Crossword Puzzles

Sarah Sinclair and Rafael Musa invite solvers to a tug of war.Jump to: Tricky CluesFRIDAY PUZZLE — Everybody’s crossword solving abilities are different, of course, as are their areas of expertise. I tend to find puzzles easier when they contain a lot of pop culture, history and literature. Others may rely on their knowledge of science or linguistics. These differences are what make the comments on this column so interesting. We have so much to learn from one another if we remain kind to new solvers and they are open to new information.There’s no real need for a consensus on whether a puzzle is good or bad, easy or hard — and likewise, no one needs to make others feel as if they “should have” known an answer — because the only contest is between each solver and the constructor.I like to refer to that contest as a tug of war. The puzzles are designed so that the solver always wins, but first the constructor tugs on the grid by making it hard to find a place of entry. Next, the solver tugs back by finding an entry point and dropping in a few more answers. This back and forth repeats itself until the solver is completely stuck, which is when the puzzle needs to be put aside for a while. With a rested brain, the barrier that had held the solver up falls, and more entries are written.That is how I solved today’s puzzle by Sarah Sinclair and Rafael Musa. There was a lot of tugging and resting, but the struggle was worth it for many of the fun, lively entries I uncovered as I moved along. I think you’ll enjoy this one.Tricky Clues12A. Note the capital D in [Bunch of Daisies], which turns the flower name into a proper noun. The Daisies are the youngest TROOP of Girl Scouts. They are usually in kindergarten or first grade.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

Katie Hoody’s theme just goes on and on. …Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesTHURSDAY PUZZLE — Katie Hoody made her New York Times Crossword debut just last month with a stunningly good and difficult Saturday puzzle that contained two sparkling triple stacks.Today, she eases up on us with a grid that is not necessarily tricky for a Thursday — in fact, it’s fairly simple, as themes go — but that is approachable and fun. If you are just dipping a toe into Thursday puzzles, this may be a good one to begin with.Today’s ThemeLet’s face it: Attention spans aren’t what they used to be. With life moving insanely fast, and with short, snappy social media sound bites taking the place of longform communication, it’s no wonder that our ability to focus for extended periods of time is shot.Since we are all so short on time, there is, of course, a quick way to indicate that you are not about to invest what little time you have in reading a long novel, for example. Declaring that something is “TOO LONG, DIDN’T READ” can be shortened even further by using the initialism TL;DR, saving us a precious three or four seconds that could be used to doomscroll on our smartphones.Ms. Hoody’s theme includes three classic novels that some people may consider too long to read. Each clue provides us with the book’s year of publication and its approximate word count. “DAVID COPPERFIELD” at 18A, for example, was published in 1850 and contains more than 350,000 words. I didn’t know that offhand, so I solved using the crossings until I could take an educated guess at the title.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

Robert S. Gard brings us a little sunshine.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesWEDNESDAY PUZZLE — You’ve come here to register a complaint, I presume, about the fact that there’s a rebus in your Wednesday crossword. You’re wondering what it’s doing there and why it refuses to leave.I can’t make the rebus go away, but it would be a shame to let its presence discourage you from tackling this utterly delightful crossword, constructed by Robert S. Gard. (And in case you’re wondering what the heck a rebus is, here’s a quick guide.) Even solvers just beginning to get their sea legs ought to give this grid a go — it’s a wonderful introduction to the kind of trickery one faces regularly in Thursday puzzles. Let’s size up the puzzle together, shall we?Today’s ThemeThe gambit begins at 17-Across, where the well-known [Coloring implement since 1903], CRAYOLA CRAYON, doesn’t quite fit in the squares allotted. Whenever you encounter an entry like this one — which meets the criteria of the clue exactly, but doesn’t fit where it’s supposed to — check the crossings to verify that more than one entry is affected. Rebus squares, as a rule, must work with both Across and Down entries. 17-Across crosses 2-Down, and the [Reef predator with extendable pharyngeal jaws], known as a MORAY EEL, doesn’t fit, either. That confirms it: rebus puzzle!A total of six squares require entering R-A-Y to make sense (though if you’re solving online and having trouble entering several letters, the game will also accept just R). These three letters, squeezed into one square, demonstrate the effect of a [Downsizer?] (64A): SHRINK RAY. Note that R-A-Y isn’t shrunken here; a rebus puzzle’s revealer generally lays out the gimmick without repeating it.Tricky Clues26A. [Blade runner?] has a clear indicator of deception: the question mark. This clue refers not to a film character but to a blade-bottomed vehicle that moves quickly: a SLED. Many makeshift sleds do not have blades, mind you. I have slid down snowy hills on plastic mats, skateboard decks and inflatable pool toys — whatever floats your butt.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

Erik Agard runs down the clock.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesTUESDAY PUZZLE — People tell me that I’m elusive. I hear from one friend or another that I’m hard to get a hold of, that I seem eternally busy. Despite my protestations, these assessments may have some truth to them: My social calendar is active to the point of exhaustion, and I can’t resist sopping up any free hours with hobbies (sign language classes, a gym routine, sourdough).Erik Agard has a solution for those in a similar position, but he has hidden it in the theme of today’s crossword. How many minutes can you spare to solve it?Today’s ThemeMr. Agard’s novel approach to scheduling consists of a yin and a yang: We should SAVE THE DAY (17A) and SPEND THE NIGHT (38A). This cycle of saving and spending is described at 62-Across, [What 17- and 38-Across combine to form?] — a TIME BUDGET.I don’t know that I’ve ever seen such a minimalist theme, nor one so cleanly and cleverly executed. Mr. Agard used just two themed entries to achieve the wordplay in his revealer, but the effect was exponential.Tricky Clues19A. I confess to being a fair-weather fan of spoken clues. It’s satisfying if I can solve one at first glance, but when I can’t, I feel justified in criticizing them as a group. The phrase [“Who ___?”] might be completed by “says” or “said,” for instance, but in this case it solves to ISN’T.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