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Letter Openers

New York Times, Sunday, January 26, 2025

Author:
Rich Proulx
Editor:
Will Shortz
Blog:
Place for a white picket fence and a mom-and-pop shop
TotalDebutLatest
96/29/20171/26/2025
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
1104210
CircleScrabDebutFresh
21.645757%
Rich Proulx

This puzzle:

Rows: 21, Columns: 21 Words: 140, Blocks: 82 Missing: {Q} This is puzzle # 9 for Mr. Proulx. Sunday freshness: 31%
Notepad: Art credit for clue illustrations: Daniel Savage
Will Shortz notes:
Rich Proulx (pronounced "proo") of Berkeley, Calif., works for the Food and Nutrition Service of the U.S.D.A. This is his ninth crossword for The Times since 2017, and his first ... read more
Jim Horne notes:

Once you solve the picture clues, answers that cross through circled letters are synonyms.

The circled letters spell REBUSES.

1
T
2
G
3
I
4
F
5
I
6
N
7
C
8
A
9
S
10
T
11
A
12
K
13
E
14
M
15
A
16
A
17
M
18
M
A
D
E
19
A
T
O
A
S
T
20
R
O
S
I
E
21
I
C
E
E
22
C
L
E
A
R
A
S
M
U
D
23
A
N
Y
T
O
24
W
N
U
S
A
25
E
A
R
C
L
I
P
26
J
O
L
T
27
H
I
T
O
N
28
A
I
L
29
E
30
A
31
T
A
W
A
Y
32
A
D
E
P
T
33
A
34
R
35
D
36
E
N
C
Y
37
R
I
A
38
S
C
I
39
L
E
O
N
E
40
O
D
D
41
S
42
B
43
A
C
K
S
44
T
45
A
46
B
47
E
X
E
S
48
D
49
I
50
O
D
E
51
L
52
A
R
G
E
S
C
A
L
E
53
S
U
54
Z
A
N
N
E
55
M
I
R
R
E
N
56
S
L
A
T
57
S
58
T
A
R
E
D
A
T
59
E
E
L
60
S
E
61
W
62
K
I
R
63
T
A
S
E
R
64
W
O
65
R
66
K
G
R
O
67
U
P
68
E
69
L
E
N
A
70
R
I
O
71
O
72
S
H
73
A
N
A
74
N
O
75
B
R
A
D
A
Y
76
A
C
L
77
S
78
O
I
79
L
G
U
N
80
S
I
T
R
E
P
S
81
W
H
I
T
82
E
F
L
O
U
R
83
N
O
T
S
O
84
T
H
85
A
86
W
87
S
I
D
E
S
T
E
P
88
L
89
E
A
N
90
M
O
O
R
E
91
R
C
A
92
C
I
O
93
T
94
R
A
P
P
E
D
95
A
96
P
97
N
E
A
98
G
99
I
100
V
101
E
O
F
F
102
H
U
T
103
D
R
O
O
P
104
I
D
E
M
105
O
R
D
E
106
R
107
E
108
D
109
R
O
S
S
E
110
L
L
I
N
I
111
H
112
A
V
E
E
Y
E
S
O
113
N
114
E
P
E
E
115
A
D
O
U
T
116
S
T
E
A
L
S
U
P
O
N
117
P
S
S
T
118
D
A
M
S
119
N
E
R
D
Y
120
P
Y
R
E
© 2025, The New York Times1/26/25 ( No. 27,473 )
Across
1
'The weekend is almost here!" : TGIF
5
Pioneers of freeze-drying food : INCAS
10
Share from an illicit endeavor : TAKE
14
Polite term of address : MAAM
18
Lifted one's spirits? : MADEATOAST
20
Riveting persona of W.W. II : ROSIE
21
Frozen treat with a domed lid : ICEE
22
See 19-Down : CLEARASMUD
23
Place for a white picket fence and a mom-and-pop shop : ANYTOWNUSA
25
Aid for using Bluetooth : EARCLIP
26
Startle : JOLT
27
Flirt with : HITON
28
Feel bad : AIL
29
See 29-Down : EATAWAY
32
Highly capable : ADEPT
33
Passion : ARDENCY
37
Water feature created by rising sea levels : RIA
38
STEM part: Abbr. : SCI
39
Sierra ___ : LEONE
40
"What are the ___?" : ODDS
42
See 46-Down : BACKSTAB
47
Awkward people to butt-dial, perhaps : EXES
48
Circuit board device : DIODE
51
Vast, as an operation : LARGESCALE
53
___ Collins, author of "The Hunger Games" : SUZANNE
55
Helen of "The Queen" : MIRREN
56
Futon component : SLAT
57
Was transfixed by, in a way : STAREDAT
59
Glass ___, spaghettilike fish : EEL
60
Give a darn? : SEW
62
French aperitif : KIR
63
Weapon with wires : TASER
64
See 67-Down : WORKGROUP
68
Justice Kagan : ELENA
70
Natural feature between México y Texas : RIO
71
___Kosh B'gosh : OSH
73
TV journalist Navarro : ANA
74
Annual observance for breast cancer awareness : NOBRADAY
76
Knee parts, in brief : ACLS
78
Auto mechanic's tool : OILGUN
80
War room briefings, in military shorthand : SITREPS
81
Gold Medal offering : WHITEFLOUR
83
"Au contraire!" : NOTSO
84
Cause of puddles in early spring, say : THAW
87
See 82-Down : SIDESTEP
88
Go a little one way or the other : LEAN
90
Gordon ___, engineer with a "law" predicting a doubling of transistors on microchips every two years : MOORE
91
Record label for the Backstreet Boys : RCA
92
Tech company exec, for short : CIO
93
In a corner : TRAPPED
95
Cause of some sleep issues : APNEA
98
See 101-Down : GIVEOFF
102
"Ten-___!" : HUT
103
Show listlessness : DROOP
104
"See above," in footnotes : IDEM
105
Got online, say : ORDERED
109
"Conclave" actress Isabella : ROSSELLINI
111
See 107-Down : HAVEEYESON
114
Saber alternative : EPEE
115
Worst time for a double fault : ADOUT
116
Approaches furtively : STEALSUPON
117
"Over here!" : PSST
118
Hydroelectric projects : DAMS
119
"White & ___" (2006 Weird Al Yankovic parody) : NERDY
120
Structure that's set on fire : PYRE
Down
1
Network owned by Showtime : TMC
2
Mighty wind : GALE
3
One might start as a seed : IDEA
4
"Have no ___ of perfection — you'll never reach it": Salvador Dalí : FEAR
5
Just like that! : ITALIC
6
Without regard to privacy : NOSILY
7
Temporary residence : CAMP
8
Largest public sch. in the U.S., by enrollment : ASU
9
P.S.T. part: Abbr. : STD
10
So far : TONOW
11
Safe harbors : ASYLA
12
Poker pot : KITTY
13
Fair-hiring letters : EEO
14
Storage devices made obsolete by MP3 players : MINIDISCS
15
Sharp : ACUTE
16
"The Boy Who Cried Wolf" author : AESOP
17
Intended : MEANT
19
20
Kashmiri king : RAJA
24
Offs : WHACKS
29
30
Number two : AIDE
31
Bit : TAD
33
Public house offering : ALE
34
White House dog of the 1980s : REX
35
Helps, informally : DOESASOLID
36
Guarantee : ENSURE
38
Part of an act : SCENE
41
More crafty : SLIER
42
[Shivers] : BRR
43
Visible signs of maturity : AGESPOTS
44
Got down to business, in a way : TALKEDSHOP
45
___ Urquhart, co-host of the podcast "Morbid" : ALAINA
46
48
Many a school chaperone : DAD
49
Later : INAWHILE
50
Cognizant of : ONTO
52
Folk singer Guthrie : ARLO
54
Diddly-squat : ZERO
55
Hip-hop's ___ Thee Stallion : MEGAN
57
They're for suckers : STRAWS
58
Meditative martial art : TAICHI
61
Common word with or without an apostrophe : WERE
65
Meaty pasta sauce : RAGU
66
Ridge in metalworking : KNURL
67
U + knit : UNIT
69
Office folder? : LAPTOP
72
Vowel sound in "father" : SOFTA
75
Dude : BRO
77
Audiophile's system : STEREOSET
79
Cut (off) : LOP
80
What "fitz-" or "-ovic" mean, in names : SONOF
82
83
Innocent sort : NAIF
85
"Chances ___ …" : ARE
86
Became one : WED
89
Modern prefix with anxiety : ECO
90
Salt's companions : MATEYS
93
Theseus' need in the Labyrinth : THREAD
94
In an uncouth manner : RUDELY
95
Marketing worker, informally : ADREP
96
Credit, informally : PROPS
97
Prominent features of elephant seals : NOSES
98
Comedian Radner : GILDA
99
A perfect storm, e.g. : IDIOM
100
Planet whose day is longer than its year : VENUS
101
E + mitt : EMIT
105
Done : OVER
106
Extend one's military service : REUP
107
E + spy : ESPY
108
Hard thing to find in a house of mirrors : DOOR
110
"Wee" fellow : LAD
111
Channel with the onetime spinoff America's Store : HSN
112
Suffix with emir : ATE
113
S.F.-to-Napa dir. : NNE

Answer summary:
11 unique to this puzzle.

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