NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for August 21, 2014
Thursday, August 21, 2014
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Thursday, August 21, 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.
Across clues & answers
- 1
- 10
- 17
- 30
- 63
Down clues & answers
- 2
- 12
- 29
- 34
- 47
- 48
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
across
- 1. Start to grunt?: HARDG
- 6. Air freshener scent: LILAC
- 11. Tabloid paper, slangily: RAG
- 14. Shudder at: ABHOR
- 15. Plain People: AMISH
- 16. Subj. for U.S. citizens-to-be: ESL
- 17. *Fare for those 17 and up: RRATEDMOVIE
- 19. Lunes or martes: DIA
- 20. Google Earth offering: MAP
- 21. Watered down: WEAK
- 22. *Astronomical red giant: SSTAR
- 24. Runoff conduit: SEWER
- 26. Steal the show from: UPSTAGE
- 28. *"Invest With Confidence" firm: TROWEPRICE
- 31. Swelled heads: EGOS
- 32. Top of a platter: SIDEA
- 33. Black keys, in some key signatures: FLATS
- 35. Schumer of Comedy Central: AMY
- 36. Publicist's handout: RELEASE
- 39. G.M.'s Mary Barra, beginning in 2014: CEO
- 42. Land on the eastern Mediterranean: SYRIA
- 43. Imam's Almighty: ALLAH
- 45. "As seen ___": ONTV
- 48. *Best-selling novelist who wrote the children's poetry volume "Father Goose": LFRANKBAUM
- 51. Anticipate: FORESEE
- 53. Windblown soil: LOESS
- 54. *"It's Gonna Be Me" group: NSYNC
- 55. Symbol of authority: FIST
- 56. Autograph seeker's encl.: SAE
- 59. Cries of surprise: OHS
- 60. *The Boss's backup musicians: ESTREETBAND
- 64. ___ Offensive of 1968: TET
- 65. "Julius," e.g., in Gaius Julius Caesar: NOMEN
- 66. Like the number 8, to the Chinese: LUCKY
- 67. Masthead listings, for short: EDS
- 68. Road signs may warn of them: ESSES
- 69. Spaniard's "these": ESTAS
down
- 1. "What's the ___ in that?": HARM
- 2. Start of a magic incantation: ABRA
- 3. Liszt piece: RHAPSODY
- 4. Umlaut half: DOT
- 5. Tired: GREWWEARY
- 6. Hedy of "Ecstasy": LAMARR
- 7. "Don't worry about me": IMOK
- 8. Tyler of "Stealing Beauty": LIV
- 9. "Just ___ expected": ASI
- 10. Game in which pieces can be forked: CHESS
- 11. Sale item attachment: REDTAG
- 12. Cheese that's often grated: ASIAGO
- 13. Gives the evil eye: GLARES
- 18. Almost to the outfield wall: DEEP
- 23. Fr. holy women: STES
- 25. Wearer of a natural wool coat: EWE
- 26. Rose Bowl stadium sch.: UCLA
- 27. Wasabi ___ (bar snack): PEAS
- 28. Org. with a no-shoes policy?: TSA
- 29. Wheel part: RIM
- 30. "Sadly ...": IFEAR
- 34. Whistler in the kitchen: TEAKETTLE
- 37. First name in mysteries: ERLE
- 38. Subject of a search on Mars: LIFE
- 39. One to admire: CLASSACT
- 40. Mer contents: EAU
- 41. Resistor unit: OHM
- 42. Name that's Old Norse for "young man": SVEN
- 44. Abbr. in a birth announcement: LBS
- 45. Worth mentioning: OFNOTE
- 46. Snacked: NOSHED
- 47. No-tell motel meetings: TRYSTS
- 49. Many Astounding Stories cover subjects: ALIENS
- 50. Aroma: NOSE
- 52. Hot spot: SCENE
- 55. Like the initial letters of the answers to the six starred clues, on "Wheel of Fortune": FREE
- 57. "My Way" lyricist: ANKA
- 58. Brand known as Dreyer's in the West: EDYS
- 61. "Hel-l-l-lp!": SOS
- 62. Things Coke and Pepsi have: Abbr.: TMS
- 63. Work tables?: BUS
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.