NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for August 25, 2012

Q: Can I see past crossword answers?

Yes. Each date we have covered is in the crossword archive .

Saturday, August 25, 2012

By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated Nov 3, 2026 at 3:01 PM ETHow we make hints

This archive page covers the The Crossword from Saturday, August 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.

72 clues · jump to Across or Down. Tap a tile for one letter, or Answer for the whole word.

Across clues & answers

1
Modern drag
9
Founding need
14
It often has a crust on top
16
Visibly surprised
17
Point of no return?
18
Football Hall of Famer Bobby
19
Captain Hook's alma mater
20
"Tropic Thunder" director and co-star
22
Street heaters
25
Growth theory subj.
26
Mex. and Uru. are in it
27
"I hate this"
28
Teen series whose title character is never seen
32
Query prompted by crying
34
Turn-of-the-season mos.
35
Collusion
36
Doesn't lie gracefully
39
It set sail from Iolcus
40
Altar adjunct
41
Sole
43
Sole component
44
End for end
45
Met works
46
One way to go to a party
47
Small parts of floor plans
49
Hawks' old haunt
52
"Such mishegoss!"
53
Charged
58
Kind of mentality
59
With 61-Across, "Nothing new to me!"
60
They get picked
61
See 59-Across

Down clues & answers

Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.

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Previous The Crossword answer

Friday, August 24, 2012

across

1. Category on Craigslist: GARAGESALES
12. Unspoken agreement: TACITAPPROVAL
14. They're rarely played nowadays: EIGHTTRACKTAPES
16. How rainfall may be measured: PERYEAR
17. Imbecilic: ASININE
18. Boston landmark, with "the": PRU
19. Needle point?: Abbr.: ENE
20. Some Toyotas: SOLARAS
25. Subject of the book "Red Moon Rising": SPUTNIK
29. Early "cure" for tuberculosis: DESERTCLIMATE
31. Like Jerusalem's Dome of the Rock: OCTAGONAL
32. Puts barricades around: PARTITIONSOFF
36. "Eureka" and "Excelsior": MOTTOES
37. Heaps: PASSELS
39. Key abbreviation: ALT
40. CD-___: ROM
41. Sulfide-containing group: PYRITES
46. "Honest to God!": ITSTRUE
50. Microsoft Windows game: SPIDERSOLITAIRE
52. Openly attack en masse: STORMTHEGATES
53. Home of Sun Bowl Stadium: ELPASOTEXAS

down

1. Discussion stopper: GAGRULE
2. Acting up, in a way: ACHY
3. Diet ___: RITE
4. Girl/boy intro: ATTA
5. "Oh, God!" co-star: GARR
6. It's got its standards: Abbr.: EPA
7. Org. providing assistance to Afghans and Persians: SPCA
8. Scroll holders: ARKS
9. French novelist Pierre: LOTI
10. ___ Longoria, 2008 A.L. Rookie of the Year: EVAN
11. Perspicacious: SAPIENT
12. Part of a car's steering system: TIEROD
13. Gentle giant of Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men": LENNIE
14. Omar in Hollywood: EPPS
15. Curry: SEEK
21. Somewhat, after "of": ASORT
22. Page one is traditionally one: RECTO
23. ___ Abrams, character on "Glee": ARTIE
24. Fantasy sports figures: STATS
25. One-master: SLOOP
26. Outer ear: PINNA
27. Campus near the J.F.K. Library: UMASS
28. Giant bronze man in Greek myth: TALOS
30. Big budget item for "Avatar," briefly: CGI
32. Sea fan colonists: POLYPS
33. Reduce through retirement: ATTRITE
34. Carries back and forth: FERRIES
35. Prepares for baking, in a way: FLOURS
36. Google ___: MAPS
38. Storybook pirate: SMEE
42. Target of a Fox hunt?: IDOL
43. One singing "Fight, fight, fight for Maryland!": TERP
44. "Aunt" with a 1979 best seller: ERMA
45. Onetime landers at LAX: SSTS
46. "Before ___ you go ...": ILET
47. Old comics dog: TIGE
48. Classic Memphis-based record label: STAX
49. "I'm history": TATA
51. "Got ya!": OHO

Hints and full breakdown for Aug 24

More daily puzzle hints

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.