In case you missed Tuesday’s NYT Mini, you can find the answers here:
Wondering what a kind of cold brew coffee with foamy bubbles is? Not sure what a “look who’s 40” rhyming line on a birthday card could be? Don’t worry, because I’m here to help you with the answers for today’s NYT Mini crossword.
The NYT Mini is a quick and dirty version of the newspaper’s larger and long-running crossword. Most days, there are between three and five clues in each direction on a five by five grid, but the puzzles are sometimes larger, especially on Saturdays.
Unlike its larger sibling, the NYT Mini crossword is free to play on the New York Times website or NYT Games app. However, you’ll need an NYT Games subscription to access previous puzzles in the archives.
To help you avoid getting stuck and having to reveal missing letters, here are the NYT Mini Crossword answers for Wednesday, December 18 (spoilers lie ahead, of course):
NYT Mini Crossword Clues And Answers
NYT Mini Across Answers
1 Across: Only instrument in a typical orchestra that reads the alto clef — VIOLA
6 Across: Irk — ANNOY
7 Across: Kind of cold brew coffee with foamy bubbles — NITRO
8 Across: Affirmative head gesture — NOD
9 Across: One of 88 on a piano — KEY
NYT Mini Down Answers
1 Down: Vehicle with a sliding door — VAN
2 Down: With a pen, as one’s signature — IN INK
3 Down: How a ballerina often dances — ON TOE
4 Down: “___, ___, look who’s 40!” (rhyming line on a birthday card) — LORDY
5 Down: ___ Edebiri, Emmy-winning actress on The Bear — AYO
It took me 1:22 to complete today’s NYT Mini.
I made a couple of errors that really slowed me down. I thought VIOLA was PIANO and misspelled NOD as NOT. I didn’t know what a NITRO was either, while the Down words/phrases in the center all tripped me up. But getting AYO was the key to unlocking VIOLA and then the rest of the grid.
Make sure to follow my blog for more coverage of the NYT Mini and other word games, as well as video game news, insights and analysis. It helps me out a lot! Also, follow me on Bluesky! It’s fun there.
