Crossword Puzzles

You may not know which way you’re going when you solve Ella Dershowitz’s puzzle.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesTHURSDAY PUZZLE — Saying anything about today’s puzzle, constructed by Ella Dershowitz, would give away the theme, so the only thing I will urge you all to do is to keep the idiom “robbing Peter to pay Paul” in mind as you solve.Also, I would like to congratulate Ms. Dershowitz in her starring role in New York City in a play called “Mrs. Stern Wanders the Prussian State Library.”Today’s ThemeANY TAKERS is the answer to the revealer clue at 35A, [“Who’s interested?” … or, phonetically, what four answers in this puzzle are vis-à-vis the answers next to them].That’s all well and good, I hear you saying, but why are some of the clues and their answers not making sense? We’re all pretty sure that [Selecting for a jury] has little to do with IMPALING someone, Deb, or no one would show up for the voir dire.That’s a great question, and the answer has to do with interpreting the revealer correctly.When a clue says that an entry should be read phonetically, solvers need to look for a word in the entry that can be converted into letters. In Ms. Dershowitz’s revealer, for example, the word ANY should be read as N-E.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Are Matthew Stock and Brooke Husic just being diplomatic?Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesWEDNESDAY PUZZLE — Some people scoff at the idea of continuing their education as adults. A friend of mine has such disdain for the phrase “back to school” that he put together a slide show about why it should be abolished.Undaunted, Matthew Stock and Brooke Husic leaned into academia as their inspiration for today’s theme. I was as surprised as anyone to discover how much I loved the curriculum therein — and I believe that you are all capable of graduating with flying colors.Today’s ThemeAny initial ideas?I hope so, because initials are key to each of today’s themed clues. At 16A, the [B.A. in Communications?] is the BRAILLE ALPHABET — that’s what “B.A.” stands for, and “communications” refers to the use of Braille. A closer look at the [M.S. in Biology?] gives us a MICROSCOPE SLIDE. And you could doctor a [Ph.D. in computing?] simply by using a POCKET HARD DRIVE.The puzzle’s witty educational credentials are summarized by an expression at 54A: Something [Not distinguished by large differences] is A MATTER OF DEGREE.A tip for newer solvers: Pay attention to question marks in themed clues. Their presence should make you re-examine the clue’s wording. In today’s puzzle, the question marks in the themed clues hint that those letters, usually associated with academic degrees, stand for something unexpected.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Barbara Lin finds a creative way to get to the bottom of things.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesTUESDAY PUZZLE — Generally speaking, you don’t have to wear pants while solving the daily New York Times Crossword. There are no rules that require it or signs that proclaim “No shoes, no shirt, no solving.” So long as you keep your pantsless puzzling to the privacy of your own home — and I would encourage you to — no one will ever be the wiser.Pants may be required, however, in order to solve today’s crossword, which was constructed by Barbara Lin. You don’t actually need to put them on, but they’ll help you figure out the theme. And now that I’ve made my clothing remarks, let’s dive in.Today’s ThemeYou might say that our four themed entries wear the pants in today’s puzzle: At 17-, 27-, 48- and 62-Across, the letter S has been added to the ends of common expressions to transform them into descriptions of bottoms.At 17A, a pair of [Bottoms decorated with characters from the “Odyssey”?] would be LONG STORY SHORTS. At 62A, the [Request to a custom tailor?] is CUT ME SOME SLACKS. For 27A, do you wear [Close-fitting pajamas?] to bed, otherwise known as SLEEP TIGHTS?I could see myself wearing any of these garments, save for the [Offering in Eilish’s clothing brand?] at 48A — BILLIE JEANS are not my color.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Stick to your instincts as you solve Neil Padrick Wilson’s crossword puzzle.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesMONDAY PUZZLE — If you’ve come to the Wordplay column directly after glancing at today’s crossword, don’t panic. This puzzle, constructed by Neil Padrick Wilson, is as Monday-friendly as they come, even though it doesn’t look that way. The grid is a little more open than one might expect for the top of the week — and I share your initial alarm at the number of longer entries Mr. Wilson managed to fit into his grid. But I can assure you that it’s an easy solve. I might even call it child’s play.Today’s ThemeELMER’S GLUE (58A) can be interpreted as the puzzle’s revealer in two senses. The first is literal, since the adhesive is [What a kid might use to hold] a PAPER PLATE (17A), COTTON BALLS (24A), MACARONI NOODLES (35A) and a PIPE CLEANER (47A) together. And 58-Across also represents the more figurative “glue,” as the revealer of any crossword serves to bring the elements of a theme together.I’m far more interested in what the imagined “kid” of this puzzle plans to make with those crafting items. Are we thinking a classic necklace of MACARONI NOODLES? A fluffy animal mask for Halloween that uses the PAPER PLATE and the COTTON BALLS? A PIPE CLEANER stick figure? Whatever the finished product, I promise to react to it with feigned enthusiasm, as any responsible adult would.Tricky Clues29A. One generally kneels while being knighted — that’s what the movies tell me, anyway — so the [Direction to a newly knighted knight] is ARISE.32A. I spent several minutes cycling through possible mononyms for all my immediate family members and extended relatives before realizing that the [Family member who usually goes by one name] referred to a PET.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More