USA Today Crossword

April 9, 2026

Brain Callahan

 

The first three clues below have something in common that is hinted at by the fourth clue. Can you determine what it is?

 

1. BEEF STROGANOFF

2. FEATS OF STRENGTH

3. GOES FOR THE GOLD

4. Classic New Orleans dessert

 

Answer to Clue 4:

BANANAS FOSTER

 

Answer to Clues 1-3:

 

The letters spelling FOSTER are scrambled (bananas) - but in consecutive order - in each of the clues:

 

1. beEF STROganoff

2. feats OF STREngth

3. goES FOR The gold 

RIDDLES

1. What regularly changes shape yet remains a sphere?

2. What do you call a vehicle that takes cats and dogs to the emergency vet, but isn't happy about it?

3. William Tell and his son belonged to a bowling league. What was the name of the league?

4. An eight-letter bird and an eight-letter dog have names that differ by only a single letter. Can you name them?

5. What is unusual about the two-letter words in this sentence:

    Ma and pa told me I'd better not get in trouble - or else!  

 

6. Nets divide tennis courts.

    ________divide ________ courts.

 

Answers:

 

1. The moon

2. A petulance

3. Don't ask for whom the Tells bowl.

4. Cockatoo and cockapoo

5. All the two-letter words are U.S. state abbreviations.

6. Bars divide law courts.*

 

*The partition between the plaintiff and defendant and the judge's bench is called a bar. To become a lawyer, you must "pass the bar".

 

Credits: 

2: The Enigma

     March, 2026

     JET

3: The Enigma

     March, 2026

     Author Unknown 

      

QUOTES CCLXVI

We must say that there as many squares as there are numbers.

Galileo Galilei

 

The internet is becoming the town square for the global village of tomorrow.

Bill Gates 

 

If your opinions never evolve, you're either not paying attention or not genuinely interested.

John McWhorter 

 

The world is a king, and like a king, desires flattery in return for favor. But true art is selfish and perverse - it will not submit to the mold of flattery.

Ludwig van Beethoven

 

True love ennobles and dignifies the material labors of life; and homely services rendered for love's sake have in them a poetry that is immortal.

Author Unknown

 

Manners are the sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter what fork you use.

Emily Post

 

If only I had known that one day my differences would be an asset, then my early life would have been much easier.

Bette Midler

 

The road to wisdom? 

Well it's plain

And simple to express:

Err

And err

And err again

But less

And less

And less.

Piet Hein

 

Indifference is more dangerous than hatred, as it serves as the friend of the enemy and denies humanity to the victim.

Eli Wiesel 

 

 

1.  The same four letters, in the same order, will complete the words below:

_ _ _ _ E

_ _ _ _ K

_ _ _ _ M

_ _ _ _ Y

 

2. The same three letters, in the same order, will complete the words below.

 

SO _ _ _ NO

AP _ _ _ ISE

DE _ _ _ VED

 

Answers:

 

1. The letters are STOR:

    STORE 

    STORK

    STORM

    STORY

 

2. The letters are PRA:

    SOPRANO

    APPRAISE

    DEPRAVED 

  

 

INSERT-A-WORD LXI

Insert a word from the right-hand column into one of the words in the left-hand column to make a longer word.

1. LATE                   OWL

2. SET                      LAVE

3. OPAL                   ART

4. FLY                      YET

5. LAND                  TIC

6. SPAN                   AIR

7. SLY                      ODD

8. BEE                      ORE

9. SHY                      YEN

10. ALE                    CUR

11. COME                 FOR

12. CANE                 POST

13. PAR                     PUT

14. SEE                     PIN  

 

Answers: 

 

1. LA YET TE - LAYETTE

2. S PIN ET - SPINET

3. OP TIC AL - OPTICAL

4. F AIR LY - FAIRLY

5. L OWL AND - LOWLAND

6. SP ART AN - SPARTAN

7. S ORE LY - SORELY

8. BE FOR E - BEFORE

9. SH ODD Y - SHODDY

10. A POST LE - APOSTLE

11. COM PUT E - COMPUTE

12. CA YEN NE - CAYENNE

13. PA LAVE R - PALAVER

14. SE CUR E - SECURE  

NY Times Crossword

April 1, 2026

Jess Shulman and Amie Walker 

The first four clues below have something in common that is hinted at by the fifth clue. Can you determine what it is? HINT: The order of the clues is important.

1. QUICK START

2. YOUNG AT HEART

3. SECOND IN LINE

4. PAY UP FRONT

5. Witty remark 

 

Second Hint:

Take the clues literally. 

 

Answers:

 

1. Q

2. U

3. I

4. P - - - QUIP   

  

DOUBLE DUTY CCC

Fill in the two missing letters in the clues below to complete the  four-letter word beginning on the left and to begin the four-letter word ending on the right. The missing letter pairs, read downward, will spell a ten-letter word.

1. ME _ _ AS

2. UN _ _ UT

3. SA _ _ NE

4. MO _ _ IN

5. LE _ _ GO

 

Answers:

 

1. meALas

2. unTOut

3. saGEne

4. moTHin

5. leERgo  - - - ALTOGETHER

 

Credit:

BRAINGLE