NYT Mini Crossword Hints for November 27, 2025
Each clue gets a first letter, a wordplay nudge and the answer. Revealed answers fill the grid.
Across
1A Enjoyed a Thanksgiving meal (7)
8A Back half of a GOAT? (7)
9A Sudden urge (7)
10A Santa's landing place (4)
11A Abstain from eating (4)
15A Tough guy (7)
18A Ready to use without further assembly (7)
19A Some pieces of [circled letters] at the Thanksgiving table (5)
Down
1D Inside the foul line, in baseball (4)
2D Furry monster with a falsetto (4)
3D Pet food brand (4)
4D Thanksgiving side dish that can fill the [circled letters] (8)
5D Shop ___ you drop (3)
6D M M M M (3)
7D Billy ___ Williams, actor who played Lando Calrissian in "Star Wars" (3)
12D Requests (4)
13D "Get what I'm saying?" (3)
14D Give it a go (3)
15D "I should mention ...," for short (3)
16D N.B.A. power forward ___ Hachimura (3)
17D Large coffee dispenser (3)
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Mini-sized tactics
In a 5×5, every across answer crosses every down answer, so one sure word gives you a letter in five others. Start with fill-in-the-blank clues and short, concrete nouns; leave question-mark clues, which signal wordplay, until you have crossings.
A question mark at the end of a clue is the constructor telling you not to read it literally. Abbreviations in the clue (“Org.”, “Abbr.”) mean the answer is abbreviated too.
Questions
When is the new Mini Crossword published?
Weekday Minis appear at 10 p.m. Eastern the night before; weekend Minis appear at 6 p.m. Eastern. This page loads the Mini for your device’s date.
Is the Mini Crossword free?
Yes, the daily Mini is free to play on the NYT Games app and website. The Mini archive needs a subscription.
Why is Saturday’s Mini bigger?
Saturday Minis are often larger than 5×5, sometimes 7×7, and a bit harder. The grid on this page adapts to whatever size the puzzle is.
What’s a good Mini time?
Many regulars solve in under a minute. Around two minutes is a solid everyday time; hints only affect your pride, not the NYT timer.