Articles

  • 1 week ago | nytimes.com | Deb Amlen

    wordplay, the crossword columnJohn Kugelman lifts our spirits and a few other things with today's clever Thursday puzzle. Jump to: Today's Theme | Tricky CluesTHURSDAY PUZZLE - John Kugelman's puzzles have primarily been Sunday grids in The New York Times. This is his 11th crossword here, yet it's only his second weekday puzzle. He seems to have a good grip on the tricky Thursday shtick: A nice tug of war between the constructor and the solvers.

  • 1 month ago | nytimes.com | Deb Amlen

    wordplay, the crossword columnAdrian Johnson is quite a stacker of words. Jump to: Tricky CluesFRIDAY PUZZLE - I think those of us who have tried to construct a crossword puzzle can agree that it's not an easy task. Even the best puzzle makers run into jams. A grid might be filling like a dream and then suddenly the constructor runs into a dead end, where nothing fits.

  • 1 month ago | nytimes.com | Deb Amlen

    wordplay, the crossword columnGreg Snitkin and Glenn Davis open our solving weekend with a spirited themeless puzzle. Jump to: Tricky CluesFRIDAY PUZZLE - This is Greg Snitkin's third crossword in The New York Times, and Glenn Davis's debut. Mr. Snitkin and Mr. Davis offer a puzzle packed with lively entries that gave me a real run for my money. Their long, stacked entries are all fairly crunchy, especially at 1A, which is also a debut. One thing that solvers may notice is a dupe in the grid.

  • 1 month ago | nytimes.com | Deb Amlen

    Jump to: Today's Theme | Tricky CluesTHURSDAY PUZZLE - Ilan and Shimon Kolkowitz - brothers who are, respectively, a doctor and a physics professor - are men of science. They have been trained to approach problems broadly at first, as expressed in the medical aphorism "When you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras."I mention this because the Kolkowitz brothers are making their New York Times Crossword debut today with an entertaining puzzle that teaches a similar lesson.

  • 2 months ago | nytimes.com | Deb Amlen

    wordplay, the crossword columnHanh Huynh's puzzle gives main-character energy. Jump to: Today's Theme | Tricky CluesTHURSDAY PUZZLE - I like Hanh Huynh's crosswords. Today's puzzle is his fifth in The New York Times, and all you have to do is go back to his past grids to see how much he enjoys playing with words. His debut puzzle, from 2023, is my favorite, but I think you'll like this one, too.