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NYT Crossword — September 12, 2026

Saturday’s 15 × 15 puzzle, 70 clues. The full solution is below — answers stay masked until you reveal them, one clue or all at once.

0 of 70 revealed

1L

2A

3M

4P

5S

6H

7A

8D

9E

10S

11T

12O

13M

14B

15E

M

A

I

L

A

L

E

R

T

16O

V

A

L

17V

I

C

T

O

R

Y

L

A

P

18R

E

D

O

19E

N

R

A

P

T

20A

S

A

21O

N

E

G

22L

O

O

S

E

23N

Y

E

T

24S

25T

I

P

26S

27H

O

E

S

28A

29L

I

T

O

30S

31O

32D

33S

34A

N

D

35C

R

U

M

B

S

36T

H

A

T

37S

M

O

R

38E

L

I

K

E

I

T

39A

N

T

I

C

S

40E

R

A

41E

R

G

S

42M

O

I

R

A

43M

A

I

M

44S

45P

W

N

46B

47L

O

C

K

48O

49R

50A

51L

52B

53C

I

G

54S

55O

T

T

56H

O

O

R

A

E

57A

S

A

P

58W

H

I

59T

E

N

O

I

S

E

60R

E

P

O

61P

R

O

B

L

E

M

S

E

T

62D

E

P

T

63H

A

N

D

D

R

Y

E

R

S

Across

35 clues

15Pop-up with an envelope icon

17Winner's circle?

20"Thick ___ Brick" (1972 Jethro Tull album)

21Earth's pull, informally

22On the ___ (free)

23Thumbs-down votes in the Duma

26Personal circumstances, so to speak

28Justice who's the subject of the 2026 biography "Revenge for the Sixties"

30Rolls out the green carpet?

34First full word sung in "The Alphabet Song"

35Proverbial small amount

36"Now we're talking!"

41Rowing machines, in gym lingo

42"Schitt's Creek" matriarch

45Rout, in computer game lingo

46Word with letter or grant

48Toothbrush handle?

55N.B.A. coach Jordan ___

56Punnily named production company behind TV's "Insecure" and "A Black Lady Sketch Show"

58Common sleep aid

60Acquire by default?

61Math class assignment

62Labor, e.g.: Abbr.

63Appliances that are always blowing out?

Down

35 clues

1Carpenter's tool

3Kind of photography lens for a close-up

4Wraps in the Mideast

5Certain geometry calculations

6Playwright Moss ___

7Gymnast Raisman

8What a joke may get eventually

9Takes marks off in a classroom?

10Mid-March V.I.P., informally

11"Surf" food in Japan, or "turf" animal in Spain

12Kitchen counter

13Became a household name, say

14Examples of media on Medium

23Many a listing in an etiquette book

24Wrap in South Asia

27Actors unsuited for subtle roles

29Country singer Combs

30Rewards program tracker

31"It's finally clear"

32Phone connector?

38Journalist Larson who wrote "The Splendid and the Vile"

43Godzilla adversary

44Longhorn's rival

51Pointer for a public speaker

52Sources of the juice that "bleeds" in a faux meat patty

54Tough thing to be in

56Stayed together

59Placeholder abbr.

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

Stats & info

Saturday, Sep 12, 2026

15×15

Grid size

70

Total entries

28/197

Black / letter cells

5.6

Avg entry length

15 ltrs

Longest entry

Hardest

Saturday difficulty

PuzzleThe Crossword

PublishedSep 12, 2026

DaySaturday

ThemeThemeless

ConstructorAdam Wagner and Michael Lieberman

EditorWill Shortz

Clue split35 across · 35 down

Longest entries

36A"Now we're talking!"15 ltrs 8DWhat a joke may get eventually15 ltrs 1ALight décor10 ltrs 15APop-up with an envelope icon10 ltrs 17AWinner's circle?10 ltrs

Saturday is the hardest grid of the week, themeless and clued as obliquely as the editor allows. This grid has 28 black squares and averages 5.6 letters per entry.