NY Times Crossword
January 19, 2016
Byron Walden

The clues below can be answered with two-word phrases which will have something in common.

1. Criticized nigglingly
2. Roosted on
3. Struggled to make progress
4. Proceeded without trying very hard

Answers:

1. Carped about
2. Perched atop
3. Floundered around
4. Skated along

(The first words of each answer name a type of fish.)