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 50,448 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| ANATOMIES | Fri Jan 24, 1997 | Medical dissections | D. J. Kahn |
| BARGAININGCHIP | Fri Oct 14, 2016 | Threat of a strike, in labor negotiations | Natan Last |
| BEGORRAH | Thu Mar 22, 2007 | Irish oath | Karen M. Tracey |
| BELCANTO | Mon Jul 16, 2001 | Italian for "beautiful singing" | Peter Gordon |
| BLUEGREEN | Sat May 29, 2021 | Like some tropical seas | Adam Aaronson |
| BRUSHFIRE | Fri Apr 23, 2021 | Scrubland danger | Robyn Weintraub |
| CHANGINGCARD | Sun Aug 13, 2017 | Magic trick performed at 55-Across | Eric Berlin |
| CLYDESDALE | Thu Jan 9, 2025 | Charlie horse | David P. Williams |
| COUNTRYROAD | Tue Feb 16, 1999 | Rural route | Randy Sowell |
| DJMIC | Sat Dec 30, 2023 | Part of a turntablist's headgear, for short | Simeon Seigel |
| DUCS | Sun Apr 27, 2008 | French noblemen | Oliver Hill |
| EYESOFBLUE | Wed Sep 12, 2018 | Attribute for "my girl" after "Five Foot Two" in a 1920s tune | Jeffrey Wechsler |
| GRAPHITE | Thu Dec 14, 2023 | The lead in pencils, actually | Esha Datta |
| GUDGE | Sat Mar 15, 2003 | Character in Chesterton's "What's Wrong With the World" | Adam Cohen |
| HADANIDEA | Wed Apr 13, 2011 | Suspected | Elizabeth C. Gorski |
| HERREN | Fri Nov 26, 1999 | Men of the haus | Roger Phillips |
| HESNOTATHISDESK | Tue Jul 28, 1998 | Stock secretarial ploy #3 | Robert Dillman |
| HOPESFORTHEBEST | Tue Mar 11, 2008 | Is optimistic | Eugene W. Sard |
| INFRAREDCAMERA | Tue Oct 21, 2025 | Device for capturing thermal images | Spencer Leach |
| INTRIGUES | Sat Jun 23, 2012 | Fascinates | Laura Sternberg |
| INTROVERSION | Sun Mar 19, 2023 | Beginner's edition? | Robert Ryan |
| INVEIGH | Sat Apr 12, 1997 | Complain bitterly | Bob Klahn |
| LEANING | Wed Sep 16, 2020 | Like Pisa's tower | Paul Coulter |
| NASALBONES | Sat May 22, 2004 | They build bridges | Mark Diehl |
| OGO | Fri Oct 28, 1994 | U.S. scientific satellite of the 60's | Bryant White |
| PESSIMIST | Wed Jan 5, 2022 | One who identifies with the answers to the starred Down clues | Damon Gulczynski |
| PRODUCE | Thu Sep 7, 2006 | Grocery section | Lucy Gardner Anderson |
| REDUCETOTEARS | Thu Jul 2, 1998 | Make cry | Pat M. Hugel |
| RELEASEE | Fri Jan 5, 1996 | Freed hostage | R. Ross |
| REPAVING | Wed May 31, 1995 | Fixing the driveway | Jonathan Schmatzbach |
| REPRINT | Sun Dec 18, 2016 | Publish anew | Derrick Niederman |
| SAFEZONES | Sun Dec 16, 2018 | Sanctuaries | Sam Ezersky |
| SEMIABSTRACTION | Sat Apr 3, 1999 | Highly stylized sculpting style | Pat M. Hugel |
| SHADER | Sun Jan 29, 2012 | Beach umbrella, e.g. | Ian Livengood |
| STAGEACT | Thu Sep 28, 2023 | Talent show performance, say | Ricky Cruz |
| STVALENTINE | Sat May 23, 2020 | February honoree | Wyna Liu and Erik Agard |
| TWISTOFF | Sun Jul 23, 1995 | Kind of cap | Fran & Lou Sabin |
| WERTHERS | Tue Sep 21, 2021 | Brand of caramel candy | Daniel Okulitch |
| WNBAFINALS | Thu Jan 25, 2024 | The Mercury might be in this | Sam Ezersky |
| YEAROFTHEOX | Wed Mar 3, 2021 | 2021 in the Chinese zodiac, with a hint to 17-, 27- and 40-Across | Ann Shan |