LAT 2:41 (Stella) 
[3.64 avg; 7 ratings] rate it
Newsday 13:39 (Amy) 
[4.00 avg; 6 ratings] rate it
NYT 5:02 (Amy) [3.58 avg; 13 ratings] rate it
Universal tk (Matthew) 
[3.17 avg; 3 ratings] rate it
USA Today tk (Matthew) 
[2.50 avg; 2 ratings] rate it
WSJ 14:20+ (Eric) [2.75 avg; 2 ratings] rate it
Robert S. Gard’s New York Times crossword — Amy’s recap
NY TImes crossword solution, 12/20/25 – no. 1220
Whoo, this one went faster than I was expecting. The only real trouble spot was guessing which spelling would be in “WELL, LA-DI-DAH.” Merriam-Webster prefers la-di-da, “or less commonly la-de-da or lah-de-dah or lah-dee-dah or lah-di-dah.” The puzzle’s spelling isn’t listed, but some of the dictionary spellings look wildly wrong to me.
Fave fill: CHINSTRAP beard, SAD TROMBONE, CAST PARTY, FEEL THE BURN.
Five bits:
- 16A. [#1 on Wired magazine’s list of the 10 most influential video games of the 2010s], FORTNITE. The game just made a deal with J.K. Rowling for “skins” in the game. She’ll make plenty more money, and then spend it on taking away trans people’s rights in the UK. She’s been remarkably successful, and the UK isn’t even run by MAGA.
- 19A. [Generate clippings, say], MOW. Grass clippings, not my mother’s newspaper clippings.
- 3D. [Tip on quite a few bucks?], ANTLER. One antler on “quite a few” male deer? That doesn’t quite work for me.
- 4D. [Extremely rare, facetiously], STILL MOOING. It took a lot of crossings to realize that “rare” means undercooked rather than uncommon here. It’s really kinda eww, though, isn’t it?
- 42D. [Day at the movies], DORIS. Did this fool a lot of solvers under 50?
Four stars from me.
Mark MacLachlan’s Wall Street Journal Crossword Puzzle “Bad Spelling”— Eric’s Review
Mark MacLachlan’s Wall Street Journal Crossword “In For a Bad Spell” — 12/20/25 (click to embiggen)
Maybe there’s no greater evidence that I’m getting more crotchety as I age than the fact that I’m much less tolerant of puns than I used to be. On the other hand, I still enjoy the puns that I make, so maybe it’s just narcissism winning out in the end.
Anyway: Take a well-known phrase or a compound noun, alter it by adding a B and correcting spelling as necessary, and watch what wackiness follows:
- 22A [Strapping men welcoming orphans?] BURLY ADOPTERS
- 27A [Savage beast who’s boringly conventional?] SQUARE BRUTE Sometimes I think that the best thing about my being gay (aside from my wonderful husband) is that it keeps me from being boringly conventional.
- 35A [Spheres of worms with mystical powers?] MAGIC BAIT BALLS I gotta admit I like this one. I sniggered at it before I even finished reading the clue.
- 64A [Add a coat to the village’s prized loaf?] PAINT THE TOWN BREAD
- 74A [“Oh no! The brewery just caught fire!”?] MY BEERS ARE BURNING Okay, this one is pretty good, too. But that’s probably because half of what’s in my fridge at any given time is beer.
- 102A [Filthy film coating a bed on a boat?] SCUM OF THE BERTH This one’s a little gross if you think about it. (So don’t think about it, now that I’ve called your attention to it.)
- 111A [Deep pink underwear?] CORAL BRIEFS I forget what newly-purchase item of red clothing my mom once washed in a load that included my dad’s tighty-whiteys. Being an economical guy, I’m sure he wore the pink underwear until it wore out anyway.
- 121A [Extensive alterations to a jacket?] BLAZER SURGERY Even after I got the blazer part, I couldn’t think of “laser” anything.
So — two out of eight puns that are kinda funny, five that don’t make me cringe, and one that’s only a little yucky. That sounds like a win for a Sunday-sized grid.
Other stuff:
- 1A [Portuguese currency before the euro] ESCUDO Euro coins and banknotes entered into circulation on January 1, 2002. How long do we have to remember all those old currencies? (Mostly, though, I get crabby about having to remember what country used lira and what country used lire.)
- 18A [Short-term solution during a repair] LOANER “Solution” implies the existence of a problem. As a retired old guy, it was no problem to sit around the Subaru dealership for an hour or so this afternoon while they did maintenance on our car. But of course not everyone has the luxury to do that. (Note to self: Do not schedule auto service for a week before Christmas.)
- 21A [Barrel builders] COOPERS The only reason I can think of that it took me as long as it did to get that answer was that I didn’t expect to see that old word. Today, the only coopers anyone knows are Alice and Bradley.
- 52A [Home of the Tokugawa shogunate] EDO I’ve known the former name for Tokyo for years, but it was only a month or so ago that I learned how to pronounce it.
- 53A [Gas whose name comes from the Greek for “hidden”] KRYPTON Does that mean if you hide cash in your mattress, you’re dealing in cryptocurrency?
- 94A [First commercial film shown in stereo] FANTASIA I’ve seen that a couple of times, but I don’t think I knew that little tidbit.
- 120A [Rice collection] TUITION As in Rice University, the alma mater of my ski buddies Deborah and Greg. I finished up here and was stuck for a minute because I’d put DOWSE for 105D. I was also certain that “Rice” referred to The Vampire Chronicles author.
- 125A [Rings in the morning?] BAGELS Cute clue.
- 3D [2020 Taylor Swift hit] CARDIGAN I know two of her songs by name (and actually like them). This isn’t one of them.
- 5D [Susan of “The Partridge Family”] DEY A gimme; as one of seven kids, I watched every stupid or sappy show about large families that there was.
- 41D [Trumpeter Herb of the Tijuana Brass] ALPERT Another gimme. His records were some of the few non-classical albums my dad owned.
70D [Candies in some volcanic science demos] MENTOS It’s been a long time since I’ve been to an elementary school science fair. The classic volcano demonstration when I was a kid involved vinegar and baking soda.- 83D [Shape of a British pound] DODECAGON That’s 12 sides.
- 88D [Pork pie producers] HATTERS Nice misdirection.
- 123D [Ikura, on a sushi menu] ROE Not EEL.
Rafael Musa’s Los Angeles Times crossword — Stella’s write-up
Los Angeles Times 12/20/25 by Rafael Musa
This puzzle has so much good stuff in it that I’m not even mad at it for being too easy. Maybe a little mad, because I genuinely felt while I was solving it that I was going to want it to last longer. The fill was so lively — MANDOPOP! DON’T JINX IT! JUNETEENTH! And some great clues too:
- 58A [Thing that’s handled badly] is MISNOMER. Probably my favorite clue in the puzzle, because I did think “handled” was an active verb at first.
- 61A [New money?] is CRYPTO. LOL.
- 20D [Game company that released a 50th anniversary bundle in 2022] is ATARI. Why isn’t I’M OLD also in this puzzle?
- 27D [Old stock market] is RESALE SHOP. Love the misdirect here.
- 30D [Dream realm?] is WNBA, another nice misdirect that refers to the Atlanta Dream.
- 48D [PIN-points] is a clue that I don’t think I’ve ever seen before for ATMS, and yet now that I’ve seen it, it feels like it must always have been there. (That’s a compliment.)
Really fun solve.
David P. Williams’s Newsday crossword, “Saturday Stumper”–Amy’s recap
Newsday crossword solution, 12/20/25, “Saturday Stumper” – Williams
I meant to write this up in the morning, but I woke up at 11 am and, well, the sun has set now. (December! It’s tough in this hemisphere, the sun setting by 4:30.) Sorry, pannonica, not to fill in at a more respectable time.
Overall, the puzzle was more pliable than most Stumpers. I got through it in a reasonable time without much frustration and with no grid checks. Calling that a win.
Herewith, clues and answers of note:
- 10a. [It’s attractive], “PSST.” It does draw attention.
- 15a. [One on a receiving line], HEIR. I want it to be “in” rather than “on.” Also, slightly bothersome that “one” repeats part of UP ONE immediately preceding.
- 17a. [Pyramid schemes], TETRAHEDRA. Cute. (Note: When I use the word “cute,” it’s a positive, not an insult.)
- 26a. [Give it up], SPILL THE BEANS. Might have been easier with quotes and an exclamation point in the clue, yeah?
- 31a. [Animale dello zodiaco], LEONE. For us Leos.
- 32a. [Gig for a guru], TUTOR. What gurus are tutoring? And what subject?
- 42a. [Capital of Algeria] had me wondering if they’d chosen a new capital. Was it somehow SOFIA? Nope, just the SOFT A at the start of “Algeria.”
- 50a. [Rapdom’s close relative], FATHA. Huh? I don’t know a ton of rap, but I haven’t encountered “fatha” outside of Earl “Fatha” Hines, jazz pianist and bandleader. Who can provide an example?
- 51a. [Cutting-edge powder source], DIAMOND. I think diamond bits are used on the edges of some power saws or cutting tools.
- 56a. [Reason for boxing], MOVE. As in putting your stuff in boxes for the movers to load onto trucks.
- 63a. [Erstwhile M&Ms], TANS. Replaced by the originally canceled blue when a less toxic blue dye was found.
- 5d. [Landfill lander], SEAGULL. Not a piece of earth-moving equipment, just a scavenger bird.
- 6d. [Your bag], WHEELHOUSE. This a definition of the word, things you know or like, that I learned from crossword discourse. It’s also a train thing (a usage I learned when my nephew was a kid who loved Thomas the Tank Engine).
- 10d. [Word from the Spanish for “little silver”], PLATINUM. Plata, as in the Montana motto Oro y Plata, gold and silver. Never noticed the connection.
- 12d. [What might make you smart], STING. Ow! That smarts!
- 24d. [Going-away party], SENDOFF. Surprisingly straightforward clue with few possible answers.
- 29d. [Brits who get gin on their birthday], BEEFEATERS. “Happy birthday! Hope you like booze.”
- 33d. [Trail in good order], ODOR. Here’s this week’s quasi-cryptic clue, hidden word.
- 34d. [Turns quickly], REVS. Turning the engine/motor, I guess. Wanted ZIGS or ZAGS.
- 43d. [Luger, for instance], ATHLETE. Took me till just now to make sense of this! An athlete on the luge, not big-L, hard-G Luger. Not a steakhouse name, gunmaker name.
- 52d. [No nickname for a scriptural slinger], DAVE. What the heck? OK, David and Goliath, slingshot in the Bible. What’s with “No nickname,” exactly?
- 54d. [Outside shot?], MISS. As in, outside the rim, outside the goal.
- 58d. [Suit tag trio], REG. A 3-letter shortened word doesn’t scream “trio” the way S-M-L does. Not a fan of this clue.
4.25 stars for me. More of a fun challenge than a frustrating one.
Puzzle: NYT; Rating: 3.5 stars
That was absurdly easy for me. I was out in 6:21 for a new Saturday PB, and it would have been even lower if I didn’t have “Geneva” instead of GENEVE or “wrap party” instead of CASTPARTY. Clean, smooth fill, but I thought the cluing was too gentle for Saturday.
Puzzle: NYT; Rating: 4 stars
Yeah, the puzzle is easy, maybe too easy. I’m not good at judging that though, as I probably DNF’d more Saturdays than I finished them.
And also I have to use all crossings for STILL MOOING and then spend some more time figuring out how the clue fits.
I dine often with a cousin who loves her steak rare, and I think she’s said it could be still mooing and she’d like it.
Puzzle: NYT; Rating: 4 stars
On the easy side but I like it. Makes me feel like I still have my marbles (well, some anyhow).
Didn’t know CHINSTRAP. Loved the clue for SOLAR.
I too needed all the crossings for STILL MOOING, but it totally cracked me up. It feels like the quintessential Americanism.
Puzzle: NYT; Rating: 3.5 stars
A missed opportunity to clue these way too cute birds: https://youtu.be/xlUm-0TSjNA?si=Q33CbxQ2CxVM3Mat
NYT: There were a couple of new things for me – ERRAND BOY as “Dogsbody” and SAD TROMBONE. My son wore a CHINSTRAP for a while (not sad to see it gone), so that was easy. I have a buddy who likes his steak STILL MOOING, so that was easy, too.
A fairly straightforward puzzle, but fun.
a colleague and I like to trade bad puns from time to time – and whenever one of us comes up with a truly awful one, the other invokes the sad trombone
Puzzle: NYT; Rating: 4 stars
Every time I solve a Friday or Saturday quickly, I feel really clever until I come to this website and see that it was actually just on the easier side. It’s all good though, a lot of experts around here! I had a lot of fun with this one.
It’s worse to find it tough and then have people announce they got a personal best solving time!
Almost as bad to go back and find that it took me over 4x as long to solve the constructor’s previous Saturday. What was my problem that day?
Yep, pretty east Saturday NYT. I had MOON before MOTH and FREE before FIRE, but those were the only stumbles.
I had a math teacher way back when who had a CHINSTRAP beard. So does Toby’s husband Ian in Mary Worth. I immediately think less of any person with such silly facial hair.
Stumper: Looks like it’s Amy today, but she’s still working on it. It took us a while, too, and it took the two of us. Other than that, it wasn’t too bad. My husband started us off by getting the upper right corner, although he had “platelet” for 10D, which didn’t help for the rest of that section for a while. I then got “Erie” for 35A, which enabled me to get a lot of the rest of the puzzle. However, it took my husband to get “praise” for 9D and finish it. Still don’t understand: 40A, how is “dente” a “processor”? and 58D, the only thing I can think of re: “trio” is that “reg” is a three-letter abbreviation for “regular.”
Forgot this one: Also don’t understand how an “essay” is a “reason for boxing” (56A)?
Reason for boxing…move
Ah! Got it! Thanks! Goodness knows I’ve “boxed” enough in that sense! I kept thinking about the sport.
“dente” is Italian for “tooth.” I think you switched 56A and 65A.
Yup, like in the phrase “al dente.”
Ugh! In the sense of the tooth “processes” the pasta by chewing?? UGH! Thanks! Yes, actually, I meant to put both 56A and 65A and I guess combined them, because I’m also not sure how “essay” is “words for arguments” — the only thing I can think of is that an essay expresses a point of view, which is not necessarily (to me) an argument.
This is a familiar way to think about the idea of an essay in the world of writing instruction: presenting a point of view and supporting it.
Thanks!
Puzzle: Newsday; Rating: 4.5 stars
I thought the Stumper was great. But one quarrel: 49-D, five letters, “Beethoven’s Fifth soloist.” My wife, who’s a violist, assures me that there’s no viola solo in either fifth, the symphony or the piano concerto. There’s a unison passage in the symphony for violas and cellos — the sections. It’s used for auditions, but mostly for cello auditions. But still it’s not a passage for a soloist in the symphony. I’m waiting to find out if I’ve missed something tricky in the clue.
My husband, the musician (percussion), came up with cello and viola as possibles for this. I don’t know his thought process, though, but it could have been simply based on the number of letters. When I took over, I figured that it had to be a viola based on the crosses. I tried Googleing it and came up with nothing, so your wife is probably right.
I’ll go out on a limb and say that she’s right — she knows the music, has played the Fifth Symphony, and checked both scores.
(Unless there’s some trick in the clue that I’m just not seeing.)
LA Times 21-A; RIP Rob Reiner
Puzzle: LAT; Rating: 4.5 stars
Great and inventive LAT, breezy for Saturday NYT. Not a PB on Saturday, but a solid time here. The stumper…yikes!! Very hard for me. Aaaaalmost a DNF but I stuck it out. I’m not sure i liked the stumper… not the kind of “hard but rewarding fill” i like in harder puzzles… more just hard for the sake of oblique cluing and gotcha phrasing. Meh. Rating the LAT because it was a gem.
Thanks for raving about the LAT by Rafael Musa–I hadn’t done it but sought it out. Really a great themeless!
Maybe it’s just me, but I didn’t care for a construction in the WSJ that allowed themers to have a second B, which in turn does not have to be dropped to envision the theme.