NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for May 18, 2022

Q: Can I see past crossword answers?

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

Wednesday, May 18, 2022

By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated Nov 3, 2026 at 1:12 PM ETHow we make hints

This archive page covers the The Crossword from Wednesday, May 18, 2022. 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.

79 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.

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Previous The Crossword answer

Tuesday, May 17, 2022

across

1. Kids and their parents: GOATS
6. Help with a job, in a way: ABET
10. Wanted, but nowhere to be found: AWOL
14. Nickname for Schwarzenegger or Palmer: ARNIE
15. Winged chatterbox: MYNA
16. Deal (with): COPE
17. Hive minders: BEEKEEPERS
19. Having trouble deciding: TORN
20. Early-season farming task: SOWING
21. C, for one: NOTE
23. Video chat disruption: LAG
24. Words before "the stars are brightly shining," in a carol: OHOLYNIGHT
27. Lute ___, longtime Arizona basketball coach: OLSON
32. Winged hooter: OWL
33. Grind, as one's teeth: GNASH
34. Second-most-visited website worldwide, after Google: YOUTUBE
36. Many a Hollywood car crash: STUNT
38. So as not to stand out: SUBTLY
39. Some South Pacific greetings: ALOHAS
42. "Skol!," in Sauternes: SALUT
44. Literally, "on fire" … or, metaphorically, excellent: ENFUEGO
45. "Three coins" fountain location: TREVI
47. Lip: RIM
49. Scatter, as flower petals: STREW
50. Drink that comes with a buzz cut?: DECAFLATTE
53. Gently touch, either forward or backward: PAT
54. Staples of West African cuisine: YAMS
55. Frustrate: STYMIE
61. Et ___ (and others): ALIA
63. Entranced … or what one can do by reading the starts of 17-, 24-, 34-, 44- and 50-Across in order?: SPELLBOUND
65. Neatnik's opposite: SLOB
66. Palindromic fashion magazine: ELLE
67. Petulant: SULKY
68. Line up: SYNC
69. Ones calling offsides: REFS
70. Garlic squeezer: PRESS

down

1. Yaks: GABS
2. Twistable snack item: OREO
3. From the top: ANEW
4. First man, in Polynesian creation myth: TIKI
5. Observed: SEEN
6. Rock blaster: AMP
7. "Ta-ta!": BYENOW
8. Prepares to get schooled, perhaps: ENROLLS
9. Yummilicious: TASTY
10. Not just sit around daydreaming: ACT
11. Just sit around daydreaming: WOOLGATHER
12. ___ Book Club: OPRAHS
13. Yardstick measurement: LENGTH
18. ___ trip: EGO
22. Swamps: ENGULFS
25. De-weeder: HOE
26. West Coast burger chain: INNOUT
27. Cries of dismay: OYS
28. "Sweet Jane" songwriter Reed: LOU
29. Indented part of an outline: SUBSECTION
30. ___ rima (eight-line stanza): OTTAVA
31. Invalidate: NULLIFY
35. Sch. affiliated with the Latter-day Saints: BYU
37. Amy who wrote "The Joy Luck Club": TAN
40. Bouncer's concern: AGE
41. Female hog: SOW
43. Ride roughshod over: TRAMPLE
44. 911 responder: EMT
45. QB's six-pointer: TDPASS
46. In actuality: REALLY
48. In and of ___: ITSELF
51. Means of tagging in a game: LASER
52. Class offered at many Y.M.C.A.s: ESL
56. Baking meas.: TBSP
57. "That's ___ business": YOUR
58. Workhorse that's only part horse: MULE
59. Tattoo shop supplies: INKS
60. Ice cream brand: EDYS
62. "American Idol" airer starting in 2018: ABC
64. "___ Miz": LES

Hints and full breakdown for May 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.