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NYT Crossword: answers for Thursday, December 5

The New York Times has plenty of word games on its roster today — with Wordle, Connections, Strands, and the Mini Crossword, there’s something for everyone — but the newspaper’s standard crossword puzzle still reigns supreme. The daily crossword is full of interesting trivia, helps improve mental flexibility and, of course, gives you some bragging rights if you manage to finish it every day.

While the NYT puzzle might feel like an impossible task some days, solving a crossword is a skill and it takes practice — don’t get discouraged if you can’t get every single word in a puzzle.

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If you’re having trouble completing today’s NYT Crossword, we’re here to help. We’ve got all the answers for today’s clues down below.

NYT Crossword answers today

New York Times Crossword logo.
New York Times

Across

1 They’re checked before a show : MICS
5 “I wasn’t finished …” : ALSO
9 Does programming work : CODES
14 Mate’s call : AHOY
15 Setting for the 2019 comedy “Wine Country” : NAPA
16 “La Forza del Destino,” for one : OPERA
17 Past issues to settle : OLDSCORES
19 Drawing on : USING
20 Moxie : SPUNK
21 Out of this world : ALIEN
23 Singer with the 2016 #1 hit “Cheap Thrills” : SIA
24 What Monday meals might lack : MEAT
26 Places in the pecking order : STATUSES
28 Nickname for N.B.A. great Nate Archibald (he was actually 6’1″) : TINY
30 Sickly-looking : WAN
32 Gear tooth : COG
33 Melber on MSNBC : ARI
34 Tight curl : KINK
35 ___ Drafthouse (movie theater chain) : ALAMO
38 Big bash : SHINDIG
40 Breaking down grammatically : PARSING
42 Small earrings : STUDS
43 Elaborate hairstyle : COIF
44 Org. with the sculpture “Kryptos” outside its headquarters : CIA
45 Lao-___ : TSE
46 Symbol of obstinacy : ASS
47 ___ district, feature of many an urban area : ARTS
48 Like much movie theater popcorn : BUTTERED
52 Not for here : TOGO
54 Atop, quaintly : OER
55 To date : ASYET
57 Rapper who founded Aftermath Entertainment : DRDRE
60 Big name in dental floss : ORALB
62 Pixar film whose title suggests how to read five answers in this puzzle : INSIDEOUT
64 Course concluder : FINAL
65 Org. with conferences : NCAA
66 Name on Canadian pumps : ESSO
67 Marsh plant : SEDGE
68 Starting point : GERM
69 Word before a time stamp in direct messaging : SEEN

Down

1 Raincoats, in England : MACS
2 Chain restaurant whose name sounds like something a rabbit might say? : IHOP
3 Important post at the Post : COLUMNIST
4 Largest city on the Tasman Sea : SYDNEY
5 12 meses : ANO
6 Dr. Zhivago’s love : LARA
7 Go caving : SPELUNK
8 Fertile refuge : OASIS
9 “A Series of Unfortunate Events” villain : COUNTOLAF
10 Missions, in brief : OPS
11 Voltaire or Leibniz, religiously speaking : DEIST
12 One of a pair of mismatched friends on “Sesame Street” : ERNIE
13 Long stories : SAGAS
18 ___ punk (hybrid music genre) : SKA
22 Like many romance novels : ESCAPIST
25 Matching pullover-and-cardigan pairs : TWINSETS
27 Food thickener : AGAR
28 Bit : TAD
29 Flower that gets its name from the Greek word for “rainbow” : IRIS
31 Director Lee : ANG
34 No place for fine china : KIDSTABLE
36 Small amount of LSD, e.g. : MICRODOSE
37 “Sure thing, boss!” : ONIT
39 Native Rwandan : HUTU
40 “Help wanted” sign? : SOS
41 Hefty expense for an R.V. trip : GAS
43 Pace : CADENCE
47 Matches (with) : AGREES
48 They’ve got you covered : ROOFS
49 Like the feeling of déjà vu : EERIE
50 Apple or BlackBerry : BRAND
51 Looking over : EYING
53 Out of the ordinary : ODD
56 Onetime Kremlin ruler : TSAR
58 Trick : RUSE
59 College where 20 prime ministers were educated : ETON
61 Fall behind : LAG
63 First (and last) two words of “Green Eggs and Ham” : IAM
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