NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for February 24, 2017

Q: Can I see past crossword answers?

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

Friday, February 24, 2017

By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated Nov 3, 2026 at 2:17 PM ETHow we make hints

This archive page covers the The Crossword from Friday, February 24, 2017. 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.

68 clues · jump to Across or Down. Tap a tile for one letter, or Answer for the whole word.

Across clues & answers

Down clues & answers

Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.

WhatsApp X Reddit

Previous The Crossword answer

Thursday, February 23, 2017

across

1. Joan nicknamed "The Godmother of Punk": JETT
5. Many a W.S.J. subscriber: MBA
8. Org. that started during the California gold rush: SFPD
12. Home of the all-vowel-named town Aiea: OAHU
13. Tropical fruit: GUAVA
15. Flood (in): POUR
16. Electrical system: GRID
17. Wayne Gretzky, for 10 seasons: OILER
18. Highland tongue: ERSE
19. Maven: PRO
20. Fool: TRICK
21. Indefinite ordinal: NTH
22. Request at the barber's: TRIM
24. Midwest capital, to locals: INDY
26. Domain of Horus, in Egyptian myth: SKY
28. *Bulletin board fasteners: TENPINS
32. Joker: WAG
35. Toiletry brand whose TV ads once featured the Supremes: ARRID
37. Thus far: YET
38. Michael who played Bruce Wayne's butler: CAINE
40. Engine cover: HOOD
41. Purplish bloom: ASTER
43. Establishments that often have porte cochères: INNS
44. What might get the ball rolling: INCLINE
46. Burrowing animal of southern Africa: MEERKAT
48. Napoleon's place: BAKERY
49. Fight on a mat, in dialect: RASSLE
50. Chopped: HEWN
52. What might get the ball rolling: PUTT
53. Where Herbert Hoover was born: IOWA
56. Actor Turner of "The Hobbit": AIDAN
58. A tater can produce up to four of these: RBIS
62. "Which weighs more - a pound of feathers or a pound of lead?" and others: TWENTYQUESTIONS
65. Novelist Fitzgerald: ZELDA
66. Letters preceding a pseudonym: AKA
67. City where LeBron James was born: AKRON
68. "As a result ...": ANDSO
69. Cohen who co-founded an ice cream company: BEN
70. They come after 12: TEENS

down

1. Short run?: JOG
2. Lawman played by James Garner and Kevin Costner: EARP
3. *1970s fad item: THIRTYROCK
4. ___ rose (English heraldic emblem): TUDOR
5. California's ___ Woods: MUIR
6. Island in the Coral Triangle: BALI
7. "___ plaisir!": AVEC
8. Help stimulate the economy: SPEND
9. Pulls a fast one on: FORTYWINKS
10. Promote: PUSH
11. "Dr." of rap: DRE
13. "Hell if I know!": GOTME
14. Alan of "Argo": ARKIN
23. "___ be my pleasure!": ITD
25. Advisory grp. to the president: NSC
26. Title meaning "master": SAHIB
27. Capital of Sweden: KRONA
29. Where Harley-Davidson Inc. is HOG: NYSE
30. Dog, cat or hamster: PET
31. Tabloid pair: ITEM
33. Historical record: ANNAL
34. Tale of derring-do: GESTE
36. The devil's playthings, they say: IDLEHANDS
39. Drone's mission: AIRSTRIKE
41. "Back to my point ...": ANYWAY
42. TV Land programming: RERUNS
45. Hot temper: IRE
47. Clear the dishes?: EAT
51. Muslim face veil: NIQAB
52. Song that might have hosannas: PAEAN
53. Native people of Guatemala: ITZA
54. Wister who was known as the father of western fiction: OWEN
55. Join together: WELD
57. School with five March Madness titles: DUKE
59. Snoozer: BORE
60. A party to: INON
61. Some personnel info: Abbr.: SSNS
63. Principle behind yin and yang: TAO
64. Something you might get with a piercing, informally: TAT

Hints and full breakdown for Feb 23

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.