Home/Archive/Jul 21, 2026

NYT Crossword — July 21, 2026

Tuesday’s 16 × 15 puzzle, 77 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 77 revealed

1L

2A

3B

4S

5D

6N

7A

8T

9H

10A

11W

12S

13A

L

O

E

14D

E

A

L

15T

16S

A

Y

H

I

17B

A

D

A

18B

I

N

G

B

A

19D

A

B

O

O

M

20O

N

E

S

I

E

21A

U

R

O

R

A

22R

I

G

O

R

23S

M

O

G

24N

25I

26B

27S

28S

A

N

D

29B

30L

A

S

T

31S

E

R

U

M

32O

A

K

33J

U

R

O

R

S

34G

35O

36O

37U

T

W

I

38T

39H

A

B

A

N

G

40A

U

G

H

T

S

41H

E

M

42L

A

R

G

E

43S

44T

A

R

B

45U

46R

47S

48T

49A

C

E

R

50A

L

O

T

51S

H

O

R

52T

53O

54H

Y

E

A

H

55H

E

I

N

I

E

56R

57E

58D

W

I

N

E

S

U

59P

E

R

N

O

V

A

60P

R

I

U

S

61P

T

R

A

P

62O

R

E

S

63G

A

S

P

S

64S

T

Y

65S

A

T

E

Across

33 clues

1"Chocolate" pets

5Genome component

8Breaks in winter weather

16Greet someone informally

17"Easy-peasy!"

20Attire for an infant

21Awe-inspiring solar phenomenon

23Urban environmental hazard

28Clean with a rough spray

32Acorn producer

33The 12 angry men in "12 Angry Men," e.g.

34Finish flamboyantly … like 17-, 28-, 43- and 56-Across?

402000-09, with "the"

43Colorful taffy candy brand

51Not having quite enough money

562023 double-platinum Chappell Roan record

60Toyota hybrid

61Plumbing fixture found under the sink

62Things assayers assay

63Reactions akin to "OMG!"

Down

44 clues

2Morissette with the 1996 hit "Ironic"

6Japanese city that's home to the Chinese Sofukuji Temple

7Subjects of some Billboard charts

8Old Russian ruler

9Cuban dance style

10Actress Edebiri

11"Which person are you referring to?"

14A standard one has 21 pips

15Fortune-telling deck

18Aviary inhabitant

25It's "pumped" by bodybuilders

27Texting format, in brief

29Many internet spammers

31Teacher for a day

33Part of a doorframe

34Tortilla chip dip, informally

36"Wow, real mature"

38"Ow! Watch it!"

39"___/she" (chocolate bar's pronouns in a corny joke)

40In the manner of

43Power-saving computer mode

44They're often made at weddings

45One may accept the terms and conditions

46Heavyweight beasts, familiarly

47Mexican state bordering Chihuahua

48Hot pot holder

50Novelist Rand

54Cat's warning

55Old-school term for "cool"

56World of Warcraft, e.g., in brief

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

Stats & info

Tuesday, Jul 21, 2026

16×15

Grid size

77

Total entries

46/194

Black / letter cells

5.0

Avg entry length

16 ltrs

Longest entry

Easy

Tuesday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedJul 21, 2026

DayTuesday

ThemeUntitled

ConstructorKenneth Cortes

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split33 across · 44 down

Longest entries

17A"Easy-peasy!"16 ltrs 56A2023 double-platinum Chappell Roan record16 ltrs 34AFinish flamboyantly … like 17-, 28-, 43- and 56-Across?14 ltrs 28AClean with a rough spray9 ltrs 43AColorful taffy candy brand9 ltrs

Tuesday sits one notch above Monday, usually with a light theme and a few playful clues. This grid has 46 black squares and averages 5.0 letters per entry.