NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for May 5, 2014

Q: Can I see past crossword answers?

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

Monday, May 5, 2014

By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated Nov 3, 2026 at 2:50 PM ETHow we make hints

This archive page covers the The Crossword from Monday, May 5, 2014. 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.

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

Across clues & answers

Down clues & answers

1
Detroit-based labor org.
2
Having ants in one's pants
3
Hand-held Mexican food
4
Likely (to)
5
Dispenser candy
6
Before surgery, informally
7
Increased rapidly, as troop numbers
8
Had on
9
"Solve for x" subj.
10
Traffic signaler near highway construction
11
Source of a metal once used for foil
12
Ensembles for six
14
Political commentator Colmes
18
Monogram letter: Abbr.
19
Ricelike pasta
23
File folder feature
24
Drunkard
25
Yoked animals
26
Pennsylvania Dutch speakers
30
45 or 78: Abbr.
32
Tennis's Borg
34
___ Claire, Wis.
37
Area code lead-in
38
Tow
39
Egyptian symbol of life
40
Dixie school, affectionately
41
Cheese stuffed in stuffed shells
42
"And now a word from our ___"
45
Lennon song with the lyric "You may say I'm a dreamer ..."
46
Terse
47
Toll road: Abbr.
49
The first "A" of 51-Across
50
Vienna's river
52
Going ___ (bickering)
56
Say
57
Pep rally cries
59
Many early PCs
62
Onassis who married Jackie
63
Complain, complain, complain
64
Yoko who co-produced 45-Down
65
Old Pontiac muscle car

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Previous The Crossword answer

Sunday, May 4, 2014

across

1. Like many shotguns: BARRELED
9. Mole: AGENT
14. Back-to-back games: HEADER
20. Singer Christina: AGUILERA
21. ___ gin fizz: RAMOS
22. "Twelfth Night" lover: ORSINO
23. Oil and gasoline giant: SINCLAIR
24. Very vexed: IRATE
25. Leonardo ___, a.k.a. Fibonacci: PISANO
26. ___-pitch softball: SLO
27. What a detective tries to reconstruct: SCENARIO
29. "Platoon" setting: VIETNAM
30. Sommelier's prefix: OEN
31. Flavor: SEASON
32. Lozenge brand: LUDENS
34. "Platoon" director: OLIVERSTONE
37. Suckling site: TEAT
38. "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for ___" (1985 best seller): AHAT
42. Old Baby Bell based in the Big Apple: NYNEX
43. Assents: OKAYS
45. Stretch out: ELONGATE
47. Neuter: GELD
50. Literary inits.: EAP
52. Jai alai basket: CESTA
53. Water checker?: DAM
56. Going out for the afternoon?: SIESTA
60. The Who's "My Generation," e.g.: DEBUTALBUM
64. Pelvic parts: ILIA
66. Musician's practice with four sharps: ESCALE
68. Former Obama social secretary Rogers: DESIREE
69. Over: PAST
70. Like some swords ... or a hint to this puzzle's theme: DOUBLEEDGED
72. Balkan native: SERB
75. Old Jewish villages: SHTETLS
77. Start of a Beatles refrain: OBLADI
78. Old Highlands dagger: SNEE
79. Thelma and Louise, e.g.: TITLEROLES
82. Davis and Midler: BETTES
84. Cover some ground?: SOD
85. Dizzy: AREEL
86. Bit: TAD
88. "___ put it another way ...": ORTO
90. Persevered: KEPTATIT
94. Spurs: GOADS
98. Landmark tech product of 1981: IBMPC
102. Latin "to be": ESSE
103. Biblical name of ancient Syria: ARAM
105. Dispel differences: CLEARTHEAIR
108. "CSI" setting: DNALAB
110. Coal or pine product: TAROIL
111. Melted chocolate, e.g.: GOO
112. Kind of algebra: BOOLEAN
116. "Is it in you?" sloganeer: GATORADE
118. Write-___: INS
119. Renter's dream, maybe: OWNING
120. Lhasa ___ (dogs): APSOS
121. Some sheet fabrics: PERCALES
124. Nothing, in Napoli: NIENTE
125. Tuscany town: SIENA
126. Sign-up: ENROLLEE
127. Classic London transport: DECKER
128. Genetic structure: HELIX
129. Source of some discrimination: STANDARD

down

1. Wind instrument pitched an octave lower than its smaller cousin: BASSOON
2. How ballerinas move: AGILELY
3. "Enter quickly!": RUNONIN
4. Rock's Ocasek: RIC
5. Pipe fitting: ELL
6. Renter: LEASER
7. Heath evergreens: ERICAS
8. Thinks maybe one can: DARESTO
9. Huffington of the Huffington Post: ARIANNA
10. Teri of "Tootsie": GARR
11. Subject of some computer settings: EMAIL
12. Closeted: NOTOUT
13. Lao-___: TSE
14. Enter quickly: HOPINTO
15. Native New Yorkers: ERIES
16. ___ D.A.: ASST
17. Primatologist Fossey: DIAN
18. Sicilian city: ENNA
19. Hotel accommodation for more than one: ROOM
28. Kindle competitor: NOOK
29. ___ chops: VEAL
31. Battle of the ___: SEXES
33. Letter that's also a name: DEE
35. Chillax: VEG
36. Art appreciation: EYE
38. Forever young: AGELESS
39. Dimmed stars?: HASBEENS
40. Aleutian isle: ATTU
41. Gang up on, as in basketball: TEAM
44. "How ___": SAD
46. Tar Heels' state: Abbr.: NCAR
48. German musical entertainment: LIEDER
49. Auto sponsor of Groucho Marx's "You Bet Your Life": DESOTO
51. Hawk: PEDDLE
53. Commit a chip-eating faux pas: DIP
54. King lead-in: ALA
55. Boo-boos: MISSTEPS
57. Shell seen around water: SCULL
58. Formatting feature on a typewriter: TABSET
59. Totality: ALL
61. Sired: BEGAT
62. Unfazed by: USEDTO
63. Better at picking things up?: TIDIER
65. Jock: ATHLETE
67. Job listing inits.: EEO
71. Descent: EBB
73. Old car make that's a homophone of a modern car model: REO
74. Relative of a twin: BED
76. Anatomical tissue: TELA
79. Reaction of surprise: TAKE
80. Ticks off: IRES
81. Need a lift?: SAG
83. Brand of power tools: STIHL
87. Vet, e.g.: DOC
89. Queen's honour: Abbr.: OBE
91. Brightly colored bird: TANAGER
92. Country whose flag says "God is great" 22 times: IRAN
93. Chess champ Mikhail: TAL
95. Part of a jazz combo: ALTOSAX
96. Precious: DEAR
97. Mexican shawls: SARAPES
99. ___ Gorilla, 1960s TV cartoon character: MAGILLA
100. First of a kind: PIONEER
101. Betrayed: CROSSED
104. Raucous bird: MAGPIE
106. Squirrel, e.g.: RODENT
107. South American land: TIERRA
108. Al ___: DENTE
109. Swiss city on the Rhine: BASEL
112. Attraction in a carbon dioxide molecule: BOND
113. Baby's boo-boo: OWIE
114. Equivalent of 20 fins: ONEC
115. Something clickable: LINK
117. Collette of "United States of Tara": TONI
120. Blond shade: ASH
122. Bamboozle: CON
123. City council rep.: ALD

Hints and full breakdown for May 4

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.