This page is just for fun. It's a random collection of rare crossword answers; so rare that each appears only in a single Modern Era puzzle. Bogus entries (thematic words that make sense only in that crossword) are excluded.
There are 50,532 unique Modern Era answer words in the database.
Click any word to see it in the context of its puzzle. Words in this color did appear in pre-Shortz crosswords.
| Word | Date | Clue | Author |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACHIEVABLE | Sun Jul 2, 2006 | Within reach | Elizabeth C. Gorski |
| ACTSTHEGOAT | Sun Nov 7, 2021 | Behaves like a fool, informally | Sid Sivakumar |
| ALEXANDREDUMAS | Mon Oct 29, 2001 | "Les Trois Mousquetaires" author | Richard Hughes |
| ALOHABOWL | Fri Apr 21, 2000 | The University of Washington won the first one in 1982 | Mark Diehl |
| ANDCUT | Tue Dec 23, 2025 | Cry from a movie director | Nathan Hale |
| AXELF | Sun Sep 13, 2015 | 1985 instrumental hit named after the main character in "Beverly Hills Cop" | Joe DiPietro |
| BACKROOM | Mon Jun 24, 2024 | *Figurative setting for a shady deal | Anthony V. Grubb |
| BULGARIA | Sun Jan 14, 2007 | Birthplace of the Cyrillic alphabet | Harvey Estes |
| BUNKERS | Fri Jan 29, 1999 | Tiger traps? | Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon |
| CAYMANISLANDS | Sat Nov 28, 1998 | George Town is its capital | Gilbert H. Ludwig |
| DAVIDBIRNEY | Tue Aug 30, 2011 | TV/film/stage actor once married to actress Meredith Baxter | Bernice Gordon |
| DRAWA | Sun Sep 8, 1996 | ___ blank | R. H. Wolfe |
| ENDLESSNIGHT | Tue Nov 3, 1998 | 1967 Agatha Christie thriller | Ed Early |
| EXTEMPORANEOUS | Sat Feb 17, 1996 | Unprepared | Bob Sefick |
| FILESERVER | Sat Jul 29, 2023 | Download source | Sam Ezersky |
| FROMM | Mon Oct 1, 2007 | Erich who wrote "The Art of Loving" | Allan E. Parrish |
| GABBED | Sun Aug 20, 2000 | Gossiped | Charles M. Deber |
| GLOATOVER | Fri Aug 26, 2011 | Show poor sportsmanship about, say | Brendan Emmett Quigley |
| HOMEWORKEXCUSE | Mon Nov 13, 2023 | "The dog ate it!" | Benjamin Fink |
| HOWSABOUT | Mon Mar 27, 2017 | "What do you think of ...?" | Tom McCoy |
| IHATEMEN | Sat Mar 30, 2013 | "Kiss Me, Kate" song | Gareth Bain |
| ITAINT | Sun Apr 27, 1997 | "If ___ broke..." | Matt Gaffney |
| LEFTISH | Wed Apr 23, 2003 | Having liberal political tendencies | Gilbert H. Ludwig |
| LETTERBOMBS | Sat Nov 27, 2004 | Dangerous postings | Byron Walden |
| LOOKWHOSTALKING | Thu Sep 24, 1998 | Travolta film, 1989 | Frances Hansen |
| MOTORSKILLS | Wed Jun 11, 2025 | Throwing a ball and grasping a pencil, e.g. | Sam Koperwas and Jeff Chen |
| NUMBEROFTHEBEAST | Sun Jan 14, 2024 | Animal tranquilizer? | John Kugelman |
| PHILIPIII | Tue Jul 28, 2015 | King who led Spain into the Thirty Years' War | Caleb Emmons |
| PIKAS | Thu Nov 3, 1994 | Rabbitlike animals | Cathy Millhauser |
| PROPBETS | Sun Jul 2, 2023 | Certain side wagers, informally | Rebecca Goldstein and Rafael Musa |
| PUNCHLINES | Sun Jul 3, 2005 | If successful, they're laughed at | Elizabeth C. Gorski |
| SLEEPINGPILL | Thu Dec 14, 2000 | Insomniac's need | Peter Gordon |
| SOLARSYSTEMS | Thu Mar 2, 2023 | Sites of many revolutions | Malaika Handa |
| SPIFFEDUP | Sat Sep 10, 2016 | Got smart | Peter Wentz |
| SUBVERTING | Thu May 21, 1998 | Overthrowing | Cathy Millhauser |
| SUBWAYS | Fri Aug 1, 1997 | Tubes | Gerald R. Ferguson |
| TOWAGES | Sat Apr 11, 2009 | Tugboat fees | Karen M. Tracey |
| WAITAMINUTE | Sat May 8, 2021 | "Hold on!" | David Steinberg |
| WINWINSITUATION | Tue Oct 13, 2020 | Circumstance that's good for everyone ... with a hint to 17-, 25- and 44-Across | Amanda Rafkin |
| ZEDONK | Thu Sep 5, 2024 | Equine hybrid with striped legs | Joe Deeney |