NYT Crossword Answers for April 25, 2025

Jump to: Tricky Clues

FRIDAY PUZZLE — I think those of us who have tried to construct a crossword puzzle can agree that it’s not an easy task. Even the best puzzle makers run into jams. A grid might be filling like a dream and then suddenly the constructor runs into a dead end, where nothing fits. The resulting choice may be between refilling the entire section or settling for a less-than-desirable word such as “esne,” a word that describes a feudal laborer and has achieved fame as a bit of crosswordese.

Stacking entries well, whether they are horizontal or vertical stacks, is another high-wire act. For one thing, it increases the likelihood of filling failure by quite a bit, because the entries in the stack have to be exciting. The crossings also have to be familiar words all the way across those entries.

Adrian Johnson’s 11th crossword in The New York Times contains some beautiful quadruple stacks in the northwest and southeast. His center entry at 34A made me a bit excited, thinking that we might be solving a rare themed Friday puzzle. His crossword is not themed, but the entry is lively nonetheless.

While you’re solving, take some time to appreciate the stacks and their crossings. Note that every Down crossing is fairly familiar, and be duly impressed at the amount of work it took to achieve the quality of those sections. That’s the way to stack entries. Nicely done, Mr. Johnson.

Tricky Clues

17A. [Booked it] is slang for having moved quickly, and the answer is RAN LIKE MAD.

19A. The word [Skinny] can describe thinness, but in today’s puzzle it’s slang for information, or the INSIDE DOPE.