Fad toy of 1996

Editorially verified for the Aug 30, 2026

111 Down

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A red Tickle Me Elmo plush toy

Clue explained

Elmo was the red Sesame Street character featured in the popular Tickle Me Elmo toy, which became a major fad in 1996. The clue refers to that toy craze rather than only to the character.

Clue type:
Pop culture

NYT Crossword

This clue's Sunday, August 30, 2026 appearance

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Or reveal one clue at a time with the Hint and Answer buttons below.

Across

  1. 1"Aladdin" villain
  2. 6"It's yours!"
  3. 10Sarcastic "Sure"
  4. 14Heat setting, in brief?
  5. 17Dutch Caribbean isle
  6. 18Explosive sound
  7. 20Lacking constraints
  8. 22MARTIN SHEEN
  9. 24LIAM NEESON
  10. 25Chef Hussain of "The Great British Bake Off" fame
  11. 26Discount Chinese e-tailer
  12. 28Jumbo shrimp
  13. 29Ben & Jerry's alternative
  14. 31Pink-slips
  15. 33NORMAN REEDUS
  16. 37GREG KINNEAR
  17. 40Conditions of equilibrium
  18. 41Historian's division
  19. 42Undying?
  20. 43Offer illegally, as tickets
  21. 45Publicly proclaim
  22. 46Scatters messily
  23. 48MORGAN FREEMAN
  24. 55Class for some recent arrivals, for short
  25. 56Kind of green
  26. 59Chemist Lilly
  27. 60Chilean poet who served as a Communist senator
  28. 61Four to two, e.g.
  29. 64Friar with a famous "razor"
  30. 68Turns on the waterworks
  31. 69Ones making periodic appearances ... or the link between the capitalized clues and their answers
  32. 732024's "Joker: ___ à Deux"
  33. 74Alfresco area
  34. 75"Everything cool between us?"
  35. 76Poorly nourished
  36. 78Fill at a fill-up
  37. 80___ card
  38. 81Rite Aid rival
  39. 84CHRISTIAN SLATER
  40. 89City on the Illinois River
  41. 92Grumpy grimace
  42. 93Discontinued Swedish cars
  43. 96Inauthentic
  44. 97"Catch-22" topic
  45. 100Join, as two metal surfaces
  46. 102ISABELLA ROSSELLINI
  47. 104KEVIN KLINE
  48. 107Erté's style, informally
  49. 108Canadian fuel brand
  50. 109All-vowel musical refrain
  51. 110Actress Falco with four Emmys
  52. 112Sugary secretion
  53. 114BEA ARTHUR
  54. 118MARLON BRANDO
  55. 122Submitted by the deadline
  56. 123B.L.T. or P.B.J., cutesily
  57. 124Musician/actress Haim
  58. 125Syllable of censure
  59. 126Instants
  60. 127High-protein bean
  61. 128Big name in truck rentals

Down

  1. 1God, to Bob Marley
  2. 2"___ you done?"
  3. 3Musical comedy that was 1968's highest-grossing film
  4. 4Caustic
  5. 5Bootlegger's concern
  6. 6Like 666, popularly
  7. 7Band that's big in Japan?
  8. 8Disoriented
  9. 9Administered, as a drug
  10. 10Potentialities
  11. 11Something found under a top
  12. 12Wriggler in a stream
  13. 13"___ fugit"
  14. 14Star's opposite
  15. 15Stout figure?
  16. 16Supreme Egyptian god
  17. 18Inuit watercraft
  18. 19Office messages
  19. 21Like some mattresses and offers
  20. 23Mineral that makes cosmetics shimmer
  21. 27Remove an identifier from, as on Instagram
  22. 29Clear
  23. 30Shoulder press targets, to trainers
  24. 32Hit a ___
  25. 34Where a flock may gather
  26. 35Beginning on
  27. 36Attach with a needle and thread
  28. 38Unused
  29. 39Extreme happiness
  30. 44Double-breasted pieces of menswear
  31. 47Trigger
  32. 49Like Scrooge McDuck
  33. 50Right-hand page of a book
  34. 51Made muffs
  35. 52John ___ Day (California commemoration)
  36. 53Citrus refreshments
  37. 54"N.Y. State of Mind" rapper
  38. 571994 Costner title role
  39. 58Diva's time to shine
  40. 61"Dune" genre
  41. 62Mary or Elizabeth
  42. 63Towering creature in "The Two Towers"
  43. 65Sound in a cornfield
  44. 66Half brother of Apollo
  45. 67Christmas presence?
  46. 69Sushi bar serving
  47. 70Jazz great Fitzgerald
  48. 71Along with "CODA" and "Argo," the only other four-letter Best Picture winner
  49. 72Give gratis
  50. 73Shakespearean shout
  51. 77That's the spirit!
  52. 79Strike defier
  53. 81Part of an intersection
  54. 82Barolos e Brunellos
  55. 83Turn someone down
  56. 85Unshared numbers
  57. 86Hostile manner, informally
  58. 87Actor and disability activist Christopher
  59. 88Like some liquors
  60. 90Org. regulating air quality
  61. 91"You sure about that?"
  62. 94Periods of 730 days
  63. 95Withdraw from a union
  64. 97Teensy amount
  65. 98Feathered fliers
  66. 99Shoe brand named for an antelope
  67. 100Hybrid tennis bottoms
  68. 101Second tries
  69. 103El Pollo ___ (chicken chain)
  70. 105Creditor's claim
  71. 106Turkish money
  72. 111Fad toy of 1996
  73. 113Snowboarder's transport
  74. 115Often-illegal turn, slangily
  75. 116Cinephile's cable choice
  76. 117Boars and bulls
  77. 119Comedian Sedaris
  78. 120I, to Augustus
  79. 121Smudge or smear, say

The answer to “Fad toy of 1996” in the New York Times crossword is ELMO — a 4-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on August 30, 2026, a Sunday puzzle, at 111-Down. Below you'll find why that fill fits, every other answer we've recorded for this clue, and links into the puzzle it came from.

“Fad toy of 1996” answer

ELMO (4 letters)

Reveal the solution one letter at a time with the tiles above if you'd rather nudge yourself toward it than see the whole word at once. Just want it outright? The answer is ELMO.

When else has “Fad toy of 1996” appeared?

New York Times reuses clues across dates, sometimes with a different answer depending on the grid. Here's where this exact clue has shown up, and what the answer was each time — handy when you're checking whether today's fill is the only one.

August 30, 2026 (most recent) → ELMO. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Fad toy of 1996”?

The answer is ELMO, a 4-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on August 30, 2026.

How many letters is the answer to “Fad toy of 1996”?

4 letters: ELMO.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the New York Times crossword on August 30, 2026 (a Sunday puzzle), at 111-Down.

Can “Fad toy of 1996” have a different answer?

Yes — New York Times sometimes reuses a clue with a different solution to fit the grid. The answers we've recorded for each date it appeared are listed above when available.

Where can I find the rest of this day's NYT Crossword answers?

The full grid for August 30, 2026 is on the NYT Crossword answers page, with every clue and answer from that puzzle.

New York Times Crossword is published by The New York Times; WordHint is an independent site and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the publisher.

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