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NYT Crossword — October 5, 2026

Monday’s 15 × 15 puzzle, 78 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 78 revealed

1E

2T

3C

4H

5R

6S

7V

8P

9R

10A

11S

12T

13A

14N

O

R

I

15O

T

O

E

16E

T

H

I

C

17A

M

O

S

18T

I

L

T

19P

S

Y

C

H

20M

A

S

S

21A

G

E

T

A

22B

L

E

23E

T

S

24T

U

G

25L

E

A

26P

27T

28O

29L

O

L

30C

A

T

31S

32H

U

T

33R

A

H

34E

I

D

35S

P

A

R

E

36R

I

B

S

37S

G

T

38B

O

A

R

S

39E

S

S

40M

A

G

I

41C

L

A

M

P

42S

A

O

43E

R

E

44O

A

K

S

45D

I

R

N

46D

47L

48W

I

D

49O

W

S

50F

O

G

51B

O

A

52T

H

E

53R

54E

S

T

H

55E

R

U

B

56A

57N

58I

T

A

59A

C

T

I

60L

E

G

O

61W

O

M

E

N

62P

R

O

M

63L

A

I

R

64S

W

O

R

D

65S

U

P

E

66E

K

E

S

Across

39 clues

1Write on stone, maybe

5Request at the bottom of an invitation

9Follower of Jah, informally

15Great Plains tribe

16Set of moral principles

17Famous ___ cookies

18Downfall in pinball

19Course for future therapists, for short

20Spot to work out knotted muscles

23U.F.O. occupants, in brief

25Reach quickly, as a conclusion

29Internet meme feline

31"___ your mouth!"

33Stadium cheer

34Holiday at the end of Ramadan, informally

35Memphis barbecue staple

37Military rank above cpl.

38Tusked animals

39Squiggle shape

40Key to Aladdin's success

42___ Paulo, Brazil

43Before, poetically

44Acorn growers

45Dress seen at Oktoberfest

48Black ___ (some spiders)

51Drag performer's accessory

52"Ah, that's where things get difficult" … or what can be said about 20-, 35- and 40-Across?

59When Fantine sings "I Dreamed a Dream" in "Les Misérables"

60Block toy with its own chain of theme parks

61Bathroom door sign

62Occasion for a teen to rent a tux

63Spot for a wolf pack

64Weapon in a scabbard

65Manager of an apt. bldg.

Down

39 clues

1Tooth covering

2Fruit, botanically, that's treated as a vegetable

3One way to sit while meditating

4Snake's warning

6___ Larsson, author of "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"

7Bygone electric Chevy

8Org. that advocates for "cruelty-free" products

9Filled to the gills

10Completely lost

11Not likely to make the first move, say

12Unconscious mannerism

13German outburst

22Things you might see when you're not wearing glasses

26Escape from jail

27Clickables at the top of a computer screen

28Exclamations of surprise

30Commercial lead-in to card

31Inundates with junk mail

32Musical instrument in the Guinness logo

35Luxuriate in a bathtub

37South Asian dress

40Kitten's call

45Serve a jail sentence

46Dance craze of the 2010s

47Hercules had 12 of these

49Playful aquatic animal

50Camera lens setting

53Emulates Big Boi and Lil' Kim

55Woods of "Legally Blonde"

56Reactions to something adorable

57"Immediately!"

58"If you ask me …," to a texter

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

Stats & info

Monday, Oct 5, 2026

15×15

Grid size

78

Total entries

38/187

Black / letter cells

4.8

Avg entry length

12 ltrs

Longest entry

Easiest

Monday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedOct 5, 2026

DayMonday

ThemeUntitled

ConstructorChase Dittrich

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split39 across · 39 down

Longest entries

20ASpot to work out knotted muscles12 ltrs 52A"Ah, that's where things get difficult" … or what can be said about 20-, 35- and 40-Across?12 ltrs 3DOne way to sit while meditating11 ltrs 26DEscape from jail11 ltrs 35AMemphis barbecue staple9 ltrs

Monday grids are the gentlest of the week: straightforward definitions, familiar fill and almost no wordplay. This grid has 38 black squares and averages 4.8 letters per entry.