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Crossword Difficulty: 7/10

NYT The Crossword Answer Yesterday — Sunday, July 12, 2026

Puzzle #24185 • Difficulty 7/10

Wordle solution today's Connections answer Mini Crossword daily answers today's Crosswordle Nerdle daily puzzle

Yesterday's NYT The Crossword Answer

Theme: “Slight Adjustments”

Clues & Answers for Yesterday's NYT Crossword

Click a square to reveal its letter. Get hints below.

Across

1. One-named singer from County Donegal
5. Spot treatment provider?
11. You might need to lose a few to get them
14. Problem with a story
18. Shallot relatives
20. Icon beside a username
21. Push-up, for example
22. Asia's rejuvenated North ___ Sea
23. "I vant to suck your blood!"
25. White Claws, e.g.
27. Twisted balloon shapes, typically
28. Doesn't wait to find out, say
29. Video game setting for noobs
30. Sculptor's degree, for short
31. Little annoyance
32. Turkey part
33. "I know you're the one who used up the last of my artisanal coffee!"
40. Apt letters missing from PRO_EC_T_
41. Reef setting
42. Profound
43. Preserve
44. Prepared to pray
47. Contradictory
50. "In ___," Colin Farrell dark comedy set in Belgium
52. Digs in the snow?
53. Gridiron unit that includes the nose tackle, informally
54. Certain bony protrusions
55. "If you don't find the rings this instant, I'm calling off the wedding!"
60. Prodigal ___
61. Apex
62. Author Colfer of the "Artemis Fowl" series
63. Palindromic family member
66. "I love your paintings so much, I'd like to finance your next exhibition!"
73. What fighter pilots fight, for short
76. Noggins
77. Device for sending group messages?
78. Lap, maybe
79. Oaf
81. Surf in a daring way
83. "You can say that again"
84. Japanese city known for its beef
85. Shop ___
86. Pack-bearing beast
87. "Wow! With form like that, you're headed to Wimbledon!"
95. Stroke gently
96. Puts away
97. Planner unit
98. "Don't fall for that!"
101. Like many wines and cheeses
102. Gallery collection
106. Where one might drink a mai tai or piña colada
107. "I'm so glad you shaved! I hated when you looked like a sexy lumberjack!"
109. Kind of contraceptive
110. Compete
111. Josh of "No Country for Old Men"
112. Love seats, e.g.
113. Certain body-weight exercises
114. The Big Crunch, theoretically, for our universe
115. Daisy relatives
116. Quitter's word

Down

1. Actor Idris
2. German dissent
3. Himalayan menace
4. With hands on hips
5. Common occurrences for scratch golfers
6. Apple consumer
7. Mesoamerican staple cooked in a cornhusk
8. Equilibria
9. Heavy coats
10. Torah vessels
11. Things marked during attendance
12. End it
13. They might be green or red
14. Dress for a job you probably don't want?
15. Apt name for a tuxedo cat
16. Embellish as with unnecessary words
17. Alternatively
19. Screw-up
24. Ricochet
26. Supermodel Banks
31. Groovy
32. Crushed, in a way
33. Rarin' to go
34. Land, as a fish
35. Palindromic family member
36. Contributed
37. Shakespeare character who declares "I am not what I am"
38. Baker's necessity
39. Loch ___
40. Sketches
45. Vast span
46. [That was a good one]
47. The thing in "The Thing," for one
48. "Open ___ midnight"
49. United
50. No es ___ (Spanish put-down)
51. Cellular messenger
53. Audience stat
54. ___-a-brac
56. David who directed the final four Harry Potter films
57. Tape players
58. 2020 Christopher Nolan sci-fi movie
59. Uses more than one's fair share of
63. Tofu alternative
64. As a joke
65. Obsessive supporters, in modern lingo
66. Bull rings?
67. Some summer purchases, informally
68. Laid off
69. Madhouse
70. Texter's qualifier
71. Dude in Jamaica
72. Root beer order
73. Clutch
74. Disaster relief org.
75. Noted example of oligopoly, in brief
79. "Have a safe trip"
80. Fivers
81. "2001" villain
82. Far from basic
84. Baking recipe instruction
85. Biden and Bush, once, in brief
88. Professional responsibilities, colloquially
89. Show up
90. Cubans, e.g.
91. Spotted wildcat
92. Put your nose where it doesn't belong, say
93. Flowing tresses
94. One looking after pupils, for short
98. Device outmoded by the smartphone
99. "Holesome" figures
100. Carving material for beginners
101. ___ Arena, concert venue in London's Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
102. Waves a hand in front of, maybe
103. ___ Romeo
104. Director Johnson of "Knives Out"
105. Word repeated into a mic
108. Symbol on an Oregon license plate
21×21 grid · 60A / 78D · 138 words · Difficulty 7/10 ·#24185

Deep Dive

Theme: “Slight Adjustments”

Word Analysis

Longest word: GROUNDLESSACCUSATION (20 letters)

Shortest word: ABS (3 letters)

Average length: 5.3 letters

Total words: 138 (60 across, 78 down)

Grid Stats

Fill percentage: 83% (364/441 cells)

Unique letters used: 23

Grid dimensions: 21×21

Blocked cells: 77

Most Common Letters

A
96x
E
90x
S
72x
N
50x
O
48x

Puzzle Analysis

The NYT Crossword presented a challenging 7/10 difficulty. The longest entries like GROUNDLESSACCUSATION and BITINGREMARK were tough fills. INKLING felt like a surprisingly simple answer given the surrounding complexity. The grid had a good mix of common and obscure knowledge. The 7/10 rating seems appropriate. It demanded a solid vocabulary and some creative thinking. Several longer answers required careful construction. It was a satisfying solve.

How to Play NYT The Crossword

The NYT Crossword is the flagship 15×15 grid puzzle published daily by The New York Times, larger and more challenging than the Mini and Midi.

Fill in the grid by solving Across and Down clues. Every answer intersects with other words at shared letters.

The puzzle always features a theme with a clever title. Theme answers span the longest entries in the grid.

Difficulty increases through the week: Monday is easiest, Saturday is hardest. Sunday puzzles are larger (21×21) but Wednesday-level difficulty.

Play at nytimes.com/crosswords. A new puzzle is available every day.

Tips & Strategy

  • Start with Monday puzzles to learn common crossword fill like ERA, ORE, ATE, OREO, and ALOE.
  • Read the theme title. It often hints at wordplay used in the longest answers.
  • Fill in crossing letters first. A single confirmed letter can crack a tricky clue.
  • Question marks in clues signal wordplay, puns, or non-literal interpretations.
  • Three-letter answers repeat across puzzles. Learn common ones like ERA, ORE, ATE, ALOE.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does NYT The Crossword repeat past grids?
No. Each NYT The Crossword puzzle is a unique grid that has never appeared before.
Where can I find all past NYT The Crossword solutions?
Our archive lists every past NYT The Crossword solution with all grid words, organized by date.
How many words are in each NYT The Crossword grid?
Grids typically contain 3-8 words crossing horizontally and vertically. Longer words generally indicate harder puzzles.

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