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Crossword Difficulty: 7/10

NYT The Crossword Answer Yesterday — Wednesday, September 9, 2026

Puzzle #24397 • 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

Clues & Answers for Yesterday's NYT Crossword

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

Across

1. "OK," in modern slang
4. Develop
9. Postlarval insects
14. Prefix with skeleton
15. Ewok's home
16. Blow, as 13-Down does repeatedly
17. Top starter
18. *Unsecured artillery that can slide across the deck
20. "Semper Fidelis," for one
22. Advantage
23. Me-time destination
24. Creature of Egyptian myth
26. Bus schedule component
28. Some landscaping equipment
31. Worker who's behind the Times?
35. Plow puller of old
37. "Verb," ironically
39. Part of a black suit
40. Its three largest cities all have names starting with C
41. Completely lost … or where the now-idiomatic answer to each italicized clue has a literal meaning
43. Barely made (out)
44. Chat, informally
46. Old-timey "Listen!"
47. Out of juice
48. Paint options
50. Permanent-press
52. Part of many a shallow-water ecosystem
54. Music genre for some yoga classes
57. Suffix with devil
60. Expresses approval, in a way
63. Remove from its original packaging, say
64. *Equatorial ocean area notorious for lack of winds
67. Consumed
68. Character in "Monsters, Inc."
69. Like many a campfire story
70. Hiker to a QB: Abbr.
71. Elevate, as a flag
72. Shell out cash
73. Word with sewing or starter

Down

1. Has a happy face
2. Former member of the force
3. *Stand barefoot in formation along seams of deck planks
4. Fit in
5. Game in which players draw and skip
6. Big celebrity
7. When repeated, leading only to bad outcomes
8. Leftovers
9. Stir-fry add-ins
10. Decorative vessel
11. "Sofa, so good" and such
12. Each
13. Sicilian smoker
19. ___ as a bug's ear
21. *Drift with the natural flow of currents
25. TV's "Warrior Princess"
27. *Bosun's whistled call signaling a shift change
29. I.R.A. classification
30. Lazy ___
32. *Flattened against the masts in a changing wind
33. Roman theaters
34. Comedian Foxx
35. Soft leather shoes, for short
36. "That's not good"
38. Fiddler-emperor, legend has it
42. Similar
45. Minimal paint job
49. Promote
51. Not just thrown away, say
53. Gradually tapered cuts
55. Jailed New York crime boss
56. Wield, as authority
57. Bite reminder, maybe
58. "Get away!"
59. Prefix with sphere
61. Dice peppers, e.g.
62. Positive
65. Personally contacts online, for short
66. Max's opposite
15×15 grid · 39A / 39D · 78 words · Difficulty 7/10 ·#24397

Deep Dive

Word Analysis

Longest word: LOOSECANNON (11 letters)

Shortest word: BET (3 letters)

Average length: 4.8 letters

Total words: 78 (39 across, 39 down)

Grid Stats

Fill percentage: 84% (189/225 cells)

Unique letters used: 22

Grid dimensions: 15×15

Blocked cells: 36

Most Common Letters

E
58x
O
40x
N
28x
S
28x
A
26x

Puzzle Analysis

The Times crossword presented a solid challenge. LOOSE CANNON was the standout entry. Its length and meaning made it a tough fill. The clue for LOOSE CANNON was direct, fitting for such a strong phrase. The intersection of LOOSE CANNON with other long answers like THEDOLDRUMS and TAKENABACK felt particularly satisfying to solve. The 7/10 difficulty rating feels accurate. Several clues required careful thought. For example, "Hard to pin down, perhaps" for LOOSE CANNON is a good example of the puzzle's cleverness. The puzzle featured a good mix of common and less common words. It demanded sustained focus.

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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