NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for May 31, 2016
Tuesday, May 31, 2016
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Tuesday, May 31, 2016. 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
- 15
- 66
Down clues & answers
- 10
- 38
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Monday, May 30, 2016
across
- 1. Funny Groucho or Harpo: MARX
- 5. Lover of Tristan, in legend: ISOLDE
- 11. Place with R.V. hookups: KOA
- 14. Swear: AVER
- 15. GoDaddy purchase: DOMAIN
- 16. 90° bend: ELL
- 17. Tropical drinks often served with umbrellas: PINACOLADAS
- 19. ___ Period (time in Japanese history): EDO
- 20. Lustful deity of myth: SATYR
- 21. Rooster's mate: HEN
- 22. Store sign during business hours: OPEN
- 23. Spicy ballroom activity?: SALSADANCING
- 27. Communication for the deaf, in brief: ASL
- 30. Try to win, as a lover: WOO
- 31. Baseball Hall-of-Famer Mel: OTT
- 32. Finishing eighth out of eight, say: DEADLAST
- 35. Strain the body too much: OVERDO
- 38. Stupefy: DAZE
- 39. Baby horses: FOALS
- 41. Nipple: TEAT
- 42. Rococo and Postmodernism: STYLES
- 44. Application to highways before a winter storm: ROADSALT
- 46. Take to court: SUE
- 47. Actress Thurman: UMA
- 48. Zodiac lion: LEO
- 49. "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" author: DOUGLASADAMS
- 55. Boleyn, Brontë or Bancroft: ANNE
- 56. Prof helpers: TAS
- 57. Earl or baron: NOBLE
- 61. 2012 #1 album for Taylor Swift: RED
- 62. Common first course ... or what's literally contained in 17-, 23-, 32-, 44- and 49-Across?: TOSSEDSALAD
- 65. Maker of the Optima and Sorento: KIA
- 66. "Hey!," from someone who's hiding: INHERE
- 67. Wander: ROVE
- 68. Foxy: SLY
- 69. Butcher's implement: MEATAX
- 70. The Ugly Duckling, actually: SWAN
down
- 1. Rand McNally items: MAPS
- 2. Big name in running shoes: AVIA
- 3. $2,000 for Boardwalk, with a hotel: RENT
- 4. Penetrating looks?: XRAYS
- 5. Declaration made with a raised right hand: IDO
- 6. Note between fa and la: SOL
- 7. Warren Buffet, the Oracle of ___: OMAHA
- 8. Stowed on board: LADED
- 9. Singer Ross with the Supremes: DIANA
- 10. Coast Guard rank: Abbr.: ENS
- 11. Stay authentic, colloquially: KEEPITREAL
- 12. Of yore: OLDEN
- 13. See 18-Down: ALONG
- 18. With 13-Down, move at a snail's place: CRAWL
- 22. Groups of eight: OCTETS
- 24. Hangs around and does nothing: LOAFS
- 25. Just all right: SOSO
- 26. Thanksgiving's mo.: NOV
- 27. Does sums: ADDS
- 28. Bench or chair: SEAT
- 29. Relaxing time after church, say: LAZYSUNDAY
- 33. Downpour: DELUGE
- 34. Paver's supply: TAR
- 35. Target of a decade-long manhunt, informally: OSAMA
- 36. Over hill and ___: DALE
- 37. Germany's ___ von Bismarck: OTTO
- 40. Eardrum-busting: LOUD
- 43. Squirmy fish: EEL
- 45. Curses: DAMNS
- 49. Opposite of whites, laundrywise: DARKS
- 50. Longtime NBC newsman Roger: ONEIL
- 51. Do penance (for): ATONE
- 52. An Obama girl: SASHA
- 53. Thing in the plus column: ASSET
- 54. Goes way, way up: SOARS
- 58. Erupt: BLOW
- 59. What a volcano erupts: LAVA
- 60. Biblical garden: EDEN
- 62. Dickens's Tiny ___: TIM
- 63. Long, long time: ERA
- 64. Showtime's serial killer protagonist, familiarly: DEX
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.