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NYT Crossword — January 9, 2026

Friday’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

1P

2U

3P

4P

5Y

6L

7O

8V

9E

10T

11A

12B

13S

14O

N

A

H

E

A

T

E

R

15U

R

L

S

16C

I

G

A

R

B

O

X

E

17S

18B

E

A

N

19O

X

E

S

20H

E

C

K

21Y

E

A

H

22T

E

23L

24L

25S

T

I

E

S

26C

27P

U

28O

U

29I

30N

O

31T

32M

33E

34A

I

R

35M

A

R

S

36H

37A

38L

39C

R

A

P

40B

E

N

E

F

I

T

S

P

A

41C

K

A

G

E

42I

C

E

E

43D

O

N

T

S

A

S

S

M

E

44N

E

R

T

45S

46S

E

T

47H

A

S

48C

U

49T

50I

51N

52R

E

53A

P

54C

55R

U

S

A

D

E

56D

57N

A

58P

59S

60B

O

O

T

61M

R

R

I

62G

63H

T

N

O

W

64I

D

L

E

65I

V

E

N

O

I

D

E

A

66Z

E

E

S

67S

E

T

U

P

C

A

M

P

Across

31 clues

10They get picked up at clubs

14Winning like crazy

15Surfing destinations, for short

16Places many Cubans are found

20"You better believe it!"

22Bad thing to have in a poker game

28Confirmation from a maître d'

30"I didn't do it!"

34Stealthy flier

39Bummer at a casino game

40It often comes with the job

42___ Slush (frozen fruit drink)

43"Watch your mouth!"

44Old-timey oath

48Was rude on the road or the dance floor

52"Weed ’Em and ___," gardening book whose title is a spoonerism

54Led the charge

57Prepares for a wild night, maybe

60Monopoly token retired in 2017

61He's great for the time being

64Be just chillin'

67Unpack for the night, in a way

Down

41 clues

1Small bit, in Bogotá

2Windows alternative

3Something you have trouble putting down

4Gradually introduce, with "in"

5The Beatles' "___ Blues"

6Varieties of this include chocolate and yellow

7"Then again …," to a texter

10Footwear that lacks defined heels

11An "A" in geometry

13Often-redacted fig.

17Item that someone with cold feet might have

21Verb that fills in the blanks of its own synonym: _ _AR_

23Be just chillin'

24Vividly shocking

26Kind of fever

27Ballade or étude

29Analogy words

31Raccoon, humorously

32It's bubbling below the surface

33Pointers for some fighters?

35Rom-com plot points

36Channel offering deals

37There are more than 2.3 million in N.Y.C.: Abbr.

38Industrial cutter

41Oscar winner Blanchett

45Shady, in modern parlance

50Elba who portrayed Nelson Mandela

54Java ingredient?

55Listing on a jobs website

56Losing effort

59Cashless transaction

60Ad or show follower

62African grazer

63Challenge from a hard-hit ground ball, perhaps

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

Stats & info

Friday, Jan 9, 2026

15×15

Grid size

72

Total entries

38/187

Black / letter cells

5.2

Avg entry length

15 ltrs

Longest entry

Hard

Friday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedJan 9, 2026

DayFriday

ThemeThemeless

ConstructorGreg Snitkin and Glenn Davis

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split31 across · 41 down

Longest entries

40AIt often comes with the job15 ltrs 16APlaces many Cubans are found10 ltrs 34AStealthy flier10 ltrs 43A"Watch your mouth!"10 ltrs 61AHe's great for the time being10 ltrs

Friday puzzles run themeless, so the fill leans on long open entries and wordplay clues rather than a central gimmick. This grid has 38 black squares and averages 5.2 letters per entry.