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NYT Crossword — September 15, 2026

Tuesday’s 15 × 16 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
1T
2A
3F
4F
5Y
6A
7N
8T
9E
10E
11Y
12E
13S
14S
C
A
R
E
15L
A
I
R
16D
O
L
L
17P
R
D
I
S
18A
S
T
E
R
19I
S
L
A
20S
E
E
S
21R
O
O
22O
23K
T
H
E
N
24B
25I
C
26J
R
E
W
I
N
G
27A
28R
E
P
A
29C
O
S
T
A
30V
R
H
E
A
D
31S
E
T
32O
R
33D
34E
35R
36I
M
O
37D
E
A
L
T
38S
E
M
I
39N
O
D
40S
41B
E
E
42T
43S
44P
E
P
45E
R
E
C
46T
47E
R
D
O
C
48T
O
R
S
49H
U
50R
R
Y
51P
A
R
T
Y
52Q
53R
54C
O
D
E
S
55O
B
I
56T
O
L
L
E
D
57A
58R
F
59P
60E
61R
62U
63I
D
E
A
64H
65R
P
U
F
66N
S
T
U
F
67P
E
A
R
68O
O
P
S
69O
U
T
D
O
70S
O
N
S
71T
E
S
T
72S
P
U
D
S

Across

40 clues
1Laffy ___, candy with a rhyming name
6Poker buy-in
10"The windows to the soul," metaphorically
14Frighten
15Villain's hideout
16American Girl toy
17Cringey ad campaign going viral, for example
19Madonna's "La ___ Bonita"
20Goes out with
21Piglet and Pooh's marsupial friend
22"Well, in that case ..."
24Clic Stic and Wite-Out brand
26Character at the heart of the "Who shot ...?" cliffhanger of 1980s TV
27Colombian cornmeal cake
29San José, ___ Rica
30Oculus Rift or Meta Quest 3
32Opposite of chaos
36Texter's "I think ..."
37Started a game of blackjack, say
3818-wheeler
39Agrees nonverbally
41Red root vegetables
44Kind of rally at high school
45Put up, as a building
47Many characters on "The Pitt"
49"Quick!"
51Group holding a nominating convention
52Scannable squares often used in place of paper menus
55___-Wan Kenobi
56Rang, as a bell
57Pooch's bark
59Paddington Bear's country of origin
63What a light bulb represents, in comics
64Puppet dragon of 1960s kids' TV
67Bottom-heavy fruit
68Britney Spears's "___! ... I Did It Again"
69Perform better than
70Daughters' brothers
71Exam
72French fries-to-be

Down

41 clues
1Cough syrup amts.
2Farmland measure
3Haircut that transitions from shorter sides to longer top
4Ultimate ___ (team sport)
5Word of consent
6Too
7Grp. with a phonetic alphabet
8Cause for overtime
9Screw-ups
10Conflicts over Wikipedia content
11Mario's dinosaur sidekick
12Actress Pompeo of "Grey's Anatomy"
13Vernacular found in Urban Dictionary
18Place for coin-op game machines
23Kind of high-fat diet
25Tablet with Pro, Air and mini versions
26Scribbled (down)
27Knight's wear
28The "R" in R.I.
29The "log" in "ants on a log"
30Trellis-climbing plant
31"Light" Jedi weapons
33Railroad station
34Manicurist's filing board
35Laces (into)
40Well-educated sorts
42Fill back to capacity, as a glass
43Healing cover
46"Lose the ___, dude!"
48Causes to make a mistake
50Bit of fiery cinnamon candy
52Cotton swabs not recommended for ear canal use
53Cowboy contest
54Fresh from the dishwasher
57Grindr and Tinder, for two
58Sign of decay
60"___, Brute?"
61"Ant-Man" star Paul
62Sights that make you go "What the …?!"
65___ v. Wade (1973 Supreme Court decision)
66Rejections

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

Stats & info

Tuesday, Sep 15, 2026
15×16
Grid size
81
Total entries
42/198
Black / letter cells
4.9
Avg entry length
10 ltrs
Longest entry
Easy
Tuesday difficulty
PuzzleThe Crossword
PublishedSep 15, 2026
DayTuesday
ThemeUntitled
ConstructorNate Cardin
EditorWill Shortz
Clue split40 across · 41 down
Longest entries
17ACringey ad campaign going viral, for example10 ltrs64APuppet dragon of 1960s kids' TV10 ltrs30AOculus Rift or Meta Quest 39 ltrs47AMany characters on "The Pitt"9 ltrs10DConflicts over Wikipedia content8 ltrs

Tuesday sits one notch above Monday, usually with a light theme and a few playful clues. This grid has 42 black squares and averages 4.9 letters per entry.