Home/Archive/Aug 23, 2026

NYT Crossword — August 23, 2026

Sunday’s 22 × 21 puzzle, 145 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 145 revealed

1R

2A

3D

4P

5H

6D

7S

8F

9L

10I

11R

12T

13S

14H

15A

16R

17K

18E

M

I

19L

20L

A

I

N

21R

A

W

E

R

22P

H

A

S

E

I

23D

O

V

E

24A

PENNY

S

A

25V

E

D

I

S

A

26PENNY

E

A

R

N

E

D

27T

E

E

N

28S

Y

29C

P

A

S

30L

I

M

P

S

31E

E

L

S

32A

B

R

A

H

A

33M

L

I

N

C

34O

L

N

35I

C

36A

M

E

37G

A

T

O

R

38C

A

N

T

O

R

39S

N

I

P

40D

41U

42B

43L

A

44S

S

I

45A

S

C

46E

47T

I

C

48T

49H

E

T

A

50U

51S

52M

I

N

T

53M

54A

G

55G

O

T

H

56E

I

D

E

R

57S

T

I

N

K

U

58P

59L

E

60O

61R

O

T

62W

S

J

63E

E

K

64N

A

65R

C

66A

67D

E

L

E

68I

T

A

69L

70I

71A

72O

N

E

73A

74PENNY

T

W

O

A

75PENNY

H

O

T

C

R

76O

S

S

B

U

N

S

77N

O

S

A

L

E

78B

P

L

U

S

79A

S

H

E

80N

A

T

81N

O

D

82B

O

A

83E

84O

S

85H

O

86V

87L

A

N

E

88A

89S

90A

D

A

91S

I

N

N

92R

E

93C

94F

A

I

R

E

R

95C

C

L

E

F

96K

N

E

E

97I

98N

G

99O

100H

F

U

N

101S

I

P

102E

103L

I

S

104S

E

A

105N

C

E

106G

E

107T

108A

109T

110A

111C

R

I

D

112T

113H

E

U

N

I

O

N

114S

H

I

E

L

D

115S

116A

S

H

117B

O

118D

H

I

119R

I

C

O

120A

N

T

E

U

P

121P

U

T

I

122N

Y

O

U

R

T

123W

O

C

E

N

124T

S

125E

M

M

A

126U

T

O

P

I

A

127L

E

M

O

N

128N

E

O

S

129M

E

N

S

130N

O

R

S

E

131L

E

E

K

S

132E

D

G

Y

133D

I

S

Across

71 clues

8What a crush might make you do

13Predator with dermal denticles

18Silent film actor Jannings

21More intense, as an emotion

22Early stage of a drug trial

24Adage promoting thrift

29Return filers, for short

30Barely keeps going, with "along"

31Fish with leaf-shaped larvae

32Image on one side of this puzzle's subject

35Start of a historic triple boast

37Seminole's rival, in college athletics

38Liturgical singer

40Subtitle alternative

43Yogurt drink in Delhi

45Monklike, in a way

48Angle variable in geometry

50Where this puzzle's subject was last made for circulation (in November 2025)

53Periodical, informally

55Genre for Siouxsie and the Banshees

56Duck known for its insulating feathers

59One of 12, astrologically

61"Balderdash!"

62"It's Your Business" sloganeer, for short

64Drug enforcer, informally

66"When We Were Young" singer, 2015

68Its capital is Roma

72Nursery rhyme street vendor's cry

77A failed transaction

78Good, but not great, grade

79Tennis great Arthur

80___ King Cole

81Fall asleep, with "off"

82Word with constrictor or feather

83Goddess of the dawn

85Car-pooling convenience

88Taco bar adjective

94Showing less bias

95Musical staff symbol

96Aggressive move allowed in some forms of kickboxing

99"Sounds like a blast!"

102Some Ivy Leaguers

104Meeting that goes above and beyond?

112Image on one side of this puzzle's subject

115Badge-pinning site

117Tree where the Buddha found enlightenment

119Spanish for "wealthy"

120Get in the game?

121Offer advice ... or a hint to 24- and 72-Across

125D'Arcy of "House of the Dragon"

127Pucker producer, perhaps

128Modernists, informally

129Department store department

130Vikings, for example

131Long members of the onion family

Down

74 clues

1Discount merchandise indicator

2Organism that moves using pseudopodia

3Change the course of

4___ del Carmen (Mexican resort)

5Two farthings, informally

6Deny responsibility for

7Like certain easy-to-install hardware components

8Much of Diego Rivera's work

10"You can count on me"

11It can become amber

13Doo-wop's ___ Na Na

14Protected space for women in the Ottoman Empire

16Scottish dance

19"Enemies, a Love Story" actress

22"GoodFellas" Oscar winner

26Demonstrate frugality, in a way

33Hosts, in brief

34Tolkien monster

36Exams for ambitious H.S. students

39Date night bookings

41Indigenous people of the Colorado Plateau

42Setting for many a New Yorker cartoon

44Having impeded growth

46Bird with an S-shaped neck

47Place for pliers

49Muslim head scarf

50Target with, as a pickup line

51Scribe in a courtroom, in brief

52Prepares for an interview, say

54Notorious Chicago bootlegger

58What a dog uses to shake

60Island location of Iolani Palace

62Say something fresh

65Tom who wrote "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues"

67Information in a prescription

69Out of this world?

73"Hoarders" network

74Shoe originally known as a "Weejun"

75Street in Liverpool that has been immortalized in song

84Like many farm stand purchases

86"Dodgeball" star Vince

87Specific charge on an invoice

88Cooling units, in brief

90Pork-based taco option

91Snowmobile brand

97Suffix in British English

98Makeup of a nervous system, largely

100Layer of a farm

103Locale for camel racing

105Christians' ___ Creed

107Overflowed (with)

108Reunion attendees

109Cause for a QB's celebration

111Fries in England

112Deuce topper

113"I'll take another card"

115Like cotton candy

116Lead-in to pilot or pay

118Grayish, say

122Emphatic refusal in Germany

123Stir-fry staple

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

Stats & info

Sunday, Aug 23, 2026

22×21

Grid size

145

Total entries

76/386

Black / letter cells

5.5

Avg entry length

30 ltrs

Longest entry

Themed

Sunday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedAug 23, 2026

DaySunday

ThemeSmall Change

ConstructorJill Singer

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split71 across · 74 down

Longest entries

72ANursery rhyme street vendor's cry30 ltrs 24AAdage promoting thrift25 ltrs 121AOffer advice ... or a hint to 24- and 72-Across17 ltrs 32AImage on one side of this puzzle's subject14 ltrs 112AImage on one side of this puzzle's subject14 ltrs

Sunday is the big one, a 21 by 21 grid built around a named theme rather than raw difficulty. This grid has 76 black squares and averages 5.5 letters per entry.