Before we get to today’s NYT Mini crossword hints, clues and answers, here are Friday’s:
Wondering what a brand of cinnamon-flavored chewing gum might be? Not sure what a rook might be to a chess newbie? Don’t worry, because I’m here to help you with extra hints and 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.
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Here are extra hints and the official NYT Mini Crossword clues and answers for Saturday, June 21:
Spoilers lie ahead, so remember to scroll slowly:
NYT Mini Crossword Hints
NYT Mini Across Hints
1 Across: Filled with glee
7 Across: Cause suspicion
8 Across: Like an angry giant, perhaps
9 Across: A certain gift
10 Across: Not vegetable or mineral
13 Across: Big finish
14 Across: Home for royalty
NYT Mini Down Hints
1 Down: A vaccine or insult
2 Down: Where things start
3 Down: Meditation station, maybe
4 Down: Like a hairy formal dance?
5 Down: Guns N’ Roses album _____ Your Illusion I
6 Down: Light-emitting diode, for short
10 Down: Half of a top sports league
11 Down: My Big Fat Greek Wedding star Vardalos and pro wrestler Jax
12 Down: Bruce of Enter The Dragon – LEE
NYT Mini Crossword Clues And Answers
NYT Mini Across Answers
1 Across: Feeling extremely happy – JOYFUL
7 Across: Wake from sleep – AROUSE
8 Across: Brand of cinnamon-flavored chewing gum – BIG RED
9 Across: Talk and talk and talk – GAB
10 Across: Bengal, colt or dolphin – ANIMAL
13 Across: TV show ending – FINALE
14 Across: Rook, to a chess newbie – CASTLE
NYT Mini Down Answers
1 Down: Quick boxing punch – JAB
2 Down: Beginnings – ORIGINS
3 Down: Where you might strike a pose? – YOGA MAT
4 Down: Nickname for a fuzzy cat – FURBALL
5 Down: One of many for white vinegar – USE
6 Down: Was winning – LED
10 Down: The Bengals, Colts and Dolphins play in it: Abbr – AFC
11 Down: ___ DaCosta, director of 2023’s The Marvels – NIA
12 Down: Harper who wrote To Kill a Mockingbird – LEE
It took me 2:07 to complete today’s NYT Mini.
This was a pretty interesting one! I’m fairly happy with that time too, given how stuck I was at some points.
I was happy to get JOYFUL right away (I got FINALE and CASTLE at the first attempt too). But I thought GAB was “yap” and ANIMAL was “player” at first. Those two incorrect guesses tripped me up a bit when I got to the Down side.
A few answers here were critical to me understanding the rest of the grid, as the nexus of ORIGINALS, YOGA MAT, AROUSE and BIG RED were causing me some trouble. Finally figuring out ANIMAL helped me fill in the blanks going Down, while USE did the same for BIG RED (which I’ve never had, so I was glad to pull that from my memory bank) and AROUSE.
I’ll see you tomorrow for more NYT Mini fun!
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