NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for January 28, 2012
Saturday, January 28, 2012
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Saturday, January 28, 2012. 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
- 35
- 61
Down clues & answers
- 37
- 41
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Friday, January 27, 2012
across
- 1. Actress Stone and others: EMMAS
- 6. "Just playin' with ya": IKID
- 10. Base characters?: UMPS
- 14. Meccan, e.g.: SAUDI
- 15. Ones sitting on pads: MICE
- 16. Cut off one's ears?: REAP
- 17. One asking questions he already knows the answers to: QUIZMASTER
- 19. Cousin of contra-: ANTI
- 20. Highness: SIRE
- 21. "Figures I'd have this problem!": JUSTMYLUCK
- 23. French expert in body language?: MARCEAU
- 24. Draw back: SHY
- 25. Education dissemination locations: LECTUREHALLS
- 30. Solidifying agents: AGARS
- 31. Vase lookalikes: EWERS
- 35. Bouncing off the walls: MANIC
- 36. Enclosure ... and an alphabetical listing of letters not appearing elsewhere in this puzzle's answer: BOX
- 37. Sylvester's "Rocky" co-star: TALIA
- 38. A Ford: EDSEL
- 39. "___ Girl" ("Bells Are Ringing" tune): IMETA
- 40. One swimming with flippers: DEEPSEADIVER
- 46. Logical ending: QED
- 49. Accessible for shooting: INRANGE
- 50. Like pool racks: TRIANGULAR
- 52. Host of PBS's "Scientific American Frontiers": ALDA
- 56. Baseball All-Star Kinsler and others: IANS
- 57. "1984" shelfmate: ANIMALFARM
- 59. Ordeal for jrs.: PSAT
- 60. Part of some pools: GENE
- 61. Rose partially: SATUP
- 62. Clinic shipments: SERA
- 63. Henry James biographer: EDEL
- 64. Least desirable parts: DREGS
down
- 1. A.B.A. members' titles: ESQS
- 2. Wailuku's county: MAUI
- 3. California's ___ Woods: MUIR
- 4. Wood shop shaper: ADZE
- 5. "Scrooge" star, 1951: SIM
- 6. "Likely story": IMSURE
- 7. Lawn flamingos and such: KITSCH
- 8. Pop alternative: ICETEA
- 9. With 12-Down, lidocaine delivery option: DERMAL
- 10. Risk board territory: URAL
- 11. Stack at IHOP, say: MENUS
- 12. See 9-Down: PATCH
- 13. Like some punk hairstyles: SPIKY
- 18. Cracked open: AJAR
- 22. Stocking-up time?: YULETIDE
- 23. Lay claim forcibly: MUSCLEIN
- 25. Weak: LAME
- 26. Quaint euphemism: EGAD
- 27. Film holders: CANS
- 28. True companion?: TRIED
- 29. Pundit: SWAMI
- 32. Highness: Abbr.: ELEV
- 33. Mass action: RITE
- 34. Mosel tributary: SAAR
- 41. Begin a conversation with: ENGAGE
- 42. Cut back: PRUNED
- 43. Contact liquid: SALINE
- 44. Nail topper: ENAMEL
- 45. Home to a much-visited tomb: AGRA
- 46. Sticks in a makeup bag: QTIPS
- 47. Sweep the board?: ERASE
- 48. Mosul money: DINAR
- 51. The Charleses' pet: ASTA
- 52. Not close: AFAR
- 53. Like fashionable partygoers?: LATE
- 54. It may knock you out: DRUG
- 55. Concert pieces: AMPS
- 58. 54-Down for a trip: LSD
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.