NYT Crossword hints and answer for March 31, 2026
Hints that get gradually more specific, then the answer if you need it. Nothing is revealed until you tap.
Clues78
Across37
Down41
ConstructorRyan Patrick Smith
Today’s NYT Crossword clues, hints & answers
Every clue from this puzzle with a hint and the answer behind separate buttons, so you only see what you need. Click a clue for its own page.
Across
1A
"The Planets" composer (5)
Starts with H, ends with THOLST→
6A
About 746 of these equal one horsepower (5)
Starts with W, ends with SWATTS→
11A
Colorado Plateau people (3)
Starts with U, ends with EUTE→
14A
Sign in a TV studio (5)
Starts with O, ends with RONAIR→
15A
Kirin competitor (5)
Starts with A, ends with IASAHI→
16A
Something entered into an A.T.M. (3)
Starts with P, ends with NPIN→
17A
2003 crime drama adapted from a Dennis Lehane novel (11)
Starts with M, ends with RMYSTICRIVER→
19A
___ Bo (exercise regimen popularized via VHS tapes) (3)
Starts with T, ends with ETAE→
20A
List in Ariana Grande's "Thank U, Next" (4)
Starts with E, ends with SEXES→
21A
Direct (to) (5)
Starts with R, ends with RREFER→
22A
Middle-of-the-bell-curve result (4)
Starts with N, ends with MNORM→
23A
Swimmer in a Japanese garden (3)
Starts with K, ends with IKOI→
25A
Fled the scene (7)
Starts with R, ends with YRANAWAY→
27A
Six Flags location that was the first amusement park to offer 20 roller coasters (13)
Starts with M, ends with NMAGICMOUNTAIN→
32A
Chicken ___ king (3)
Starts with A, ends with AALA→
33A
Admissions overseer, maybe (4)
Starts with D, ends with NDEAN→
37A
The "1" in a 9-1 record (4)
Starts with L, ends with SLOSS→
39A
Typeface that sounds like the name of a Disney princess (5)
Starts with A, ends with LARIAL→
42A
___ wolf (extinct canine once prevalent across North America) (4)
Starts with D, ends with EDIRE→
43A
Attire in the old Roman Senate (5)
Starts with T, ends with STOGAS→
45A
Sign of things to come (4)
Starts with O, ends with NOMEN→
47A
Crater's edge (3)
Starts with R, ends with MRIM→
48A
Concept explaining why certain humanoid robots look so unsettling (13)
Starts with U, ends with YUNCANNYVALLEY→
52A
Cloudy craft beer (7)
Starts with H, ends with AHAZYIPA→
54A
Mediator between the id and the ideal, in Freudian psychology (3)
Starts with E, ends with OEGO→
55A
Pasta that resembles rice (4)
Starts with O, ends with OORZO→
56A
Knuckle-cracking or clipping nails in public, to some (5)
Starts with P, ends with EPEEVE→
59A
"hahaha!" (4)
Starts with L, ends with OLMAO→
63A
Kenan's bestie on a 1990s sitcom (3)
Starts with K, ends with LKEL→
64A
Utopian expanse ... a map of which might include 17-, 27- and 48-Across? (11)
Starts with F, ends with DFANTASYLAND→
66A
French 101 article (3)
Starts with U, ends with EUNE→
67A
Something to raise in a crisis (5)
Starts with A, ends with MALARM→
68A
Like flapjacks and Frisbees (5)
Starts with R, ends with DROUND→
69A
Damage (3)
Starts with M, ends with RMAR→
70A
Censor, informally (5)
Starts with B, ends with PBLEEP→
71A
Undercover operatives (5)
Starts with S, ends with SSPIES→
Down
1D
"E.T. phone ___" (4)
Starts with H, ends with EHOME→
2D
Banded mineral seen at many a street fair (4)
Starts with O, ends with XONYX→
3D
Produce coherent light (4)
Starts with L, ends with ELASE→
4D
Piece of equipment for a Winter Paralympian (6)
Starts with S, ends with ISITSKI→
5D
Muscle strengthened by dips, familiarly (3)
Starts with T, ends with ITRI→
6D
Ending with kitchen or earthen (4)
Starts with W, ends with EWARE→
7D
"Dream on!" (4)
Starts with A, ends with FASIF→
8D
Establishment where a D&D party might refuel and pick up new leads (6)
Starts with T, ends with NTAVERN→
9D
What 2020 was a year of, in the Chinese zodiac (6)
Starts with T, ends with TTHERAT→
10D
"Aaron Burr, ___" ("Hamilton" number) (3)
Starts with S, ends with RSIR→
11D
Billy Joel title character who's "been living in her white bread world" (10)
Starts with U, ends with LUPTOWNGIRL→
12D
Headwear for Wonder Woman (5)
Starts with T, ends with ATIARA→
13D
Antagonist (5)
Starts with E, ends with YENEMY→
18D
Ukrainian peninsula seized by Russia in 2014 (6)
Starts with C, ends with ACRIMEA→
22D
Water nymph of Greek myth (5)
Starts with N, ends with DNAIAD→
24D
Anxious condition, in brief (3)
Starts with O, ends with DOCD→
26D
Rural turndown (3)
Starts with N, ends with WNAW→
27D
Soda fountain order (4)
Starts with M, ends with TMALT→
28D
Potatoes, in Indian cuisine (4)
Starts with A, ends with OALOO→
29D
Vehicle with low fuel efficiency, in slang (10)
Starts with G, ends with RGASGUZZLER→
30D
Longboat propeller (3)
Starts with O, ends with ROAR→
31D
International Longshoremen's Association, e.g. (5)
Starts with U, ends with NUNION→
35D
Lake separating Ohio from Ontario (4)
Starts with E, ends with EERIE→
36D
Rapper ___ Ma (4)
Starts with R, ends with YREMY→
38D
Panasonic acquisition of 2009 (5)
Starts with S, ends with OSANYO→
40D
"Inside ___ Schumer" (sketch comedy series) (3)
Starts with A, ends with YAMY→
41D
Embankments protecting New Orleans (6)
Starts with L, ends with SLEVEES→
44D
Biol. or chem. (3)
Starts with S, ends with ISCI→
46D
One who's constantly telling you to do this and do that (3)
Starts with N, ends with GNAG→
49D
Horrify (6)
Starts with A, ends with LAPPALL→
50D
2010s dance fad with a reduplicative name (6)
Starts with N, ends with ENAENAE→
51D
Bound along clumsily (6)
Starts with L, ends with PLOLLOP→
52D
Malarkey (5)
Starts with H, ends with MHOKUM→
53D
Venue for a boss fight (5)
Starts with A, ends with AARENA→
57D
French 101 verb (4)
Starts with E, ends with EETRE→
58D
Extemporize to fill time, say (4)
Starts with V, ends with PVAMP→
60D
Hawaii's second-largest island (4)
Starts with M, ends with IMAUI→
61D
Frank of diary fame (4)
Starts with A, ends with EANNE→
62D
Bookie's determination (4)
Starts with O, ends with SODDS→
64D
___ Five (advisers on "Queer Eye") (3)
Starts with F, ends with BFAB→
65D
Decade makeup: Abbr. (3)
Starts with Y, ends with SYRS→
How to solve the NYT Crossword
Fill the grid so that every Across and Down answer matches its clue. Numbered squares mark where answers begin. Theme answers, usually the longest entries, share a twist that the puzzle's title or a revealer clue explains. Thursday puzzles are known for rebus squares and other tricks that bend the normal rules.
Want the full method? Read our NYT Crossword strategy and tips, or check how to play the NYT Crossword on the hub.
NYT Crossword tips for tomorrow
- Start with Monday-level clues. Even on a Saturday, a handful of clues are straightforward. Find them and build outward from the crossings.
- Hunt for the revealer. A clue that references other entries or ends in "?" often explains the theme. Solving it first unlocks the long answers.
- Respect the day of the week. Thursday means tricks like rebus squares; Friday and Saturday mean long, clever fill with misleading clues.
Done for today? Try The Mini, The Midi, LA Times Crossword, all with hints first and answers behind a reveal.
Previous NYT Crossword puzzles
NYT Crossword FAQ
How many clues are in the NYT Crossword for March 31, 2026?+
78 clues: 37 Across and 41 Down. The puzzle was constructed by Ryan Patrick Smith and edited by Will Shortz.
What are some answers in today’s NYT Crossword?+
For example: "The Planets" composer (HOLST); About 746 of these equal one horsepower (WATTS); Colorado Plateau people (UTE).
What time does the NYT Crossword come out?+
The next day's puzzle is released at 10:00 pm Eastern Time Monday to Friday and at 6:00 pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
Where can I find past NYT Crossword answers?+
Every puzzle in our archive has its own page with all Across and Down answers, plus a page for each clue. Click any date above.
