NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for July 25, 2012
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Wednesday, July 25, 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
- 13
- 27
- 39
- 45
Down clues & answers
- 53
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
across
- 1. Web site help section, for short: FAQ
- 4. Doorframe part: JAMB
- 8. William Tell, for one: ARCHER
- 14. Mich. rival in the Big Ten: OSU
- 15. "Peek-___!": ABOO
- 16. Historian Will or Ariel: DURANT
- 17. Ipanema's city, for short: RIO
- 18. A.T.M. printout: BANKBALANCE
- 20. "La Danse" painter Henri: MATISSE
- 22. Some loaves: RYES
- 23. Golden ___ (senior): AGER
- 24. ___ Park (F.D.R.'s home): HYDE
- 26. Get well: HEAL
- 30. Scroll in the ark: TORAH
- 32. Joe Six-Pack's overhang: BEERBELLY
- 35. Persian Gulf state: QATAR
- 37. War heroes from Tuskegee, e.g.: AIRMEN
- 38. Actress Thurman: UMA
- 41. Yellow "Sesame Street" character: BIGBIRD
- 43. Driver's license datum: SEX
- 44. Hang on to: RETAIN
- 46. "___ a vacation!": INEED
- 48. Portable sources of music: BOOMBOXES
- 50. Big wheel: NABOB
- 54. Do the crawl, say: SWIM
- 55. "Now it makes sense!": ISEE
- 57. Marat's counterpart in a Peter Weiss title: SADE
- 58. Word before rack or mitt: OVEN
- 61. Galvanic cell component: CATHODE
- 63. It appeared before Moses on Mount Horeb: BURNINGBUSH
- 67. Fell for a come-on, say: BIT
- 68. Caught sight of: ESPIED
- 69. One-half base x height, for a triangle: AREA
- 70. Peach State capital: Abbr.: ATL
- 71. Ones without permanent addresses: NOMADS
- 72. Lab job: TEST
- 73. Bit of scheduling luck at a tournament: BYE
down
- 1. Adjust the margins of, for example: FORMAT
- 2. Hard Italian cheese: ASIAGO
- 3. One reciting others' lines: QUOTER
- 4. Verbal zingers: JABS
- 5. Make red-faced: ABASH
- 6. Container in an armored car: MONEYBAG
- 7. ___ choy (Chinese cabbage): BOK
- 8. Forever and ___: ADAY
- 9. Announce a decision: RULE
- 10. Uninvited partygoer: CRASHER
- 11. ___ Solo of "Star Wars": HAN
- 12. Britannica, for one: Abbr.: ENC
- 13. Road map abbr.: RTE
- 19. "Desperate Housewives" role: BREE
- 21. One side in a 1980s war: IRAQ
- 25. Headgear for Laurel and Hardy: DERBIES
- 27. O'Neill title trees: ELMS
- 28. Sheltered, at sea: ALEE
- 29. Wildcat with tufted ears: LYNX
- 31. Diplomat Philip: HABIB
- 33. "Still mooing," as burgers go: RARE
- 34. Ex-senator known as "Amtrak Joe": BIDEN
- 36. Ex-Yankee Martinez: TINO
- 38. Cities, informally: URBS
- 39. Feline's "feed me": MEOW
- 40. Yours, in Ypres: ATOI
- 42. Lacking confidence: INSECURE
- 45. Strong-smelling cleaning ingredient: AMMONIA
- 47. Imprecise recipe amount: DASH
- 49. Ped ___: XING
- 51. Thick-trunked African tree: BAOBAB
- 52. Item fit for "Ripley's Believe It or Not!": ODDITY
- 53. Classic VW: BEETLE
- 56. Makes more bearable: EASES
- 59. Went head to head: VIED
- 60. Means justifier, for some: ENDS
- 62. "Not ___!": THAT
- 63. Stiller of film: BEN
- 64. G.I. entertainers: USO
- 65. Letters after 33 or 45: RPM
- 66. Echolocation-using mammal: BAT
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.