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NYT Crossword — October 18, 2026

Sunday’s 21 × 21 puzzle, 136 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 136 revealed

1S

2T

3A

4R

5T

6U

7P

8A

9N

10O

11I

12N

13T

14S

15I

16S

17T

18E

19R

20N

O

B

U

E

N

O

21B

I

O

N

I

C

22E

N

C

O

R

E

23I

N

E

E

D

S

O

24M

E

S

P

A

C

E

25N

O

R

R

I

S

26P

E

D

S

27E

L

A

T

E

28M

E

L

29T

S

30E

C

C

E

31P

A

R

R

32I

33T

E

L

L

Y

O

34U

W

H

A

T

35L

36O

37R

E

L

E

I

38A

M

Y

39P

D

T

40F

A

V

O

R

41A

L

42L

43P

R

O

44E

Y

E

45S

46O

47R

48E

49I

M

I

S

S

50E

D

Y

O

U

51B

52R

A

N

53M

C

A

T

54R

E

D

S

O

X

55N

O

R

56S

L

O

57E

58R

O

T

I

C

59N

I

60L

61K

I

62C

K

O

F

63F

64E

L

A

N

65I

66D

67O

N

T

S

68A

Y

T

H

I

S

L

I

69G

H

T

L

Y

70T

O

M

E

71U

M

L

A

U

T

S

72T

I

E

73O

S

W

A

L

74D

75I

O

N

76R

O

77B

78B

A

79O

80B

81A

82B

83N

O

S

H

84E

85S

S

O

86I

M

O

87V

E

R

H

E

R

E

88O

N

E

A

89R

T

H

90C

91O

P

S

T

O

92S

H

A

K

E

93O

O

O

94B

O

D

95A

T

96P

A

I

N

S

97I

98H

99A

100V

E

N

O

101W

O

R

D

102S

103N

E

L

L

104M

O

V

E

105A

T

H

O

S

106H

107E

I

D

I

108D

109A

110L

111I

112A

M

I

D

113S

T

114I

M

A

115B

I

T

C

O

N

116F

U

S

E

D

117G

E

L

A

T

O

118S

E

G

U

E

S

119U

K

R

A

I

N

E

120E

R

A

S

E

R

121T

R

E

N

D

Y

122T

O

O

L

A

T

E

Across

61 clues

1Beneficiary of early capital

8Bless, in a way

14Close female friend … in relative terms

20Less than satisfactory, slangily

21Like some cyborg parts

22Extended play?

25Journalist Michele with two Peabody Awards

26Walkers, informally

28Softens with sudden sympathy or affection

30"Behold," in Latin

31Bob ___, alter ego of Mr. Incredible

35Mythical figure whose name means "murmuring rock"

38Justice ___ Coney Barrett

39Summer setting in S.F.

40Party takeaway

41N.F.L. accolade

49All--can-eat buffet

51Fiber-rich substance

53Exam for future docs

55"Since brass, ___ stone, ___ earth, ___ boundless sea …": Shak.

61It follows a coin toss

71They can make a pronounced difference

73Historic figure targeted in Stephen King's time-travel novel "11/22/63"

75Small + or –

76Apt name for a thief

78Tree that can be a source of water for thirsty elephants

84Brand represented by Happy the Oil Drop

86See 88-Across

92Follow-up to "Sit!"

93Off work, for short

94Figure, informally

95Making a strong effort

97Non, ni, 'a'ole

103Nickname for Ellen or Helen

105One of the Three Musketeers

106"S.N.L." alum Gardner

108Artist who kept a pet ocelot

112In

117It's cold in Italy

118Shifts gears, say

119Nation bordering the Black Sea

120Analogue of a delete key

121In

122"That ship has sailed"

Down

75 clues

4Has regrets about

5___ Allen, host of "Chopped"

6Make public, as secret documents

7Novel form of summer escapism?

8Connive with, maybe

9Second-generation Japanese American

11How a boss might communicate new policy

12With courtesy

13Immune system agent

14Toothpaste brand since 1961

15Italian diminutive suffix

16It turns when driven

17Logo of the W.N.B.A.'s New York Liberty

18Name found in "Americana"

19Go back to square one

24Sex symbol of the 1950s-'60s, familiarly

29Hypercompetitive and driven, say

33Street application

34Indigenous people of the Salt Lake Valley

35Weak, as an excuse

37Bob who painted "Cabin at Sunset," which sold for over $1 million to benefit public media

40Fragrant holiday purchase

43Goody-goody sort

46Eight-related

47Like Amazon forests, typically

48Series finale?

51Comes into one's own

52[So-o-o funny!]

56Reason to head for the hills

60"Geaux Tigers!" sch.

62John M. ___, director of 2024's "Wicked"

63Showing signs of working out, say

65"Let's do this!"

66Use a divining rod

67Midwest birthplace of Marlon Brando

68Buddies, in Bayonne

74Big bang source

77Like London's Kew Gardens

79Surprised greeting

80Word with black or coffee

81Covenant keepers

82Something in which you might stand for a spell

85"Lay it on me"

87Ousted, democratically

90Boutonniere counterpart

94Many a modern-day septuagenarian

96Pricing game on "The Price Is Right"

99Teresa of ___

100Sacred Sanskrit texts

101Card game played in Dickens's "The Pickwick Papers"

107Website with a "Star Seller" program

109Setting for most of the TV series "Pachinko"

110Time for a social media break, maybe

113Office address abbr.

115Cupcake, in Ireland

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

Stats & info

Sunday, Oct 18, 2026

21×21

Grid size

136

Total entries

76/365

Black / letter cells

5.4

Avg entry length

19 ltrs

Longest entry

Themed

Sunday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedOct 18, 2026

DaySunday

ThemeTell Me About Yourself!

ConstructorPeter Gorman

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split61 across · 75 down

Longest entries

65AThis19 ltrs 23AHeyhowareyou14 ltrs 114ATaib? Tbia?14 ltrs 32A"What"12 ltrs 97ANon, ni, 'a'ole12 ltrs

Sunday is the big one, a 21 by 21 grid built around a named theme rather than raw difficulty. This grid has 76 black squares and averages 5.4 letters per entry.