Home/Archive/Feb 21, 2026

NYT Crossword — February 21, 2026

Saturday’s 15 × 15 puzzle, 72 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 72 revealed

1B

2L

3A

4N

5K

6S

7T

8A

9R

10E

11N

12I

13C

14E

15B

O

D

Y

H

O

R

R

O

R

16O

R

A

L

17Q

U

E

S

A

D

I

L

L

A

18F

O

R

K

19P

I

X

20N

A

V

E

L

21P

U

N

S

22I

S

E

23E

24S

I

N

25P

O

N

C

H

26O

27T

A

C

I

28T

29A

E

30S

O

P

31L

A

V

32G

R

33I

T

34T

S

Q

35U

A

R

E

36M

37E

38T

H

A

N

E

39A

S

U

N

D

E

R

40E

X

O

T

I

C

A

41R

E

I

D

42L

O

X

43L

U

M

44E

T

45Z

I

46P

47I

48T

49D

R

I

50V

E

R

51P

E

52A

53D

O

P

E

54C

C

E

D

55F

O

R

M

56S

57P

H

X

58J

I

G

S

59R

O

C

K

B

O

60T

T

O

M

61A

S

A

P

62E

X

H

I

L

A

R

A

T

E

63M

E

S

A

64M

Y

S

T

E

R

Y

B

O

X

Across

36 clues

1Look to give nothing away?

11European city on the Bay of Angels

15Film subgenre exemplified by "The Thing" or "The Fly"

16Like some fixations

17It gets folded and pressed

19Posts on Insta

20The third primary chakra is located just above it

21Foundations of many dad jokes

22"Right, right, right"

24Yom Kippur topic

25Certain slip-on

27Merely hinted at

29Author of "The Fisherman and His Flute"

31Clip-on mic, for short

32Many great athletes play with it

34Architect's tool

36A cow can produce about 200 pounds of it a year

40Items of some import?

41Rachel ___, author of "Heated Rivalry"

42Savory latke topping

43Sidney who directed "12 Angry Men"

45"Quiet, you!"

49Formula 1 star, e.g.

51Shade similar to avocado

54On a chain, say

55A lot of paperwork

57The W.N.B.A.'s Mercury, on scoreboards

58Steps to a lively tune

59How low can you go?

62What roller coasters are designed to do

64Item for purchase with a question mark on its side

Down

36 clues

2Mrs. John Quincy Adams

3Campaign leader, informally

4Overseer of the Erie Canal, in brief

5"Star Trek" villain played by Ricardo Montalbán

6Some diner drinks

7They might have all the answers

8Pink-furred cat in "Garfield"

9With 26-Down, basic instruction to a dog

10New ___ (official cap maker for M.L.B.)

11Like a spoilsport

12Totally foolproof

13Many key changes take place in it

14Herd at Yellowstone

21It's a surprise, of course!

23Chinese symbol of prosperity

25Group of companions

28Followed surreptitiously

30Beginner's set

36Blend into one

37Free spirits?

38Hydrogen sulfide, e.g.

46You might hear a hiss when it's pulled

47Defunct image editor

48Chile con carne cuisine

52Take a constitutional

56Go to the moon

58Play together, in a way

59Phase for dreamers

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

Stats & info

Saturday, Feb 21, 2026

15×15

Grid size

72

Total entries

29/196

Black / letter cells

5.4

Avg entry length

10 ltrs

Longest entry

Hardest

Saturday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedFeb 21, 2026

DaySaturday

ThemeThemeless

ConstructorJosh Knapp

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split36 across · 36 down

Longest entries

1ALook to give nothing away?10 ltrs 15AFilm subgenre exemplified by "The Thing" or "The Fly"10 ltrs 17AIt gets folded and pressed10 ltrs 59AHow low can you go?10 ltrs 62AWhat roller coasters are designed to do10 ltrs

Saturday is the hardest grid of the week, themeless and clued as obliquely as the editor allows. This grid has 29 black squares and averages 5.4 letters per entry.