NYT Crossword · The New York Times

The Crossword Clues, Hints & Answers for January 22, 2025

Q: Can I see past crossword answers?

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

Wednesday, January 22, 2025

By WordFinderZ Puzzle TeamLast updated Nov 3, 2026 at 12:39 PM ETHow we make hints

This archive page covers the The Crossword from Wednesday, January 22, 2025. 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.

74 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, January 21, 2025

across

1. Gobble: SNARF
6. English pop duo with the 1984 hit "Last Christmas": WHAM
10. First book after the four Gospels: ACTS
14. Slicker, as a winter road: ICIER
15. Name of Sporty Spice in the Spice Girls: MELC
16. TV host Trevor with the memoir "Born a Crime": NOAH
17. Convenient source of tinctures and tonics: CORNERDRUGSTORE
20. Bit of workout apparel, informally: TEE
21. Dish with a Cantonese counterpart called egg foo yong: OMELETTE
22. Tool that may be used as a hoe: ADZ
25. Needs for in vitro fertilization: OVA
27. Prefix with liberal: NEO
28. Actor McShane: IAN
29. Singer of "Despacito," which has more than eight billion views on YouTube: LUISFONSI
32. Exploitative ones: USERS
34. Mardi Gras follower: LENT
35. Fish also called a nishikigoi: KOI
36. Surreptitiously let in on an email: BCC
37. Popular camp activity … or, literally, what the circles are creating four times in this puzzle: SCAVENGERHUNT
42. Kettle component: LID
43. Figure painted by Warhol: MAO
44. Skip out of a party: BAIL
46. Canine welcomes: BARKS
49. Item with hinged legs: CARDTABLE
51. Salt Lake City-to-Minneapolis dir.: ENE
52. ___ Jordan, a.k.a. the Green Lantern: HAL
54. Neither's partner: NOR
55. Word after phone or, modernly, Zoom: SEX
56. Piece of blackboard chalk, geometrically: CYLINDER
59. Stir-fry accessory: WOK
61. "That's not even the half of it ...": OHYOUHAVENOIDEA
66. Body personified by the Greek Titan Selene: MOON
67. Walkie-talkie word: OVER
68. Cultivates, in a way: PLOWS
69. So, so, so long: EONS
70. "Barbie" actor Michael: CERA
71. Like Pittsburgh's Canton Avenue, famously: STEEP

down

1. [as printed!]: SIC
2. Cpl. or sgt.: NCO
3. Word with open or central: AIR
4. Monthly budget item: RENT
5. No longer burdened by: FREEOF
6. Nuke, for one: WMD
7. Hoagie: HERO
8. Reunion attendees: ALUMNI
9. Janis Joplin's "Me and Bobby ___": MCGEE
10. It may be a chip or two: ANTE
11. Playground pathogen: COOTIE
12. Dental detritus: TARTAR
13. Glosses: SHEENS
18. Annulled, as a license: REVOKED
19. Sit non-ergonomically: SLOUCH
22. 100%: ALL
23. Union requirements: DUES
24. Brass component: ZINC
26. In a bit, to a poet: ANON
30. Celery component: STALK
31. Greek letter that represents summation: SIGMA
33. Marine photographer's aid: SCUBA
36. Hang with the boys, slangily: BRODOWN
38. God whose avatars restore cosmic order: VISHNU
39. Net: EARN
40. Catches in the act: NABS
41. Rummikub piece: TILE
45. Superman foe ___ Luthor: LEX
46. "2 ___ 1" (Spice Girls song): BECOME
47. "O.K. ... moving on!": ANYHOO
48. Have as support: RELYON
49. Use an ax on, perhaps: CLEAVE
50. Military force: TROOPS
53. Like some committees: ADHOC
57. + or – bits: IONS
58. One vacationing in a camper, informally: RVER
60. Bagpiper's wear: KILT
62. Big time: ERA
63. Fawn's mother: DOE
64. Lamb's mother: EWE
65. Snake created by Medusa's blood, in myth: ASP

Hints and full breakdown for Jan 21

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.