NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for May 9, 2012
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Wednesday, May 9, 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
- 16
- 20
- 22
- 51
- 61
- 65
Down clues & answers
- 32
- 45
- 53
- 54
- 57
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
across
- 1. Cornered: ATBAY
- 6. "Quiet!": SHUSH
- 11. Program abbr.: TBA
- 14. Prop up: BRACE
- 15. Canned pumpkin, e.g.: PUREE
- 16. Spot for a band: ARM
- 17. Winner of a pea-preparing contest?: BESTSHELLER
- 19. Maker of the Soul and Optima: KIA
- 20. Figure skating jump: AXEL
- 21. Shoemaker's tool: AWL
- 22. Portents: OMENS
- 24. Hypotheticals: IFS
- 26. Names on fake IDs, perhaps: ALIASES
- 28. Lotharios' lines in a singles bar?: PICKUPSHTICKS
- 33. Waxed enthusiastic, say: OOHED
- 34. "Neato!": COOL
- 35. "___, Brute?": ETTU
- 38. Cause of some weaving, for short: DWI
- 39. Early TV star with a biography titled "Schnozzola": DURANTE
- 42. Western alliance, for short: OAS
- 43. Build up a nest egg: SAVE
- 45. Desertlike: SERE
- 46. Store featured in "Miracle on 34th Street": MACYS
- 48. One preparing corn for long hours?: ALLDAYSHUCKER
- 51. Prince who married Kate Middleton: WILLIAM
- 53. F1 neighbor on a PC: ESC
- 54. Bird with prized plumes: EGRET
- 55. Measure of electrical resistance: OHM
- 57. Campus near Beverly Hills, briefly: UCLA
- 61. U.N. agency for workers: ILO
- 62. Phony wedding?: MARRYINSHAM
- 66. Gehrig on the diamond: LOU
- 67. Take the lid off: UNCAP
- 68. Commandeer: SEIZE
- 69. The "L" in 57-Across: LOS
- 70. Past its sell-by date: STALE
- 71. Tree with a namesake ski destination: ASPEN
down
- 1. Group whose music is heard in "Mamma Mia!": ABBA
- 2. Fearsome dino: TREX
- 3. First, second, third or home: BASE
- 4. Mimic: ACTLIKE
- 5. "You're right!": YES
- 6. Gush: SPEW
- 7. Ship's framework: HULL
- 8. Virtual address: URL
- 9. Meet with: SEE
- 10. Valiant: HEROIC
- 11. Assesses one's options carefully: TAKESSTOCK
- 12. Pickling solution: BRINE
- 13. Accumulate: AMASS
- 18. Barn door fastener: HASP
- 23. Fabricate: MAKE
- 25. Elmer with a big gun: FUDD
- 26. Makes up (for): ATONES
- 27. Light, rhythmic cadence: LILT
- 28. Seed containers: PODS
- 29. Early stop in a presidential race: IOWA
- 30. Gallant: CHIVALROUS
- 31. Edvard Munch depiction: SCREAM
- 32. White with age: HOARY
- 36. "Rent" actor Diggs: TAYE
- 37. Old NATO target: USSR
- 40. Fed. agency entrusted with food safety: USDA
- 41. Outback sprinters: EMUS
- 44. Magazine whose name sounds like a letter of the alphabet: ELLE
- 47. Charges in court: ACCUSES
- 49. It turns red in acid: LITMUS
- 50. Spheric opener?: HEMI
- 51. Kurt who wrote the music for "The Threepenny Opera": WEILL
- 52. Domed home: IGLOO
- 55. Like the Sabin polio vaccine: ORAL
- 56. Extravagant publicity: HYPE
- 58. Part of a poker player's pile: CHIP
- 59. Take it easy: LAZE
- 60. Last part of Handel's "Messiah": AMEN
- 63. One often on the march: ANT
- 64. "His Master's Voice" company: RCA
- 65. Cryptologists' org.: NSA
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.