NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for December 2, 2016
Friday, December 2, 2016
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Friday, December 2, 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
- 49
Down clues & answers
- 15
- 35
- 45
- 53
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Thursday, December 1, 2016
across
- 1. Supershort skirts: MICROS
- 7. Sloppy smooch: WETKISS
- 14. Airport monitor datum: ARRIVAL
- 16. Welcomed at the doorstep: ASKEDIN
- 17. Dish topped with bacon, cheese and sour cream: LOADEDB
- 18. -: DPOTATO
- 19. Swiss tourist destination: INTERLAKEN
- 21. Winter respite: THAW
- 22. Trick out: ADORN
- 23. Bask (in): GLORY
- 24. 2004 film about artificial intelligence: IROBOT
- 27. Football Hall-of-Famer Newsome: OZZIE
- 30. Cry feebly: MEWL
- 31. Like the rotation of the earth: AXIAL
- 32. Valedictorian's pride, for short: GPA
- 35. Classic novel about an orphan girl mistakenly sent to Prince Edward Island: ANNEOFG
- 38. -: NGABLES
- 40. Audiophiles' purchases: CDS
- 41. One filling out personnel forms, say: HIREE
- 43. Vibe: AURA
- 44. Seussian environmentalist: LORAX
- 45. Go slower: EASEUP
- 47. Gillette razors: ATRAS
- 50. Pulls down: EARNS
- 52. Edutainment cartoon featuring a teacher named Ms. Frizzle: THEM
- 53. -: CSCHOOLBUS
- 58. Of the open sea: PELAGIC
- 60. Supermodel Lima: ADRIANA
- 61. Cardinals' home: ARIZONA
- 62. Nacho accompaniment ... or a feature of 17-, 35- and 52-Across?: BEANDIP
- 63. Withdrew: RECEDED
- 64. Trapshooting targets, informally: SKEETS
down
- 1. Neighbor of Burkina Faso: MALI
- 2. Smooth over: IRON
- 3. Suffix with klepto-: CRAT
- 4. Tamed, as a bronco: RIDEABLE
- 5. Lay on thick: OVERDO
- 6. Pitiful bunch: SADLOT
- 7. Not dive in, say: WADE
- 8. Subject of the 2011 book "These Guys Have All the Fun": ESPN
- 9. Fight stopper, for short: TKO
- 10. One blowing off steam?: KETTLE
- 11. About 45 miles of it touch Canada: IDAHO
- 12. Stringed instrument usually played sitting down: SITAR
- 13. White out: SNOWY
- 15. Beam bent at 90°: LBAR
- 20. Kentucky's Fort ___: KNOX
- 23. Sonoran Desert river: GILA
- 24. Yosemite runner: IMAC
- 25. Tear violently: REND
- 26. Dominates, informally: OWNS
- 28. Ending with fan: ZINE
- 29. Make a sudden turn: ZAG
- 31. Home to a famous mausoleum: AGRA
- 32. Word with stick or gun: GLUE
- 33. South American territory in the game Risk: PERU
- 34. "On the double!": ASAP
- 36. Surprised exclamations: OHOS
- 37. Growth along a ski run: FIR
- 39. Low-pitched part of a song: BASSLINE
- 42. Suit: EXEC
- 44. Labor day class?: LAMAZE
- 45. Deteriorates: ERODES
- 46. Skimobiler's wear: ANORAK
- 47. How some bonds are sold: ATPAR
- 48. "___ goes the neighborhood": THERE
- 49. Museum piece: RELIC
- 51. Fictional character who says "I'd strike the sun if it insulted me": AHAB
- 53. Field of Jean-Luc Godard: CINE
- 54. Slew: SCAD
- 55. Instructed: BADE
- 56. Soldier's assignment: UNIT
- 57. Drains (from): SAPS
- 59. Quetzalcoatl, e.g.: GOD
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.