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New York Times, Thursday, August 13, 2026

Author:
Killian Olson
Editor:
Will Shortz
Blog:
7-Down : Sticky stuff
TotalDebutLatest
311/26/20248/13/2026
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
0020100
ScrabFlowFresh
1.6932.536%
Killian Olson

This puzzle:

Rows: 15, Columns: 15 Words: 78, Blocks: 34 Missing: none – this is a pangram. This is puzzle # 3 for Mr. Olson. Grid flow: 35.0 Thursday freshness: 81%
Killian Olson notes:
I love crosswords that defy convention and require you to think outside the box (sometimes literally!) to unravel the mysteries of the ... read more
Jim Horne notes:
Clued phrase Grid entry Size change MOBSTERS ("Mafia members") LOBSTERS M → L EX-SPOUSES ("Alimony recipients") ESPOUSES XS → S ALES ... read more
1
Z
2
A
3
G
4
B
5
E
6
E
7
P
8
P
9
A
10
R
11
I
12
A
13
H
14
I
M
O
15
O
K
R
A
16
R
I
C
O
L
A
17
L
O
B
18
S
T
E
R
S
19
O
R
A
T
E
D
20
C
R
E
P
T
21
S
T
22
U
M
P
23
A
V
E
24
H
E
R
A
L
25
D
26
E
S
P
O
27
U
S
E
S
28
S
T
E
A
29
M
30
E
T
D
S
31
P
32
I
E
33
S
T
A
34
L
L
35
S
A
36
B
37
E
38
R
39
B
R
R
40
S
41
A
X
L
E
42
S
43
F
A
V
A
44
J
A
K
O
45
B
46
I
M
S
A
47
D
48
N
E
W
49
F
A
50
R
M
51
S
P
E
52
N
D
53
A
54
Q
55
U
A
R
I
U
56
M
57
S
N
O
W
58
E
59
D
60
B
U
N
61
R
O
M
A
62
N
63
S
O
A
R
E
64
B
O
B
65
C
A
T
66
S
I
67
Z
I
N
G
U
P
68
O
R
A
N
G
E
69
K
N
I
T
70
O
P
T
71
T
A
N
N
E
D
72
S
O
N
Y
73
N
T
H
© 2026, The New York Times8/13/26 ( No. 28,037 )
Across
1
Take a quick turn : ZAG
4
Sound from a monitor : BEEP
8
One who's definitely not being invited to the party : PARIAH
14
Letters indicating a texter's P.O.V. : IMO
15
Fried side dish with catfish, perhaps : OKRA
16
Cough drop brand whose name is yodeled in its commercials : RICOLA
17
Mafia members, e.g. : MOBSTERS
19
Gave a talking to? : ORATED
20
Tiptoed, say : CREPT
21
Bamboozle : STUMP
23
Michigan, in Chicago: Abbr. : AVE
24
Messenger : HERALD
26
Alimony recipients, say : EXSPOUSES
28
Boil ... or a sign of boiling : STEAM
30
Important travel info, in brief : ETDS
31
Dessert often eaten before the ides of March : PIE
33
Hold up : STALL
35
"Light" weapon : SABER
39
Verbalized shivers : BRRS
41
Drinks at a pub : ALES
43
Kind of bean used in Egyptian falafel : FAVA
44
___ Ingebrigtsen, track gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics : JAKOB
46
Teary-eyed expression : IMSAD
48
In need of training, say : NEW
49
Collect over and over, as resources in a video game : FARM
51
Pass, as time doing something : SPEND
53
11th of a noted 12 : AQUARIUS
57
Was especially wintry : SNOWED
60
Part of a slider : BUN
61
___ Roy, "Succession" role for which Kieran Culkin won an Emmy : ROMAN
63
"It is not enough to be industrious; ___ the ants": Henry David Thoreau : SOARE
64
Smallest member of the genus Lynx : BOBCAT
66
Evaluating, as an opponent ... or a hint to "fitting" the answers to the italicized clues into the grid : SIZINGUP
68
Uncommon color on the red carpet : ORANGE
69
Draw together, as brows : KNIT
70
Decline cookies, say, with "out" : OPT
71
Soaked up the sun : TANNED
72
___ Pictures (media giant) : SONY
73
Last term in a math lecture series? : NTH
Down
1
0 : ZILCH
2
Love of Bologna : AMORE
3
Fly off the handle : GOBERSERK
4
They might have deposits : BOTTLES
5
Pull (out), as a narrow victory : EKE
6
Makes an oopsie : ERRS
7
Sticky stuff : PASTE
8
Query for Claude, e.g. : PROMPT
9
Apple accessory announced alongside the removal of the iPhone's headphone jack : AIRPODS
10
Record label owned by 72-Across : RCA
11
Littlest bits : IOTAS
12
Motrin alternative : ALEVE
13
Epitome of a hot place : HADES
18
Reacted to a bad taste, perhaps : SPAT
22
Like a bike without wheels : USELESS
25
"Gold" of the 21st century : DATA
27
Org. focused on cloud security? : USAF
29
Five stars on a scale, typically : MAXIMUM
31
Sandwich that may be a bit crunchy, for short : PBJ
32
Apt name for an investor : IRA
34
A.I. that has been trained with massive amounts of text, in brief : LLM
36
Something to jump on : BANDWAGON
37
Many a sleepless night : EVE
38
Untapped, as talent : RAW
40
Casual gaming site? : SOFA
42
Drains the life out of : SAPS
45
Overwhelming stream : BARRAGE
47
Compactness : DENSITY
50
Ran amok : RIOTED
52
Lunchtime, say : NOON
53
Monastic superior : ABBOT
54
Website that describes itself as "a place to share knowledge and better understand the world" : QUORA
55
Allow to post on a forum again, e.g. : UNBAN
56
Uses caution while in public during flu season, say : MASKS
58
Go off with a bang : ERUPT
59
Consideration when diving : DEPTH
62
El ___ : NINO
65
Channel that pioneered 24-hour TV reporting : CNN
67
Grape whose "white" wine is actually pink, informally : ZIN

Answer summary:
3 unique to this puzzle, 5 unique to Modern Era but used previously.

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