NYT Crossword · The New York Times
The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for September 18, 2018
Tuesday, September 18, 2018
By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated How we make hints
This archive page covers the The Crossword from Tuesday, September 18, 2018. 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
- 32
- 43
Down clues & answers
- 59
Know someone stuck on this one? The link opens on the hints, not the answer.
Previous The Crossword answer
Monday, September 17, 2018
across
- 1. Shoot out, as 14-Across: SPEW
- 5. Peach stones: PITS
- 9. Demanding that people do this and do that: BOSSY
- 14. Volcanic rock: LAVA
- 15. Uncork, as a bottle: OPEN
- 16. Livid: IRATE
- 17. At the lower side of the pH scale: ACID
- 18. Maple or oak: TREE
- 19. Stepping on the baseline when serving in tennis, e.g.: FAULT
- 20. Holder of wires along a street: TELEPHONEPOLE
- 23. Gloom's partner: DOOM
- 24. Actor Efron of "The Greatest Showman": ZAC
- 25. Subway scurrier: RAT
- 28. Like one end of a battery: Abbr.: NEG
- 31. Aggressive defensive soccer maneuver: SLIDETACKLE
- 34. Midterm or final: EXAM
- 36. That, in Tijuana: ESO
- 37. Eco-conscious Dr. Seuss character: LORAX
- 38. Red facial spots: ACNE
- 39. Transmits: SENDS
- 42. Toward sunrise: EAST
- 43. ___-wip (dessert topping): REDDI
- 45. "Black gold": OIL
- 46. Nickname for John Wayne, with "the": DUKE
- 47. Series of funny outtakes: BLOOPERREEL
- 51. Smidgen: TAD
- 52. Fashion designer's monogram: YSL
- 53. Have another birthday: AGE
- 54. Golf ball props: TEES
- 56. Toy in a 2017 craze: FIDGETSPINNER
- 62. Cricket's sound: CHIRP
- 64. Pairs: DUOS
- 65. College in New Rochelle, N.Y.: IONA
- 66. Pavarotti, voicewise: TENOR
- 67. Inner: Prefix: ENDO
- 68. Some natural hairdos, for short: FROS
- 69. Horned safari animal: RHINO
- 70. Student body overseer: DEAN
- 71. Use the items found at the ends of the answers to 20-, 31-, 47- and 56-Across: FISH
down
- 1. Part of a bed's base: SLAT
- 2. Tempo: PACE
- 3. Wicked: EVIL
- 4. Walked through water: WADED
- 5. Things filled by a highway crew: POTHOLES
- 6. "On my honor!": IPROMISE
- 7. Adolescent: TEEN
- 8. Something that's impossible to do with one's eyes open, per an urban legend: SNEEZE
- 9. Dual-purpose bit of eyewear: BIFOCAL
- 10. Of the mouth: ORAL
- 11. Hot dog topper: SAUERKRAUT
- 12. The Cards, on a scoreboard: STL
- 13. Up until now: YET
- 21. Like one end of a battery: Abbr.: POS
- 22. Consoling touch: PAT
- 26. Anchorage's home: ALASKA
- 27. Communicated via iMessage or WhatsApp: TEXTED
- 28. In the area: NEARBY
- 29. Gets all A's, say: EXCELS
- 30. James ___, portrayer of Tony Soprano on "The Sopranos": GANDOLFINI
- 32. Benefactor: DONOR
- 33. Like mixed doubles tennis, in college: COED
- 35. "Love ___" (Beatles hit): MEDO
- 40. Fizzy, sugarless beverage: DIETSODA
- 41. Takes a night to think over: SLEEPSON
- 44. Apple tablet with an attachable keyboard: IPADPRO
- 48. Omelet or quiche ingredient: EGG
- 49. Like clarinets and oboes: REEDED
- 50. Hawaiian garland: LEI
- 55. Quick smell: SNIFF
- 57. Hotel amenity with a cord: IRON
- 58. Adjust, as a piano: TUNE
- 59. "Me neither": NORI
- 60. Grandson of Adam and Eve: ENOS
- 61. What talcum powder may prevent: RASH
- 62. Middle: Abbr.: CTR
- 63. The laugh of someone who's up to no good: HEH
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.