NYT Crossword hints and answer for May 20, 2025
Hints that get gradually more specific, then the answer if you need it. Nothing is revealed until you tap.
Clues76
Across35
Down41
ConstructorRena Cohen
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
Bit or byte (4)
Starts with U, ends with TUNIT→
5A
Laundry collectors (4)
Starts with B, ends with SBINS→
9A
Good thing to bring to a competition (5)
Starts with A, ends with EAGAME→
14A
Comedian Trevor with the memoir "Born a Crime" (4)
Starts with N, ends with HNOAH→
15A
Give off (4)
Starts with E, ends with TEMIT→
16A
Ring-tailed primate (5)
Starts with L, ends with RLEMUR→
17A
Consistent with party policy (9)
Starts with O, ends with EONMESSAGE→
19A
Court colleague of Kagan and Kavanaugh (5)
Starts with A, ends with OALITO→
20A
"Eye on the ball," "Get under it!," "I got it!," etc. (12)
Starts with C, ends with SCATCHPHRASES→
22A
Like some ground balls (6)
Starts with O, ends with PONEHOP→
25A
CPR pro (3)
Starts with E, ends with TEMT→
26A
Queen of Olympus (4)
Starts with H, ends with AHERA→
27A
Pet rescue grp. (5)
Starts with A, ends with AASPCA→
31A
Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan (4)
Starts with O, ends with ROMAR→
35A
Mink, ferret, stoat, etc. (11)
Starts with W, ends with SWEASELWORDS→
38A
Indiana or Independence, in D.C. (3)
Starts with A, ends with EAVE→
39A
Detroit dud of the 1950s (5)
Starts with E, ends with LEDSEL→
40A
Wall St. debut (3)
Starts with I, ends with OIPO→
41A
"You're just too complimentary!" (5)
Starts with A, ends with EAWGEE→
43A
4G ___ (letters on a cellphone screen) (3)
Starts with L, ends with ELTE→
44A
"Ta-da," "All done," "There you have it," etc. (11)
Starts with F, ends with SFINISHLINES→
47A
Poet Byron, for one (4)
Starts with L, ends with DLORD→
49A
Like pound cake (5)
Starts with D, ends with EDENSE→
50A
Bird whose name sounds like a hip-hop dance move (4)
Starts with N, ends with ENENE→
51A
Employ (3)
Starts with U, ends with EUSE→
53A
Crafters' knives (6)
Starts with X, ends with SXACTOS→
55A
Yield, Stop, Dead End, etc. (12)
Starts with S, ends with ESIGNLANGUAGE→
61A
Tennis champ Naomi (5)
Starts with O, ends with AOSAKA→
62A
Freighter (9)
Starts with C, ends with PCARGOSHIP→
66A
On the up and up (5)
Starts with L, ends with TLEGIT→
69A
College V.I.P.s (5)
Starts with D, ends with SDEANS→
70A
Cryptanalyst Turing (4)
Starts with A, ends with NALAN→
71A
What spring may bring (4)
Starts with T, ends with WTHAW→
Down
1D
Card game shout (3)
Starts with U, ends with OUNO→
2D
Oui's opposite (3)
Starts with N, ends with NNON→
3D
Response to "Who's going?" (3)
Starts with I, ends with MIAM→
4D
Action film climax one might "cut to," in a saying (8)
Starts with T, ends with ETHECHASE→
5D
Closest confidant (7)
Starts with B, ends with LBESTPAL→
6D
Apple all-in-one (4)
Starts with I, ends with CIMAC→
7D
Walt Whitman's "As the Time Draws ___" (4)
Starts with N, ends with HNIGH→
8D
Call repeated in an aerobics class (4)
Starts with S, ends with PSTEP→
9D
Wake-up call (5)
Starts with A, ends with MALARM→
10D
Dessert served with the query "Cono o coppetta?" in Italy (6)
Starts with G, ends with OGELATO→
11D
Somme friends (4)
Starts with A, ends with SAMIS→
12D
Silence on Zoom (4)
Starts with M, ends with EMUTE→
13D
Cherubic Greek god (4)
Starts with E, ends with SEROS→
18D
___ Paulo, Brazil (3)
Starts with S, ends with OSAO→
21D
Circle at the top of a stick figure (4)
Starts with H, ends with DHEAD→
22D
"Such is life!" (6)
Starts with O, ends with LOHWELL→
24D
Chalk accompanier (6)
Starts with E, ends with RERASER→
28D
Consumers of hogwash (5)
Starts with S, ends with ESWINE→
29D
Stop by (5)
Starts with P, ends with NPOPIN→
30D
Hybridize (5)
Starts with C, ends with SCROSS→
32D
Souvenir for a refrigerator (6)
Starts with M, ends with TMAGNET→
33D
Moisturizer brand (6)
Starts with A, ends with OAVEENO→
34D
___ Pieces (6)
Starts with R, ends with SREESES→
36D
Fey figure of folklore (3)
Starts with E, ends with FELF→
37D
Khan who founded Khan Academy (3)
Starts with S, ends with LSAL→
42D
Flinches in response to (8)
Starts with W, ends with TWINCESAT→
45D
Brainstorm (4)
Starts with I, ends with AIDEA→
46D
Utah, geometrically speaking (7)
Starts with H, ends with NHEXAGON→
48D
What "America runs on," in a franchise slogan (6)
Starts with D, ends with NDUNKIN→
52D
Bed supports (5)
Starts with S, ends with SSLATS→
54D
"Give it ___" (3)
Starts with A, ends with OAGO→
55D
Auctioned off, e.g. (4)
Starts with S, ends with DSOLD→
56D
"Oh, OK" (4)
Starts with I, ends with EISEE→
57D
Crazy (about) (4)
Starts with G, ends with AGAGA→
58D
March Madness org. (4)
Starts with N, ends with ANCAA→
59D
Chutzpah (4)
Starts with G, ends with LGALL→
60D
___ Major (4)
Starts with U, ends with AURSA→
63D
"What'd you say?" (3)
Starts with H, ends with HHUH→
64D
Public radio host Glass (3)
Starts with I, ends with AIRA→
65D
Where to find a kitten's "toe beans" (3)
Starts with P, ends with WPAW→
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 May 20, 2025?+
76 clues: 35 Across and 41 Down. The puzzle was constructed by Rena Cohen and edited by Will Shortz.
What are some answers in today’s NYT Crossword?+
For example: Bit or byte (UNIT); Laundry collectors (BINS); Good thing to bring to a competition (AGAME).
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.
