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NYT Crossword — March 18, 2026

Wednesday’s 16 × 15 puzzle, 81 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 81 revealed
1N
2Y
3M
4P
5H
6C
7L
8A
9I
10M
11C
12T
13A
14P
O
L
L
O
15O
U
I
J
A
16L
O
O
N
17R
U
B
Y
T
18U
E
S
D
A
Y
19A
V
O
N
20P
A
N
T
21M
A
22G
N
E
T
O
23C
24A
25N
O
E
26B
E
N
I
G
N
L
Y
27C
A
R
E
T
28A
29N
O
S
30M
U
S
E
S
31A
S
I
A
32B
L
E
W
33E
M
O
34T
H
A
T
35D
B
E
W
O
36N
D
E
R
37F
38U
39L
40F
A
Q
41T
U
T
U
42O
A
K
S
43Q
44U
45I
R
K
46R
O
T
H
47N
U
K
E
D
48U
N
B
E
A
49T
E
N
50P
O
S
E
S
51A
R
E
A
R
U
G
52H
53A
R
P
54T
E
A
K
55B
A
56B
Y
F
O
R
57M
58U
59L
60A
61R
A
M
S
62E
L
O
P
E
63O
A
R
E
D
64E
D
S
65R
E
N
E
W
66B
I
N
G
O

Across

37 clues
1Young grasshopper
6Dibs, e.g.
11Org. that offers one "L" of a ride?
14___ a la brasa (Peruvian chicken dish)
15Game to play when the spirit moves you?
16Minnesota's state bird
17*Restaurant chain named after a Rolling Stones song
19Big name in cosmetics
20Make like a hot dog
21"X-Men" villain who can manipulate metals
23Summer camp craft
26*Without malice
27^
28Numbers on botellas de vino
30Asks oneself "What if?"
31Silk Road locale, largely
32Missed, as a chance
33Music genre that partly grew out of indie rock
34*"What a great idea!"
40Page for learning more, for short
41You might take a spin in this
42Kentucky ___, annual horse race since 1875
43Oddity
46Investment option, informally
47Microwaved
48*Having a perfect record
50Exhibits model behavior?
51It covers a fair amount of ground without moving
52Musical instrument in the Guinness logo
54Classic wood for boatbuilding
55*Similac or Enfamil
61West Coast N.F.L. team
62Save on wedding invitations, in a way
63Got in a row?
64Publishing gatekeepers, in brief
65Extend, as a membership
66"You got it!!" … or a possible cry after hearing the calls hidden in the answers to the starred clues?

Down

44 clues
1"Morning Edition" airer
2Gender-neutral pronoun
3Org. associated with a museum in Cooperstown, N.Y.
4Practice, as a trade
5Meal cooked in simmering broth
6Either brother who wrote 1996's "Fargo"
7What Dante's second circle of hell represents
8Humanitarian support
9Pulitzer-winning "Fat Ham" playwright
10Like many ruins in Belize
11Casting groups?
12Play a bit of horn, say
13Bugs
16Indulgently lazy
18Country known for luxury tourism, in brief
22"I wanna have that!"
23Bank robber's bagful
24Puccini's "O mio babbino caro," e.g.
25They can't abide messes
26Take one's leave
27"Human beings, for one reason or another, may hide their feelings, but a ___ does not": Ernest Hemingway
28Renaissance faire tipple
29Discoverer of the principle behind F=ma
32Certain chip flavoring, informally
33Student's email address ender
35Westernmost African capital
36___ degree
37Bogus
38Luau instruments, informally
39It may be taken at the start of a trip
43Deux + deux
44Email sorting option
45Skyscraper's skeleton, often
46Lavishly entertain
47"Sure thing!"
49Modern ending with You
50In favor of
52Fanfare
53Three or four, say
56"___ voyage!"
57Month after avril
58Item in a museum of antiquities
59That's the kicker!
60Kerfuffle

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

Stats & info

Wednesday, Mar 18, 2026
16×15
Grid size
81
Total entries
42/198
Black / letter cells
4.9
Avg entry length
16 ltrs
Longest entry
Medium
Wednesday difficulty
PuzzleThe Crossword
PublishedMar 18, 2026
DayWednesday
ThemeUntitled
ConstructorAdam Vincent
EditorWill Shortz
Clue split37 across · 44 down
Longest entries
34A*"What a great idea!"16 ltrs17A*Restaurant chain named after a Rolling Stones song11 ltrs55A*Similac or Enfamil11 ltrs16DIndulgently lazy10 ltrs25DThey can't abide messes10 ltrs

Wednesday is the midweek pivot, where themes get denser and clues start bending the surface reading. This grid has 42 black squares and averages 4.9 letters per entry.