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NYT Crossword — November 16, 2025

Sunday’s 21 × 21 puzzle, 140 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 140 revealed

1T

2E

3S

4L

5A

6S

7A

8W

9L

10W

11O

12R

13S

14E

15O

16F

17F

18O

N

E

A

R

T

19H

20T

R

E

O

21O

P

I

U

M

W

A

R

22G

O

O

D

K

N

I

23G

H

T

S

W

24E

E

T

P

R

I

N

C

E

25A

L

U

I

26D

E

A

27T

E

X

28E

E

L

I

E

R

29S

A

L

E

30O

D

E

T

31T

E

32C

33E

34L

35B

E

T

T

E

36S

37T

R

E

S

S

O

R

38E

X

U

39D

E

40T

41O

T

H

I

N

E

O

W

N

42E

L

F

B

E

T

43R

44U

45E

46O

H

G

E

E

47E

S

C

48B

E

N

49O

R

C

50A

51F

A

R

E

I

52S

53F

54O

55U

L

56O

57P

I

58G

A

D

O

T

59T

I

E

60P

I

P

S

61A

N

E

62A

63S

A

R

U

L

E

64T

65W

O

B

S

O

66R

N

O

T

67T

W

O

B

S

68O

69X

70C

A

R

T

S

71F

E

D

72R

O

O

F

73B

74A

75G

76M

E

A

N

Y

77M

A

R

78F

O

W

L

I

79S

80F

A

I

R

81S

N

A

G

82H

83O

E

84A

85T

L

86E

L

U

D

E

87A

N

O

88S

E

B

Y

89A

N

Y

O

90T

91H

92E

93R

N

A

M

E

94C

R

I

E

D

95P

A

R

A

P

E

T

S

96A

97B

98A

99S

H

100S

R

O

101I

T

A

L

I

C

102H

103E

104R

105A

106M

U

S

L

I

107M

108R

109E

F

110C

A

L

111C

U

E

S

112B

E

W

A

R

E

113T

114H

E

T

I

115D

E

S

O

116F

117M

A

R

C

H

118I

N

A

T

R

I

C

E

119N

E

A

R

120G

A

R

R

O

T

E

121T

O

N

E

A

R

M

S

122A

D

D

123B

I

D

S

O

N

Across

59 clues

1They're charged for long trips

7Tool with a point

10No longer in as good a place

20Early smartphone model of the 2000s

21Conflict that ended with the Treaty of Nanking

22King's assessment of his son the Crusader?

25Parisian possessive

26D.O.J. branch that deals with trafficking

27Nickname heard in 8-Down

28Harder to grasp, in a way

30"Swan Lake" role

32Disney World souvenir

35Davis of old Hollywood

36The possibility of losing one's job, e.g.

40Santa's view on loyalty for those who help him?

46"I didn't expect that!"

48Platt who starred in Broadway's "Dear Evan Hansen"

49Marine menace

51With 61-Down and 78-Across, "Food at this restaurant stinks, but the duck seems fine"?

56Nail salon brand

58Gal from Israel

59Something athletes strive to break

60Dots on faces

61Gam_ show purchas_ from Ryan S_acr_st

64Frequent question about the spelling of "Caribbean"?

68Team transports

71Inserted, as into a printer

72It's over your head

76No Mr. Nice Guy

77Scratch the surface of, say

78See 51-Across

81Fly in the ointment

84Where the C.D.C. is headquartered: Abbr.

87Schnozz, honker or beak?

95Castle fortifications

96Leave red-faced

100Sign of a smashing success

101Right-leaning?

102Olympian queen

106Sunni or Shiite

108One wearing a striped shirt, informally

110___Arts, school in Santa Clarita

111Pool equipment

112Warning to a beachgoer on St. Patrick's Day?

118Very quickly

119Getting warm

120"The Godfather" weapon

121Movable parts of record players

122"Might I ___ …"

123Competes for, as a contract

Down

81 clues

1Costume garments made from bedsheets

2___ Holmes, 2020s role for Millie Bobby Brown

4Many a casual fitted top

5Flood protection?

7Specialized skill

8Wayne's world?

9Rob of "The West Wing"

11Get off the fence

12Like dark green avocados

13No-lose situation

14Microphone inventor ___ Berliner

15Take full responsibility for something

17"___ Jacques"

19Like some cameras and agendas

30"… ___ quit!"

33Formerly with law enforcement, informally

37What a detail-oriented person might "dot"

40Cuisine with boat noodles

41No Mr. Nice Guy

42Prefix suggesting low cost

44Language that's the source of the word "khaki"

45Earth Day subj.

50Absorbed, as a cost

52Difficult position

53Little untruths

55Uncle Sam's land, informally

57Lead-in to dollar or chemical

58Talk at length

61See 51-Across

62Gone wrong, for short?

63L.A.'s ___ Stadium, site of the opening ceremony of the 2028 Olympics

64"Scent of a Woman" dance

66Tried for a second term, say

68Meditation sounds

69TV role for Lucy Lawless

70James of "Misery"

73Author who coined the word "munchkin"

74Campaign worker

75Coll. senior's test

77Selina ___, the veep on "Veep"

78Parade attraction

80Memorization tool

82___ honor (honorific for a judge)

88Wally ___, astronaut who commanded Apollo 7

89Find charming

90Lost shipment inquiry

91"Papa Bear" of the N.F.L.

93Partner of parks, for short

97Spanish for "good"

98Dam on the Nile

99List of candidates

103Mozart can be seen on some of them

104Odd-numbered page

107Israeli P.M. before Rabin

109Europe's tallest active volcano

113Channel for cinephiles

114"___ All That" (2021 rom-com)

117Doctor's order, for short

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

Stats & info

Sunday, Nov 16, 2025

21×21

Grid size

140

Total entries

80/361

Black / letter cells

5.2

Avg entry length

21 ltrs

Longest entry

Themed

Sunday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedNov 16, 2025

DaySunday

ThemeMisquoting Shakespeare

ConstructorRandolph Ross

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split59 across · 81 down

Longest entries

22AKing's assessment of his son the Crusader?21 ltrs 112AWarning to a beachgoer on St. Patrick's Day?21 ltrs 40ASanta's view on loyalty for those who help him?19 ltrs 87ASchnozz, honker or beak?19 ltrs 64AFrequent question about the spelling of "Caribbean"?15 ltrs

Sunday is the big one, a 21 by 21 grid built around a named theme rather than raw difficulty. This grid has 80 black squares and averages 5.2 letters per entry.