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 50,660 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| AIRFONE | Sun May 25, 2003 | In-flight calling aid | David J. Kahn |
| ASCERTAINS | Tue Oct 9, 2001 | Determines | Peter Gordon |
| ASHOTINTHEDARK | Tue Oct 21, 2025 | Wild guess ... or what 19-, 24- and 41-Across let you take? | Spencer Leach |
| ASKFORME | Sun Aug 5, 2007 | Personal offer to help | Caroline Leong |
| BOXEDIN | Mon May 16, 1994 | Trapped | Ed Pegg Jr. |
| BUFFOON | Wed Apr 2, 2025 | Goofball | Daniel Bodily |
| BULLSEYE | Thu Jan 24, 2008 | *Shoot perfectly | Matt Ginsberg |
| BYRE | Sun Oct 6, 1996 | Yorkshire cow shed | R. Max Hopkins |
| CHIGNONS | Mon Jan 20, 2025 | Hair knots with a French name | Katie Byl and Jeff Chen |
| DJKHALED | Tue Mar 19, 2019 | Singer with the 2010 3x platinum single "All I Do Is Win" [10,11] | Daniel Larsen |
| ELITESQUAD | Sun Apr 25, 2021 | SWAT team or Navy SEAL group, e.g. | Jeremy Newton |
| EVAPORATOR | Sun Feb 11, 1996 | Fridge device | Harvey Estes |
| FBITRUE | Sun Aug 17, 2025 | Paramount+ docuseries with real-life crime stories | Amsay Ezersky |
| FLECHE | Fri Feb 6, 2015 | Fencing move that means "arrow" in French | Kyle Mahowald |
| FORFEITEDGAME | Sun Dec 28, 2014 | Li____nt | Joe Krozel |
| HAZARDPAY | Wed Mar 31, 2004 | Bomb squad's compensation, say | Randy Sowell |
| HETAERA | Sat Sep 10, 1994 | Courtesan of ancient Attica | Rand H. Burns |
| ITAKETHATBACK | Thu Nov 9, 2017 | Words of retraction | Bruce Haight |
| JEEVES | Sun Jan 8, 2017 | Valet in P. G. Wodehouse stories | Peter Broda and Erik Agard |
| KERPLUNKS | Sun Oct 4, 2015 | Sounds of fall? | Jeremy Newton |
| LOCALTV | Fri May 15, 2015 | Public access channel, e.g. | David Phillips |
| MACULA | Tue Nov 11, 2014 | Eye part subject to degeneration | James Mulhern |
| MAKEACAMEO | Thu Oct 30, 2025 | Show up unannounced? | Howard Neuthaler |
| MENUPAGES | Sat Apr 7, 2018 | They're flipped at diners | Mark Diehl |
| MMHMM | Sun Apr 18, 2021 | Vowelless "yes" | Johan Vass |
| MOSQUITONET | Fri Sep 27, 2024 | Debugging soft wear? | Jake Bunch |
| MUDHENS | Fri Nov 23, 2012 | Minor-league team of Toledo | Patrick Berry |
| NOFOR | Thu May 29, 1997 | Can't take ___ an answer | Gilbert H. Ludwig |
| OPPORTUNE | Sat Jan 26, 2008 | Happy | Karen M. Tracey |
| OWEITTO | Thu Jun 26, 2025 | Must give | Simeon Seigel |
| PARTYDIP | Sat Oct 6, 2012 | Salsa, say | Steve Salitan |
| PATRIOTMISSILE | Sun Jul 13, 1997 | Shell shot at a Harrisburg newspaper? | Fred Piscop |
| PEPPERMARTIN | Tue Dec 13, 2005 | Seasoned baseball player? | Roy Leban |
| PRUE | Wed Apr 12, 2023 | Celebrity chef ___ Leith | Olivia Mitra Framke and Brooke Husic |
| PUFFINBOOKS | Mon Oct 29, 2018 | Children's publisher whose name includes a black-and-white animal | Peter Gordon |
| REZIP | Fri Jul 12, 2024 | Close again, as a piece of luggage | Malaika Handa |
| SAFEENVIRONMENT | Wed Jul 22, 2020 | People are protected when they're in it | Peter A. Collins |
| THECELL | Sun Oct 5, 2008 | 2000 Jennifer Lopez thriller | Byron Walden |
| VERACRUZ | Tue May 29, 2001 | Film starring 60-Across, 1954 | Frances Hansen |
| VOICEMAIL | Sat May 28, 1994 | Modern messages | Gerald R. Ferguson |