NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for May 17, 2014

Q: Can I see past crossword answers?

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

Saturday, May 17, 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 Saturday, May 17, 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.

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

Across clues & answers

Down clues & answers

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Friday, May 16, 2014

across

1. Director in "A Chorus Line": ZACH
5. Pistol packer in a 1943 #1 hit: MAMA
9. Make eyes pop and jaws drop: AMAZE
14. Paradoxical assertion, perhaps: ILIE
15. Writer of the 644-line poem "Ibis": OVID
16. Stage: PUTON
17. Seasonal servings: NOGS
18. 1969 Rolling Stones album: LETITBLEED
20. Like some long flights: COASTTOCOAST
22. Part of une fraternité: FRERE
23. He called the U.S. pres. a "glorified public relations man": HST
24. Abbr. on some clothing tags: IRR
27. Part of a filled-out survey: Abbr.: ANS
29. Admiral who bombarded Tahiti in 1914: SPEE
30. It often results in changes across the board: HOSTILETAKEOVER
38. 1959 hit with the lyric "One day I feel so happy, next day I feel so sad": ATEENAGERINLOVE
39. At any price: WHATEVERITTAKES
40. Not meant for specialists: GENERALINTEREST
41. Some Blu-ray players: RCAS
42. First of 66 books: Abbr.: GEN
43. Fix: SET
44. Couch problem: SAG
47. March Madness, with "the": NCAAS
51. Charges at the door: ENTRANCEFEES
55. Swan song: LASTHURRAH
58. "Who ___?": ISNT
59. Emmy-winning Ed: ASNER
60. The "O" in F. A. O. Schwarz: OTTO
61. Looking up: ROSY
62. Nelson Mandela's mother tongue: XHOSA
63. Sound heard during a heat wave: WHEW
64. Event with touches: EPEE

down

1. Corrosion-preventing coating: ZINC
2. Not very affable: ALOOF
3. With 56-Down, refuse to be cleaned out from a poker game?: CIGAR
4. Literature Nobelist before Gide: HESSE
5. Stream on the side of a mountain, perhaps: MOLTENLAVA
6. Car name that's Latin for "desire": AVEO
7. McConnell of the Senate: MITCH
8. "Peace out": ADIOS
9. Black-and-white transmissions, briefly?: APBS
10. Like most brain neurons: MULTIPOLAR
11. Had a beef?: ATE
12. Actress Kazan or Kravitz: ZOE
13. One may get a pass: END
19. Picture on a chest, for short?: TAT
21. They often spot people: TRAINERS
25. Withdraw: REVOKE
26. Minor parish officers: REEVES
28. Jason of "How I Met Your Mother": SEGEL
29. Five to nine, maybe, but not nine to five: SENTENCE
30. Big bass, in fishing lingo: HAWG
31. Ones remaining: OTHERS
32. Activity that proceeds hand to hand?: SEANCE
33. Heart-to-hearts: TETEATETES
34. ___ Jon (fashion label): TERI
35. "Give me ___": ARING
36. Product for young string players?: KITTENCHOW
37. Ones remaining: REST
44. Good name for a worrywart?: STU
45. Achilles' undoing: ARROW
46. Wayne's pal in "Wayne's World": GARTH
48. Extremely excited: AFIRE
49. Ancient master of didacticism: AESOP
50. Pick up: SENSE
52. Drag racers' governing grp.: NHRA
53. ___ Grey, alter ego of Marvel's X-Man: NATE
54. Extraocular annoyance: STYE
55. Like some oversight: LAX
56. See 3-Down: ASH
57. ___-cone: SNO

Hints and full breakdown for May 16

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.