NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for December 13, 2011
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Tuesday, December 13, 2011. 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
- 19
- 58
- 73
Down clues & answers
- 29
- 35
- 37
- 54
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Monday, December 12, 2011
across
- 1. High praise: KUDOS
- 6. Light bulb unit: WATT
- 10. Ring up: CALL
- 14. Piano practice piece: ETUDE
- 15. Geographical datum: AREA
- 16. Woodwind able to provide an orchestra's tuning note: OBOE
- 17. *One who's an empty threat: PAPERTIGER
- 19. Journal on YouTube, maybe: VLOG
- 20. Not just any: THE
- 21. "I concur!": METOO
- 22. Onionlike soup ingredients: LEEKS
- 23. Luxurious: POSH
- 24. "Dona ___ and Her Two Husbands": FLOR
- 26. *Willie Mays, positionally: CENTERFIELDER
- 31. High: Fr.: HAUT
- 33. Sp. lady: SRA
- 34. Turn suddenly: SWERVE
- 35. Amend: ALTER
- 37. Hosp. parts ... or what the answers to the six starred clues each have twice: ERS
- 39. Dutch painter Jan: STEEN
- 40. Grew disenchanted: SOURED
- 42. Visitors from beyond: ETS
- 44. Lip-puckering: TART
- 45. *What a waiter might be holding when he says "Say when": PEPPERGRINDER
- 48. Swear: AVER
- 49. Lecher's look: LEER
- 50. Sky-blue: AZURE
- 53. Former Houston footballer: OILER
- 55. Heavenly body: ORB
- 58. Music genre for Joan Baez: FOLK
- 59. *Lawn-Boy or Toro product: POWERMOWER
- 61. Actress Hathaway of "The Princess Diaries": ANNE
- 62. Actor/songwriter Novello: IVOR
- 63. Basketball venue: ARENA
- 64. Caboose: REAR
- 65. Sharpies, e.g.: PENS
- 66. Gives for a while: LENDS
down
- 1. Retained: KEPT
- 2. Home of the Sundance Film Festival: UTAH
- 3. Bamboozle: DUPE
- 4. Poem for the praiseworthy: ODE
- 5. Sunday morning address: SERMON
- 6. "Don't go anywhere ... I'll be back": WAITHERE
- 7. Jason's ship, in myth: ARGO
- 8. Start 18 holes: TEEOFF
- 9. Paving goo: TAR
- 10. *Enclosure with a manuscript or résumé: COVERLETTER
- 11. Up to the task: ABLE
- 12. "Behold!": LOOK
- 13. Important parts of dancers: LEGS
- 18. Exams: TESTS
- 22. Major theater chain: LOEWS
- 23. *Spider-Man's alter ego: PETERPARKER
- 25. Fleur-de-___: LIS
- 26. Prankster: CUTUP
- 27. Not so well-done: RARER
- 28. Gloomy, in verse: DREAR
- 29. Last word in the Lord's Prayer, before "Amen": EVER
- 30. The ___ Is Too Damn High Party: RENT
- 31. Gate hardware: HASP
- 32. Skin soother: ALOE
- 36. Christopher of "Superman": REEVE
- 38. Ben and Jerry: STILLERS
- 41. Rap's Dr. ___: DRE
- 43. Curling of the lip: SNEER
- 46. Settled routine: GROOVE
- 47. Akin to skin?: DERMAL
- 50. Come from ___: AFAR
- 51. The "Z" of DMZ: ZONE
- 52. Bone paralleling the radius: ULNA
- 54. "Victory is mine!": IWON
- 55. Wilson of "Wedding Crashers": OWEN
- 56. Tear up: REND
- 57. They give women a lift: BRAS
- 59. Backup singer for Gladys Knight: PIP
- 60. Miner's pay dirt: ORE
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.