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Deep, dark ocean caverns / SUN 2-16-25 / Cry of cringe / Hazard cleanup, in...
Constructor: John KugelmanRelative difficulty: Easy-MediumTHEME:"Square to Begin" — "W" is changed to "SQU" in familiar phrases, creating wacky phrases, clued wackily ("?"-style):Theme answers:SQUEAL...
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Messing around on set? / MON 2-17-25 / Ingredient in tempera or tempura /...
Constructor: Kate Hawkins and Erica Hsiung WojcikRelative difficulty: Easy-Medium (for a Monday—solved Downs-only)THEME:"YEAH, RIGHT" (60A: "Uh-huh, I bet" ... or a literal description of what 17-,...
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Palestinian activist Tamimi / TUE 2-18-25 / Kennewick ___ (ancient ancestor...
Constructor: Erik AgardRelative difficulty: Challenging (**for a Tuesday**)THEME:"Seriously?!"— same clue for four answers (the context being an imagined reaction to someone behaving...
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Wide-reaching green light / WED 2-19-25 / Dewy-eyed heroine / Synergy-seeking...
Constructor: Joe DeeneyRelative difficulty: EasyTHEME: QUILTING BEE (59A: Social sewing event ... and a hint to the starts of 17-, 29-, 34- and 44-Across) — starts of four theme answers all have to do...
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Alternative to a spicy Dorito / THU 2-20-24 / Blue man group member? /...
Constructor: Peter GormanRelative difficulty: EasyTHEME: ONE- / OFF (29A: With 43-Across, something never to be repeated ... or a hint to the answers to the italicized clues) — every theme answer is...
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Going backward, in skateboarding slang / FRI 2-21-25 / Frozen, flexible...
Constructor: Colin AdamsRelative difficulty: Easy (except for a single square ...)THEME: none Word of the Day: NIKKI Glaser (29A: Comedian Glaser) — Nikki Glaser (/ˈɡleɪsər/; born June 1, 1984) is an...
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Utterance that's usually made in pairs / SAT 2-22-25 / Club purchase that...
Constructor: Rose ConlonRelative difficulty: MediumTHEME: belated GALENTINE'S DAY (not really, but kinda felt like it) Word of the Day: OGALLALA (35D: Great Plains aquifer that supplies over a quarter...
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Coiffure parts that are sometimes braided / SUN 2-23-25 / Aetna alternative /...
Constructor: Daniel Grinberg and Rafael MusaRelative difficulty: Easy-MediumTHEME:"In the Rearview" — phrases involving reversal, which are then used to indicate reversed words in subsequent...
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Tiny, juicy bit to eat / MON 2-24-25 / Bosom buddies, in modern lingo /...
Constructor: Rena CohenRelative difficulty: Medium (solved Downs-only)THEME: SETS STRAIGHT (54A: Disabuses of false notions ... or a hint to the circled letters)— circled letters, read top to bottom,...
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Gesture with razzle-dazzle / TUES 2-25-25 / Native of the Dutch Caribbean /...
Hi, everyone, it’s Clare for the last Tuesday in this short month of February! My write-up last month was delayed because I had to prep for a client’s asylum hearing. It ended up being postponed but...
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Inspiration for a seafood chain / WED 2-26-25 / Preppy fabric / Numismatic...
Constructor: Dan CapreraRelative difficulty: EasyTHEME: "Long" answers — phrases with "LONG" in them are represented by having the words that "LONG" modifies e"long"ated in the grid, i.e. every letter...
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Shook one's defender, in sports lingo / THU 2-27-25 / Apt surname for...
Constructor: David SteinbergRelative difficulty: Easy to Easy-MediumTHEME: POCKETS (35A: What the U's in this puzzle's solution represent) — theme answers are types of pants, all of which contain the...
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Splashy government expenditure? / FRI 2-28-25 / Kaitlin of "Hacks" / W.N.B.A....
Constructor: Michael LiebermanRelative difficulty: Medium to Medium-Challenging (depending on how many of the many many names you knew in the N/NW)THEME: none Word of the Day: Scotch pie (27A: Common...
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In-tents dining experience? / SAT 3-1-25 / ___ Aran, protagonist in...
Constructor: Ryan JudgeRelative difficulty: MediumTHEME: none Word of the Day: IRWIN Shaw (32A: Author Shaw) —Irwin Shaw (February 27, 1913 – May 16, 1984) was an American playwright, screenwriter,...
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One tapped by leadership? / SUN 3-2-25 / Armada vessel / Sydneysider's...
Constructor: Adam WagnerRelative difficulty: Easy-MediumTHEME:"Rainbow Connection"— seven colored vertical lines appear in the grid (one for each color of the rainbow:...
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Iconic basketball move of Kobe Bryant / MON 3-3-25 / 1980 disaster comedy...
Constructor: Harrison WaldenRelative difficulty: Medium (normal Monday, solved Downs-only)THEME: PRNDL— i.e. automatic transmission automobile gears: theme answers begin with PARK, REVERSE, NEUTRAL,...
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Make two dos, say? / TUE 3-4-25 / Green-and-white sidekick of video games /...
Constructor: Hanh HuynhRelative difficulty: Easy-Medium THEME:"I'M SHOOK" (65A: "This news has got me rattled!" ... or a hint to 1-, 20-, 37- and 54-Across) — things you shake:Theme answers:POMPOMS...
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Biblical patriarch who begat Methuselah / WED 3-5-25 / Missouri tributary /...
Constructor: Rebecca GoldsteinRelative difficulty: Hard (got stuck in the bottom left, 9:59)THEME: HAUNTED MANSION— Spooky property that might include the theme answersTheme answers:BLOOD BATH--...
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Onetime leader of the Sinaloa Cartel / THU 3-6-25 / Adriatic port city / Like...
Constructor: Kiran PandeyRelative difficulty: EasyishTHEME:"Come again?" — four answers that express repetition or doubleness, represented in the grid by words that are duplicates of the words that...
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Mother's mother, in Cantonese / FRI 3-7-25 / Service for someone who needs...
Constructor: Malaika HandaRelative difficulty: Easy-Medium to MediumTHEME: none Word of the Day: STADT (47A: German city) — There is no distinction between town and city in Germany; a Stadt is an...
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