Home/Archive/Feb 21, 2025

NYT Crossword — February 21, 2025

Friday’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

1B

2A

3R

4H

5O

6P

7P

8I

9N

10G

11A

12Z

13O

14V

15O

R

E

O

C

O

O

K

I

E

16N

E

N

E

17T

I

M

E

T

O

K

I

L

L

18T

R

E

X

19S

A

Y

20A

P

E

D

21P

22A

L

O

M

A

23A

V

E

R

24F

A

C

E

T

A

T

25P

26W

N

E

D

27M

A

C

A

R

O

N

I

28M

I

E

N

S

29N

I

K

K

I

30H

B

O

31A

N

T

E

32D

E

N

I

S

33M

E

A

N

34N

A

M

35V

O

I

C

E

36W

A

R

N

S

37S

C

A

38V

E

N

G

E

39B

I

P

O

D

40C

O

R

I

N

T

H

41D

E

N

S

42A

L

T

O

I

D

43S

W

A

K

44R

45A

46P

47P

A

I

L

48O

49U

T

E

R

S

50P

A

C

E

51E

D

N

A

52I

N

E

E

D

A

H

I

N

T

53D

A

I

S

54T

O

M

B

S

T

O

N

E

S

Across

35 clues

1Bachelorette party activity

11Sea of ___, body of water at one end of the Kerch Strait

15Classic milk accompaniment

16Rarest of all state birds

17A few hours for doing whatever

18Sue at Chicago's Field Museum, e.g.

20Made an impression?

21Jewelry designer Picasso

24Bold bit of ink

25Utterly defeated, as n00bs

27Elbows for a chef?

29Comedian Glaser

30Pioneer in subscription TV

31Chip in, in a way

32Villeneuve who directed "Dune"

34"Fortunate Son" subject, informally

35Word with actor or mail

37Dumpster-dive, for example

40Ancient Greek city known for its ornate columns

42"Curiously strong" mint

4450 Cent piece?

47Toy shovel holder

48Where stars are born

51___ Lewis, first recipient of the James Beard Living Legend Award

52"Help me get the answer"

53Politician's platform

54Some October lawn decorations

Down

35 clues

1Amazon nuisances

2Mozart's "Der Hölle Rache," for one

3Pixar character described as "nothing less than the finest chef in France"

4Lead-in to cake in Southern cuisine

7Pot grower's activity?

8"Just yankin' your chain, that's all"

9Donut, in soccer

10Frozen, flexible first-aid items

11Part of a rack

12Rhyming trajectory for success

13Sort who might go for all the bells and whistles?

22Berry in a Playa Bowl

23Claudia Harrison's role on "The Crown"

24Going backward, in skateboarding slang

25Cocktail served with an umbrella

26Cocktail served with an olive

28Did some personal grooming

29Negative vote in a stable?

32"Stop! Think of the consequences!"

33Explorers' aids

35Part of a Caesarean boast

36Subtly flirts with

38Instruments whose players read alto clef

39What pogonophobia is the fear of

44Its name in Botswana is the same as the word for "money"

46Four-footed friends

49Game with numbered cards

50Soup with rice noodles

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

Stats & info

Friday, Feb 21, 2025

15×15

Grid size

70

Total entries

28/197

Black / letter cells

5.6

Avg entry length

10 ltrs

Longest entry

Hard

Friday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedFeb 21, 2025

DayFriday

ThemeThemeless

ConstructorColin Adams

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split35 across · 35 down

Longest entries

1ABachelorette party activity10 ltrs 15AClassic milk accompaniment10 ltrs 17AA few hours for doing whatever10 ltrs 48AWhere stars are born10 ltrs 52A"Help me get the answer"10 ltrs

Friday puzzles run themeless, so the fill leans on long open entries and wordplay clues rather than a central gimmick. This grid has 28 black squares and averages 5.6 letters per entry.