NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for April 21, 2012
Saturday, April 21, 2012
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Saturday, April 21, 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
- 22
- 55
Down clues & answers
- 11
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Friday, April 20, 2012
across
- 1. One with a famous opening act?: ALIBABA
- 8. Invite out for: ASKTO
- 13. They get the scoop at work: SODAJERKS
- 16. Run: BLEED
- 17. Trying to win a radio contest, say: CALLINGIN
- 18. Figure in a doctor's office: COPAY
- 19. Light breakfast: ONEEGG
- 20. Liberal opening?: NEO
- 22. Notes come out of them: ATMS
- 23. Old game co. that made D&D: TSR
- 24. Tree with catkins: ALDER
- 26. Temporary retirements?: NAPS
- 27. Intrepidity: VALOR
- 29. "The Sorrows of Young Werther" author: GOETHE
- 31. Runs out of energy: DIES
- 33. Fix up: REHAB
- 35. "Holy cow!": BOY
- 36. Frustratingly difficult: LIKEHERDINGCATS
- 39. Suffix with Caesar: EAN
- 40. Excrete: EGEST
- 41. Swing wildly: YOYO
- 42. 11-Down, usually: GLOSSY
- 44. Argument: POINT
- 46. Part of the intro to a piece of "Champagne Music": ATWO
- 47. Area in front of a basketball net, informally: PAINT
- 49. ___-bear: SHE
- 52. Allocation of some pork spending?: LOIN
- 53. A.L. East squad, on scoreboards: TOR
- 54. Quickly mount: LEAPON
- 57. Bit of funny business: ANTIC
- 59. Fools around: KILLSTIME
- 61. Advertiser with a computer-generated mascot: GEICO
- 62. Game that gave rise to the expression "ace in the hole": STUDPOKER
- 63. Thomas Cromwell's earldom: ESSEX
- 64. Positive or negative: NONZERO
down
- 1. Fred has one in "Scooby-Doo" cartoons: ASCOT
- 2. Assistance for short people?: LOANS
- 3. Thumb twiddler: IDLER
- 4. Roll in a field: BALE
- 5. Do ___ (celebrate, sort of): AJIG
- 6. Player losing to the 49ers in Super Bowl XVI or XXIII: BENGAL
- 7. Intl. soccer powerhouse: ARG
- 8. Original airer of "The Jetsons": ABC
- 9. ___ Crosley, author of the 2008 best seller "I Was Told There'd Be Cake": SLOANE
- 10. Held back: KEPTATBAY
- 11. Item in a trophy case: TEAMPHOTO
- 12. Cross-country trips, perhaps: ODYSSEYS
- 14. Soul mate: KINDREDSPIRIT
- 15. N.F.L. All-Pro player Chris: SNEE
- 21. What a fugue may be written for: ORGAN
- 25. "Passage to Marseille" actor, 1944: LORRE
- 27. Valve opening?: VEE
- 28. Some flakes: ASHES
- 30. Specialty doc: OBGYN
- 31. Connection indicators: DIALTONES
- 32. "You're telling me!": IKNOWITIS
- 34. Discover, as a solution: HITON
- 36. 21, often: LEGALAGE
- 37. 2011 revolution locale: EGYPT
- 38. Item in a tent, maybe: COT
- 43. "Ooh-la-la!": SONICE
- 45. "Better than nothing": ITLLDO
- 48. Informal approvals: AOKS
- 49. Shoot up: SPIKE
- 50. "Breezing Up (A Fair Wind)" artist, 1876: HOMER
- 51. When to celebrate el Día de los Reyes: ENERO
- 55. "Outside the Lines" airer: ESPN
- 56. Comprehensive: ATOZ
- 58. Boat navigator, informally: COX
- 60. "___ Yu" (collection also known as "The Analects of Confucius"): LUN
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.