GUYS
- 6. Judges: REFS
- 7. Pioneer computer: ENIAC
- 8. Beach time in Bordeaux: ETE
- 9. Offset, as expenses: DEFRAY
- 10. Gorge: CHASM
- 11. Choisy-___ (Paris suburb): LEROI
- 12. Pawnbroker, in slang: UNCLE
- 13. Ruhr industrial hub: ESSEN
- 18. Recent arrival: NEONATE
- 23. Month before Tishri: ELUL
- 25. Convex cooker: WOK
- 27. Betters: ONEUPS
- 28. Romanov ruler: TSAR
- 29. "___ Own" (song from "Les Miz"): ONMY
- 30. DHL competitor: UPS
- 31. Sysop, for one: TECHIE
- 34. Place to overnight in an R.V.: KOA
- 36. Unbeliever: INFIDEL
- 37. Meadow voles: FIELDMICE
- 38. Major conclusion?: ETTE
- 39. Roger of "Cheers": REES
- 42. Sch. that's about 150 mi. north of 32-Across: RPI
- 45. Enormous birds of myth: ROCS
- 47. Sumac from Peru: YMA
- 49. City visited in "Around the World in 80 Days": BOMBAY
- 51. Union foes: SCABS
- 52. White-cap wearer: NURSE
- 53. "The Audacity of Hope" author: OBAMA
- 54. Slumps: WILTS
- 55. Pusher pursuers: NARCS
- 59. Cheese choice: EDAM
- 60. ___ Dubos, Pulitzer winner for "So Human an Animal": RENE
- 62. Seder, e.g.: MEAL
- 63. Creatures with tunnel vision?: ANTS
- 66. Prospector's prize: ORE
- 67. Fled: RAN
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.