Sunday, October 26, 2025

Articles by Erik Kain,Senior Contributor

2 articles found

NYT Mini Crossword Clues And Answers — Sunday, October 19
Technology

NYT Mini Crossword Clues And Answers — Sunday, October 19

How to solve today's Mini crossword. Credit: NYT It’s Saturday afternoon, which means we have Sunday’s NYT Mini Crossword to solve. The New York Times has stuffed this fun little game behind the NYT Games App paywall, unfortunately, but you can still play on the desktop site by pressing “escape” a couple times (apparently). That’s the workaround I’m aware of but, of course, subscribing to the Games app is also an option. In any case, let’s solve today’s Mini! Looking for Saturday’s NYT Mini Crossword? Here are some hints and answers. The NYT Mini is a smaller, quicker, more digestible, bite-sized version of the larger and more challenging NYT Crossword. While it used to be free, in August the Mini was placed behind the NYT Games App paywall. This has led to a noticeable decline in people playing the game, unfortunately. You can check out all of the NYT Games, free and paid, right here. A Mini Crossword is typically just 10 to 20 clues, with only Saturday’s puzzle on the upper end of that spread. Here’s what a basic NYT Mini looks like: The NYT Mini Crossword Screenshot: Erik Kain Follow the clues and come up with as many words as possible, and then use the letters from those words to fill in the remaining words you were unsure about. A good rule of thumb is to skip ahead whenever you don’t know something and come back to the clue later. Of course, if you still need help at that point, read on below for hints and answers. MORE FOR YOU The best way to play the NYT Mini Crossword is to try to beat your previous speed or play competitively with a friend and see who can fill out their Mini the fastest. This is not a long, laborious task like the normal NYT Crossword. It’s a game of speed and agile thinking. Spoilers ahead! How To Solve Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Before we get to the answers, here’s the first letter for each word in today’s Mini. 1A. [Gross!] — G 4A. Finish off, as a tube of toothpaste — U 7A. Argentine dance style — T 8A. Dish : dirt :: ___ : tea — S 9A. The "E" of REM — E 1D. 2023 Olivia Rodrigo album with the hit single "Bad Idea Right?" — G 2D. "Right away!" — A 3D. Disney role for Robin Williams or Will Smith — G 4D. Like a Christmas sweater, perhaps — U 6D. Festivus centerpiece — P Today’s Mini Crossword Answers Okay, onto the answers! Remember, spoilers ahead! 1A. [Gross!] — GAG 4A. Finish off, as a tube of toothpaste — USE UP 7A. Argentine dance style — TANGO 8A. Dish : dirt :: ___ : tea — SPILL 9A. The "E" of REM — EYE 1D. 2023 Olivia Rodrigo album with the hit single "Bad Idea Right?" — GUTS 2D. "Right away!" — ASAP 3D. Disney role for Robin Williams or Will Smith — GENIE 4D. Like a Christmas sweater, perhaps — UGLY 6D. Festivus centerpiece — POLE Here are the filled in answers: Today's Mini Crossword Screenshot: Erik Kain This was a surprisingly tough Mini Crossword! I blame that, in part, on knowing next to nothing about Olivia Rodrigo, let alone the names of her albums (or songs, for that matter). Thankfully, I did know what roll Robin Williams and Will Smith shared: The Genie from Aladdin (and not that Will Smith was bad, but nobody compares to Robin Williams). REM stands for Rapid Eye Movement, so that was easy enough, bit by bit I figured out UGLY for sweaters (KNIT did not work) TANGO for the dance (a popular crossword dance) and eventually, 1 minute and 48 seconds later, I had this one. Slow and steady wins the race. How did you do? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. If you also play Wordle, I write guides about that as well. You can find those and all my TV guides, reviews and much more here on my blog. Thanks for reading! Editorial StandardsReprints & Permissions

Today’s Wordle #1583 Hints And Answer — Sunday, October 19
Technology

Today’s Wordle #1583 Hints And Answer — Sunday, October 19

How to solve today's Wordle. SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images Another day, another Wordle to solve. If you’re looking for clues or just want to know what the answer is, read on but be aware of spoilers. It’s another beautiful fall day in the mountains, and I’m itching to get outside and enjoy the weather before it gets any colder. My pack of dogs is even more eager. So let’s solve this Wordle and then we can all take a hike! If you’re looking for new shows or movies to watch on a chilly autumn evening, be sure to check out my latest weekend streaming guide. There’s some great TV shows and movies out this week. Looking for Saturday’s Wordle? Check out our guide right here. How To Play Wordle Wordle is a daily word puzzle game where your goal is to guess a hidden five-letter word in six tries or fewer. After each guess, the game gives feedback to help you get closer to the answer: MORE FOR YOU Green: The letter is in the word and in the correct spot. Yellow: The letter is in the word, but in the wrong spot. Gray: The letter is not in the word at all. Use these clues to narrow down your guesses. Every day brings a new word, and everyone around the world is trying to solve the same puzzle. Some Wordlers also play Competitive Wordle against friends, family, the Wordle Bot or even against me, your humble narrator. See rules for Competitive Wordle toward the end of this post. Today’s Wordle Hints And Answer Wordle Bot’s Starting Word: SLATE My Starting Word Today: SLATE (44 words remaining) The Hint: Perfect. The Clue: This Wordle has more vowels than consonants. Okay, spoilers below! The answer is coming! The Answer: Today's Wordle Screenshot: Erik Kain Wordle Bot Analysis Every day I check Wordle Bot to help analyze my guessing game. You can check your Wordle score with Wordle Bot right here. I decided to use Wordle Bot’s favorite opening word today, and wouldn’t you know? It was a really good starter, leaving me with three yellow boxes and just 44 remaining words. What makes me happy about today’s Wordle is that while we both started the same, my second guess—DOILY—left me with just two possible solutions. When I ran the Wordle Bot analysis, it told me that my guess was bad and I should have used RANGY (which is what the Bot used) but as you can see, DOILY ended up being a much better guess. In any case, I could only come up with IDEAL (the other word was AILED) but that was the Wordle. Huzzah! Competitive Wordle Score Today's Wordle Bot Screenshot: Erik Kain Despite docking me “Skill” points for using DOILY, I beat the Bot today. I get 1 point for guessing in three and 1 for the win, and the Bot gets 0 for guessing in four and -1 for losing to me. I have a near-insurmountable lead in October at this point (though I should probably not start counting my chickens). Erik: 18 points Wordle Bot: 2 point How To Play Competitive Wordle Guessing in 1 is worth 3 points; guessing in 2 is worth 2 points; guessing in 3 is worth 1 point; guessing in 4 is worth 0 points; guessing in 5 is -1 points; guessing in 6 is -2 points and missing the Wordle is -3 points. If you beat your opponent you get 1 point. If you tie, you get 0 points. And if you lose to your opponent, you get -1 point. Add it up to get your score. Keep a daily running score or just play for a new score each day. Fridays are 2XP, meaning you double your points—positive or negative. You can keep a running tally or just play day-by-day. Enjoy! Today’s Wordle Etymology The word “ideal” comes from the Late Latin idealis, meaning “existing in idea,” which itself derives from Latin idea (“form, pattern, notion”) — borrowed from Greek idéa (ἰδέα), meaning “form,” “appearance,” or “kind.” Originally, “ideal” referred to something existing only in the mind or imagination, rather than in physical reality. By the 1600s, it came to mean “a perfect standard or model,” the sense we use today. Be sure to follow me for all your daily puzzle-solving guides, TV show and movie reviews and more here on this blog! Editorial StandardsReprints & Permissions