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NYT Crossword — August 30, 2025

Saturday’s 15 × 15 puzzle, 70 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 70 revealed

1S

2E

3N

4O

5R

6M

7A

8G

9I

10O

11C

12H

13O

14I

M

A

N

I

15O

L

A

F

16D

O

O

R

17M

I

N

I

D

18O

N

U

T

S

19E

L

M

S

20B

R

A

N

D

N

A

M

E

21N

O

D

E

22A

S

S

23L

T

E

24S

O

N

O

R

25A

26H

E

H

27M

28E

E

T

29P

U

N

30C

O

M

E

31T

O

A

B

A

32D

E

N

D

33H

E

R

E

B

E

D

R

A

G

O

N

S

34K

A

R

A

T

E

L

E

S

S

O

N

S

35I

V

E

36H

A

L

L

37T

O

E

38M

E

A

39N

I

T

40S

I

D

41Y

42O

43M

44A

L

A

S

45D

46A

L

A

I

47L

A

M

A

48I

S

B

N

49U

R

B

A

N

D

E

C

A

Y

50R

I

A

N

51S

A

L

T

52E

T

H

N

O

53S

P

R

Y

54A

W

E

S

55A

S

T

I

R

Across

35 clues

1Title typically abbreviated to its first and last letters

6Storied stargazers

10Another name for ESPN8, with "the"

14___ Perry, award-winning author of 2022's "South to America"

15___ the Holy, canonized Norwegian king

17Little dippers?

19Targets for bark beetles

21Botanical joint

23Cell service inits.

24Neighbor of Baja California

26"Funny how that works"

27Heat setting, perhaps

29"The Santa Clause" or "Legally Blonde"

30Wind up in ruin

33Classic warning to a knight

34Kick-starter program?

35"To All the Boys ___ Loved Before" (best-selling young adult novel)

36Campus building

38Not say something in jest

40"Toy Story" bully

41___ tov (Jewish holiday)

44"I'm afraid ..."

45Noted resident of "Little Lhasa" in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh

48Library catalog ID

49What dilapidated buildings and rampant graffiti may be a sign of

50Director Johnson

51Veteran of the seas

52Prefix with musicology or linguistics

53Moving well over 60, perhaps?

54Leaves speechless

Down

35 clues

1Swahili for "lion"

2Heads of state in Qatar and Kuwait

5Lead-in to a puzzling question

6Janelle of "Hidden Figures"

9They may or may not happen

10Classical theater

11Sketches that end with "Live from New York, it's Saturday night!"

12Major successes, so to speak

13Spots for scrubs, for short

18Patrolling a neighborhood

21"I'd avoid that"

24Viola's twin brother in "Twelfth Night"

26Wedding reception highlight, maybe

27Fashion plate, maybe

28Old-fashioned TV antenna, jocularly

30On-the-go breakfast option

33Tasteful invitation?

34Family name of three BTS members

39One tending kids

40Bits of wood paneling

41Vessel with two silent letters

42Like the Mideast's Bahla Fort

43Head to town?

45Capture the attention of

47"Count me in!"

48Org. concerned with reporting

49Host nation of the 2028 Olympics

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

Stats & info

Saturday, Aug 30, 2025

15×15

Grid size

70

Total entries

36/189

Black / letter cells

5.4

Avg entry length

13 ltrs

Longest entry

Hardest

Saturday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedAug 30, 2025

DaySaturday

ThemeThemeless

ConstructorMaddy Ziegler

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split35 across · 35 down

Longest entries

30AWind up in ruin13 ltrs 33AClassic warning to a knight13 ltrs 34AKick-starter program?13 ltrs 5DLead-in to a puzzling question12 ltrs 21D"I'd avoid that"12 ltrs

Saturday is the hardest grid of the week, themeless and clued as obliquely as the editor allows. This grid has 36 black squares and averages 5.4 letters per entry.