NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for February 28, 2015
Saturday, February 28, 2015
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Saturday, February 28, 2015. 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
- 57
- 66
Down clues & answers
- 3
- 10
- 23
- 30
- 38
- 61
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Friday, February 27, 2015
across
- 1. Time of forgiveness: GRACEPERIOD
- 12. Jean-Paul Sartre or Winston Churchill, once: PRISONEROFWAR
- 14. Classic 1984 film in which most of the dialogue was ad-libbed: THISISSPINALTAP
- 16. Pink: ROSEATE
- 17. Certain shooter: CATSEYE
- 18. Hill worker: ANT
- 19. Google worker: BOT
- 20. Musical phrase in which a single syllable is sung over several notes: MELISMA
- 25. Part of some city streets: BUSLANE
- 29. "I know what you're thinking" thinker: PSYCHIC
- 30. Rabbit homes, maybe: BRIARS
- 31. Group of people: HOMO
- 32. Robin Williams title role: GARP
- 33. Radiologist, often: IMAGER
- 35. Disinter: UNEARTH
- 39. Hardcover or paperback: EDITION
- 40. Positive or negative: NONZERO
- 41. Racket: DIN
- 42. Dental problem: GAP
- 43. We: YOUANDI
- 48. "Ready to go?": SHALLWE
- 52. Evolutionary biologist who wrote "The Panda's Thumb": STEPHENJAYGOULD
- 54. Trunks, e.g.: STORAGESPACES
- 55. Be lenient: SPARETHEROD
down
- 1. Like some low-grade beef: GRISTLY
- 2. Stand: RISE
- 3. Where the "tiger cub economies" are: ASIA
- 4. Add up to: COST
- 5. First word in Massachusetts' motto: ENSE
- 6. Energy: PEP
- 7. "True Blood" vampire Northman: ERIC
- 8. First name in gossip: RONA
- 9. "___ first ...": IFAT
- 10. Knot : toads :: parliament : ___: OWLS
- 11. Relative of a Fig Newton: DATEBAR
- 12. Line items?: PHONES
- 13. Some old-fashioned hosiery: RAYONS
- 14. Galumph: TRAMP
- 15. Colleague of Don on "Mad Men": PETE
- 21. Apple messaging software: ICHAT
- 22. So-called Japanese chess: SHOGI
- 23. Photocopy predecessor: MIMEO
- 24. Tough nut to crack: ACORN
- 25. Certain shooter: BBGUN
- 26. Prefix meaning "heavens": URANO
- 27. Frequent demonstrator of the Doppler effect: SIREN
- 28. Setting for Steinbeck's "The Pearl": LAPAZ
- 33. Nuts: IDIOTS
- 34. Dances in 3/4 time: MINUETS
- 36. Fixed, as a model airplane: REGLUED
- 37. Tries to catch shrimp, say: TRAWLS
- 38. Wished: HOPED
- 39. Nestlé brand: EDYS
- 44. Per: APOP
- 45. Dragsters' org.: NHRA
- 46. Honey or sugar: DEAR
- 47. William who wrote "The Dark at the Top of the Stairs": INGE
- 48. Military band: SASH
- 49. Something not to be believed?: HYPE
- 50. Culture medium: AGAR
- 51. Nuts: LOCO
- 53. Blacker than black: JET
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.