NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for April 18, 2015

Q: Can I see past crossword answers?

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

Saturday, April 18, 2015

By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated Nov 3, 2026 at 2:40 PM ETHow we make hints

This archive page covers the The Crossword from Saturday, April 18, 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.

70 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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Previous The Crossword answer

Friday, April 17, 2015

across

1. Plague, with "at": GNAW
5. Handmade sign at a stadium: HIMOM
10. Warrant, e.g.: Abbr.: CERT
14. Gift on el día de los enamorados: ROSA
15. Eyelike designs: OCULI
16. Tennis's Nastase: ILIE
17. Similar: OFTHESAMESTRIPE
20. Charge leader?: SUR
21. Unspecified degrees: NTHS
22. Lover of Jane Porter: TARZAN
23. Man who went into self-imposed exile in 2013: SNOWDEN
25. Opera ___: SERIA
26. Mother of Kourtney, Kim and Khloé: KRIS
27. Houston player, for short: STRO
28. Snare: BAG
31. Rout: CLEANSWEEP
34. Ashcroft's predecessor in the cabinet: RENO
35. Basket: HOOP
36. One making you do your duty?: TAXER
37. World Heritage Site since 2013: ETNA
38. Boobs: OAFS
39. Direction seeker's query: WHERESTHAT
41. "u can't b serious!": OMG
42. Stories of a lifetime?: BIOS
43. Side with a dog: SLAW
44. Budget, in adspeak: ECONO
46. Draw: TIEGAME
49. Title Inuit of film: NANOOK
51. See 60-Across: BEDE
52. Univ. aides: RAS
53. Very close: ONINTIMATETERMS
56. Ladies' man: STUD
57. Zac of "The Lorax": EFRON
58. Repeatedly reposted item: MEME
59. Brand operated by Imperial: ESSO
60. With 51-Across, early adopter of the A.D. dating method: SAINT
61. Black ring material: ONYX

down

1. Box-office figure: GROSS
2. Like a buzzkill: NOFUN
3. Something that's brilliant: ASTROKEOFGENIUS
4. Sound heard a lot by new parents: WAH
5. Longtime food product with a mascot in a cowboy hat: HOSTESSTWINKIES
6. New York's ___ Stadium (track-and-field venue): ICAHN
7. Fall bloomers: MUMS
8. Stadium cry: OLE
9. Cry at a White House press conference: MISTERPRESIDENT
10. Atmospheric features of Mars: CIRRI
11. Senator who wrote "A Fighting Chance," 2014: ELIZABETHWARREN
12. Last name in morning TV: RIPA
13. Follower of four or six, but not five: TEEN
18. Finish with: ENDIN
19. Its edible root is called an eddo: TARO
24. Finishes: WRAPS
25. Rounded-up figure?: STEER
27. Embellishes, with "up": SEXES
29. Russian ruler after Peter II: ANNA
30. Zodiac symbol: GOAT
31. Shoe designer Jimmy: CHOO
32. Composition of some bricks: LOAM
33. "Yay, we did it!": WAHOO
34. Change in a clothing store, in a way: RETAG
40. Unwelcome forecast: SLEET
42. Eject: BOOT
45. House alternative: CONDO
46. Sitting Bull, e.g.: TETON
47. Scarlett O'Hara's housemaid: MAMMY
48. Super Six maker of the 1920s: ESSEX
49. Torpedo part: NOSE
50. Threat in "The Naked Jungle," 1954: ANTS
51. Port of Italy: BARI
54. Design deg.: MFA
55. Like some hairstyles with long bangs: EMO

Hints and full breakdown for Apr 17

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.