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 50,700 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| AMPER | Thu Nov 7, 1996 | Swelling, in England | G. R. Ferguson |
| BAFFLES | Sat May 5, 2007 | Stumps | David Quarfoot |
| BAYHS | Sun Jul 8, 2012 | Indiana political family | Joel Fagliano |
| BESTLAID | Sun Oct 12, 1997 | Like Burns's "schemes o' mice an' men" | Nancy Salomon |
| BEYONDPARODY | Sat Nov 1, 2025 | Superlatively absurd | Michael Lieberman |
| BLOWDRY | Sun Jan 27, 2013 | Salon request | Jeff Chen |
| BUYSAT | Thu May 29, 1997 | Patronizes | Gilbert H. Ludwig |
| CONFLICTOFINTEREST | Sun Aug 1, 2004 | The candidate was accused of having a ___ | Randolph Ross |
| DAAAAABEARS | Wed Oct 27, 2021 | Classic line from the Superfans sketch on "S.N.L." | Johanna Fenimore |
| DOASOLID | Sat Sep 9, 2023 | Help out, informally | Robert S. Gard |
| DONTYOUSEE | Fri May 9, 2025 | "Must I spell it out further?" | Willa Angel Chen Miller and Erik Agard |
| DRUMSOUT | Sat Oct 8, 2022 | Forces to leave | Kyle Dolan |
| ELECTRICGUITAR | Tue Feb 24, 2026 | Fender Stratocaster, e.g. | Adam Aaronson |
| FALLCLASSES | Thu Dec 16, 2004 | First semester offerings | Mike Torch |
| FITTING | Sun Dec 29, 2013 | Appropriate | Joel Fagliano |
| FREEBIRD | Thu Dec 9, 2010 | *1975 Southern rock hit stereotypically requested at concerts | Byron Walden and Caleb Madison |
| GETSOMEAIR | Sun Jun 11, 2023 | Step outside for a bit | Sam Ezersky |
| GETWORSE | Thu Sep 19, 2002 | Deteriorate | Randolph Ross |
| HAGLER | Thu Oct 5, 2006 | Fighter Marvin | Joe DiPietro |
| HALFOF | Mon Jun 9, 1997 | What "hemi-" means | Thomas W. Schier |
| HANDEDTO | Sat Oct 18, 1997 | Personally left with | Rich Norris |
| HEADCOLDS | Sun Dec 4, 2011 | NyQuil targets | Kelsey Blakley |
| HELLOHELLOHELLO | Wed Jun 30, 2004 | Mic check #4 | Brendan Emmett Quigley |
| IMMATURE | Sun Aug 10, 1997 | GREEN | Nancy Nicholson Joline |
| ISTHISGOOD | Tue Jan 7, 2014 | Question posed while pulling leftovers from the fridge ... or a query about the initial words of 18-, 24-, 33-, 43- or 50-Across? | Mark Bickham |
| MADEYOULOOK | Fri Apr 22, 2016 | Taunt to a head-turner | Robyn Weintraub |
| MAPMAKER | Sat Aug 29, 2009 | Creator of the stuff of legends? | Doug Peterson |
| PATSONTHESHOULDER | Sun Nov 22, 1998 | Her car broke down | Nelson Hardy |
| RACEGOER | Sun May 17, 1998 | One seen at trackside | David J. Kahn and Hillary B. Kahn |
| SCIENCECAMP | Thu May 5, 2022 | Summer learning opportunity for students | Adam Wagner |
| SELENATES | Sat Dec 21, 1996 | Certain esters | F. Piscop |
| SNOWSHOES | Sun Oct 31, 2004 | Mukluk attachments | Patrick Merrell |
| SUPERSPY | Tue Jan 6, 1998 | James Bond, e.g. | Ed Early |
| SWEETENUP | Fri Jul 12, 2019 | Make nice to in a manipulative way | Evan Kalish |
| TAPDANCER | Sat Nov 24, 2018 | Fred Astaire, at times | David Steinberg |
| TELEMETRY | Mon May 7, 2007 | Rocket data | Janet Bender |
| TERRAS | Fri Sep 10, 2021 | Earths, in sci-fi | Adrian Kabigting |
| THORNE | Fri Sep 20, 2024 | Actress Bella of Disney's "Shake It Up" | Jackson Matz |
| TULIPTREE | Sun Sep 27, 2009 | Yellow poplar | Patrick Berry |
| UNDECLARED | Sat May 25, 2013 | Like some majors and wars | David Steinberg |