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NYT Crossword — April 2, 2026

Thursday’s 15 × 15 puzzle, 78 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 78 revealed

1C

2U

3L

4T

5S

6P

7H

8O

9J

10E

11D

12I

13O

P

E

R

A

14C

R

E

W

15O

M

A

R

16W

T

V

E

W

17E

H

E

R

E

18Y

A

N

K

19L

O

I

S

20C

O

O

21P

R

I

C

E

22T

T

23S

H

I

P

24S

25S

A

I

L

E

D

26R

27E

A

L

T

O

R

28C

O

R

D

29E

S

T

E

E

30S

A

C

31E

32A

33R

34S

35U

S

E

36W

37L

38E

S

R

K

39S

40R

A

P

41P

O

D

42S

43I

A

N

44C

45I

T

G

O

46U

47T

E

S

48P

49I

A

N

I

S

T

50T

51N

52K

S

B

U

T

53N

O

T

N

K

S

54H

E

A

P

S

55O

R

C

56L

A

57M

58P

59R

A

Z

E

60L

61A

U

G

H

62L

I

N

E

S

63E

T

O

N

64T

I

N

Y

65G

N

A

T

S

66W

O

O

D

67E

L

S

68A

G

L

E

T

Across

37 clues

1Fanatical groups

6Dish often topped with lime and cilantro

9Sci-fi warrior

13One of 22 works by Mozart, but just one work by Beethoven

14Team behind the cameras

15Actor Epps of "House"

16Question after "Well, well, well ..."

19"Family Guy" character with a nasal voice

20Exec who manages a company's day-to-day affairs

21Word with market or list

22"Too late to do anything about it now"

26One who has a lot to show?

28Bungee jumping requirement

29First name in beauty products

31Holders of hammers and anvils

35One cause of deterioration

36Marine creatures that can grow to the size of double-decker buses

40Genre for DMX or DMC

41Coffee maker inserts

43Actor Somerhalder of "Lost"

44Gas company with a triangular logo

46One side in a "Holy War" rivalry in college football

48Player on the bench?

50Sarcastic response to an unwanted offer

55Member of a Tolkien army

56Object in Pixar's logo

60Facial wrinkles ... or what's present in 16-, 22-, 36- and 50-Across?

63School with a larger-than-life bronze statue of Henry VI

65Irritating "cloud"

66Beech or birch

67Ernie who has won the British Open twice

68Shoelace protector

Down

41 clues

1Part of a Batman costume

3Had an uplifting experience?

4Bridge framework

5Shop item with teeth

6Before surgery, in brief

7"Let ___ Go" (2012 Passenger hit)

9Some kicks on Route 66, maybe

10Bit of info on a résumé

14Group in a loft

17Sound in a cave

21Course standard

24Disney villain based on Shakespeare's King Claudius

25Punch in the face, say

26Extend a tour of duty

27The first letter in this gas brand's logo resembles a backward 3

30It's often identified by its last four digits, in brief

32Made in a nonmechanized way, as food products

33Cloths for custodians

38Like Alabama vis-à-vis Mississippi

39Create a PDF of, maybe

45Slightest idea

47Airer of the game show "Wipeout"

48Bess's beau on Broadway

49Eczema symptom

51"Cool beans!"

52Instrument once known as a "toy trumpet"

53Followers of articles

58Whisper that might accompany a tap

60Broadband letters

61Need a day off, say

62Big Apple airport code

Click a clue for its own page with the answer and a short explanation.

Stats & info

Thursday, Apr 2, 2026

15×15

Grid size

78

Total entries

38/187

Black / letter cells

4.8

Avg entry length

13 ltrs

Longest entry

Tricky

Thursday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedApr 2, 2026

DayThursday

ThemeUntitled

ConstructorJoe Marquez

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split37 across · 41 down

Longest entries

22A"Too late to do anything about it now"13 ltrs 50ASarcastic response to an unwanted offer13 ltrs 16AQuestion after "Well, well, well ..."10 ltrs 60AFacial wrinkles ... or what's present in 16-, 22-, 36- and 50-Across?10 ltrs 3DHad an uplifting experience?9 ltrs

Thursday is the gimmick day: rebus squares, reversed entries and other tricks are fair game. This grid has 38 black squares and averages 4.8 letters per entry.