NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for May 21, 2012
Monday, May 21, 2012
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Monday, May 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
- 14
- 30
- 33
- 44
- 45
- 68
Down clues & answers
- 12
- 31
- 38
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Sunday, May 20, 2012
across
- 1. Course preparer: CHEF
- 5. Close shave: SCRAPE
- 11. John Lennon song that ends "I love you, yeah, yeah, now and forever": WOMAN
- 16. Deck (out): TOG
- 19. Tops: AONE
- 20. Like some church matters: LAICAL
- 21. Monster slain by Hercules: HYDRA
- 22. Lead-in to meter: ODO
- 23. Chocolat, say?: TREATOFVERSAILLES
- 26. Shorten, with "off": LOP
- 27. In the limelight: ONSTAGE
- 28. HBO competitor: STARZ
- 29. Emphatic denial: ISAIDNO
- 31. Home to the Minutemen, informally: UMASS
- 33. When repeated, an old New Orleans tune: IKO
- 35. Word repeated four times in the last line of Shakespeare's "All the world's a stage" speech: SANS
- 36. Polyester fabric: DACRON
- 39. Macho drag queen?: ASTUDINSCARLET
- 46. Shield border: ORLE
- 47. Make, as a copy of a CD: BURN
- 48. Stop on a line: DEPOT
- 49. Dockworkers' org.: ILA
- 50. Like literary classics?: GOODANDREAD
- 54. Call to the bar?: BEERBELL
- 56. Weirdo: NUT
- 57. Earth goddess: GAEA
- 58. Bobby who sang "Take Good Care of My Baby": VEE
- 60. Hall-of-Fame pitcher Joss: ADDIE
- 61. Unsurprisingly: ASUSUAL
- 63. Skinny?: DERMAL
- 65. Discreet signal: NOD
- 68. Like a centaur?: PARTANIMAL
- 70. "Don't let that youngster get off without paying!"?: BILLTHEKID
- 75. Rural setting: LEA
- 76. Had way too much of: ODEDON
- 78. Words from a con man: TRUSTME
- 79. Given a number, maybe: RATED
- 83. Flushed: RED
- 84. Baseball's strikeout king: RYAN
- 85. Go (for): OPT
- 86. Unbiased account?: FAIRTALE
- 89. Announcement made by a transplant surgeon, perhaps?: LIVERSTABLE
- 92. British isle: AIT
- 93. Allan-___ (figure in the Robin Hood legend): ADALE
- 95. Omelette ingredient: OEUF
- 96. Middling grades: CEES
- 97. Stigmatize a "great" king?: BRANDALEXANDER
- 100. Hankering: THIRST
- 102. Salon selection: UPDO
- 103. Twin killings, on a diamond: Abbr.: DPS
- 104. Went off course: YAWED
- 106. Part of the inn crowd?: LODGERS
- 110. Access requirement, maybe: LOGIN
- 114. Old-fashioned ingredient: BITTERS
- 118. Big collection agcy.: IRS
- 119. Two reasons to avoid a dog kennel?: THESOUNDANDTHEFUR
- 122. Apt name for a 1-Across?: STU
- 123. Unenthusiastic: TEPID
- 124. Maximum: ALLOUT
- 125. Bar mixer: SODA
- 126. Rx amt.: TSP
- 127. Wonderland message: EATME
- 128. "Are you kidding me?": REALLY
- 129. Ocho minus cinco: TRES
down
- 1. Roman censor: CATO
- 2. Game ender, at times: HORN
- 3. Chemical endings: ENES
- 4. Given prominence: FEATURED
- 5. "A diamond is forever," e.g.: SLOGAN
- 6. Saint-Germain-des-Prés sights: CAFES
- 7. Ohio or Colorado: Abbr.: RIV
- 8. Some tennis winners: ACES
- 9. Head line?: PART
- 10. Lanchester on the screen: ELSA
- 11. Little genius: WHIZKID
- 12. Olive ___: OYL
- 13. Mid 16th-century year: MDLI
- 14. God with a shield: ARES
- 15. Launch party?: NASA
- 16. Was duplicitous: TOLDALIE
- 17. Former co-host of "The View": ODONNELL
- 18. Lose it: GOPOSTAL
- 24. ___-shanter: TAMO
- 25. Of no interest: ARID
- 30. See 32-Down: Abbr.: ISR
- 32. Native of 30-Down: SABRA
- 34. It's solid yellow: ONEBALL
- 36. Take a peke?: DOGNAP
- 37. Excitement: AROUSAL
- 38. Debate ender: CLOTURE
- 40. Do more than threaten, say: SUE
- 41. Pilgrim: TRAVELER
- 42. Anesthetized: UNDER
- 43. Tore: SPED
- 44. Like some dorms: COED
- 45. Title town of a Longfellow poem: ATRI
- 51. Chihuahua drink: AGUA
- 52. Tandoor-baked bread: NAAN
- 53. Where heroes are made: DELI
- 55. Elaine of "Seinfeld": BENES
- 59. Represented: EMBODIED
- 62. Outlaw Belle who is said to have harbored Jesse James: STARR
- 63. Many a Little League coach: DAD
- 64. River to the Rhône: AIN
- 66. When many German steins are lifted: OKTOBER
- 67. They get bigger when you smile: DIMPLES
- 69. Hit the runway: MODELED
- 71. Astronomical distance: Abbr.: LTYR
- 72. Refrain syllables: TRAS
- 73. Easter activity: HUNT
- 74. Abhor: DETEST
- 77. Actor Alain: DELON
- 80. Barely: ATAD
- 81. "I did it!": TADA
- 82. It's grounded every Saturday: ELAL
- 84. Prepare, as some Mexican-style beans: REFRY
- 86. Aesop, notably: FABULIST
- 87. Places for gates: AIRPORTS
- 88. "That makes sense": ITADDSUP
- 90. Saturn S.U.V.: VUE
- 91. Conclusive trial: ACIDTEST
- 94. Lose it: EXPLODE
- 98. Holiday quaff: NOG
- 99. Not worth ___: ASOU
- 100. Singer of the 1958 #1 hit "It's Only Make Believe": TWITTY
- 101. The first "H" in Hanukkah: HETH
- 105. Former TV judge: ABDUL
- 107. Suffix with cigar: ETTE
- 108. Cousin of an ostrich: RHEA
- 109. Back-to-sch. time: SEPT
- 111. Growl: GNAR
- 112. Sitting on one's hands: IDLE
- 113. Simba's mate: NALA
- 115. ___ effort: EFOR
- 116. Tactless: RUDE
- 117. Mmes., over the border: SRAS
- 120. Actor Alastair: SIM
- 121. Cambodia's Lon ___: NOL
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.