Home/Archive/Feb 27, 2026

NYT Crossword — February 27, 2026

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

1S

2A

3C

4A

5G

6A

7W

8E

9A

10D

11O

12L

13L

14A

15R

16A

M

E

R

I

C

A

N

P

A

L

E

A

L

E

17D

I

S

T

R

E

S

S

E

D

D

E

N

I

M

18D

R

A

F

T

S

19U

R

S

A

20K

E

Y

21R

U

H

22T

I

C

23S

24W

A

N

25R

26E

E

L

27R

O

T

U

28N

D

A

29O

R

A

30D

A

R

E

31A

I

R

32B

33A

34G

35K

I

N

36D

E

S

T

37T

A

R

T

A

R

E

38U

N

S

E

A

T

39A

I

N

T

40S

G

T

41B

R

A

42I

S

E

S

43T

S

O

S

44M

45R

I

S

46Q

T

S

47C

U

L

48P

A

O

49A

50S

T

O

51D

A

R

I

52U

53S

54R

U

N

55I

N

T

E

R

56F

E

R

E

N

C

E

57A

N

A

S

T

A

S

I

A

S

T

E

E

L

E

58M

A

N

H

A

T

T

A

N

K

A

N

S

A

S

Across

30 clues

1Coinage of the early 2000s?

16Sierra Nevada product

17Jeans material for a worn-out look

20Most important part

21"___-roh!" (cry from Astro on "The Jetsons")

23Bird that Zeus disguised himself as in a much-told Greek myth

25Traditional folk dance

27Pantheon feature

29Rita on "The Masked Singer"

31Car requirement beginning in 1998

35"___ regards …" (letter sign-off)

37Raw, in a way

38Remove from office

39"It ___ easy"

40N.Y.P.D. rank: Abbr.

41Prepares, as coq au vin

43Chinese menu possessive

44Steps in diagnosing A.C.L. injuries, perhaps

48Kung ___ chicken

51___ the Great, king of ancient Persia

54Create a distraction, so to speak

57Heroine in the "Fifty Shades of Grey" books

58Midwest city dubbed the "Little Apple"

Down

40 clues

1Travel safety grp. at school

2Arabic male name meaning "prince"

3Delivery methods?

5Tailor's measurement

6Three-time W.N.B.A. champs of the 2020s

8Adjoining, in a way

9Illuminating point

10Soda brand since 1937

12Second-most-common surname in Korea, after Kim

14World traveler?

15Big name in Cognac

22Suit material?

25Modern streaming device

26You can find her in this clue (hidden!)

27Like Snoop Dogg, faith-wise, when he changed his name to Snoop Lion

28Flatbread choices

30Start of a child's letter

32Funk music features

33Carrier of the Golden Fleece

36Actress Mazar

39Neighborhood in New York City where Zohran Mamdani lived before being elected the city's mayor

42Brightness measurement of a sort

43Serving piece

44Hawaiian for "mountain"

45Saoirse of 2019's "Little Women"

48Carriage in Coventry

50"Right away!"

51Secretary, for example

52Where Jackie Robinson played four(!) college sports, in brief

53Accompanies (to)

55Standoff's conclusion?

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

Stats & info

Friday, Feb 27, 2026

15×15

Grid size

70

Total entries

27/198

Black / letter cells

5.7

Avg entry length

15 ltrs

Longest entry

Hard

Friday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedFeb 27, 2026

DayFriday

ThemeThemeless

ConstructorCaroline Hand

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split30 across · 40 down

Longest entries

1ACoinage of the early 2000s?15 ltrs 16ASierra Nevada product15 ltrs 17AJeans material for a worn-out look15 ltrs 54ACreate a distraction, so to speak15 ltrs 57AHeroine in the "Fifty Shades of Grey" books15 ltrs

Friday puzzles run themeless, so the fill leans on long open entries and wordplay clues rather than a central gimmick. This grid has 27 black squares and averages 5.7 letters per entry.