Grounds

Latest answer — December 12, 2025

5 Across

Scroll down for rest of crossword answers

NYT Crossword

This clue's Friday, December 12, 2025 appearance

Tap a square to reveal a letter.

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

Across

  1. 1Some free spots, for short
  2. 5Grounds
  3. 10Doesn't just talk
  4. 14"You're telling me!"
  5. 16Word with wet or sweat
  6. 17Conspiracy theorist's accessory
  7. 18"Don't leave me!," e.g.
  8. 1916 in a Sweet Sixteen
  9. 20Main component of a "gutbucket," a jug band instrument
  10. 22Personal records
  11. 25Padlocked fasteners
  12. 26Variety of orange named for a European city
  13. 29What blue crabs do roughly 20 times in their lifetimes
  14. 30Jobs announcement of 2010
  15. 31News feed, perhaps
  16. 35[Waaaaah!]
  17. 36Thick confection used for cake icing
  18. 37Part of a golf club
  19. 38See 5-Down
  20. 40Binary
  21. 41Succors
  22. 42Photo session workers
  23. 44Ace, e.g.
  24. 46Skater's braking method with the back foot positioned horizontally
  25. 47Relative of a craft fair
  26. 50"Duino Elegies" poet
  27. 53Saves, as a digital location
  28. 54Clichéd line from the side of a product package
  29. 58It's cool to drink
  30. 59"I haven't told you the best part ..."
  31. 60Impressively accurate pass, in football slang
  32. 61Floats
  33. 62Give a bad hand?

Down

  1. 1Stone
  2. 2Vaudeville highlight
  3. 3Pulitzer-winning journalist Applebaum
  4. 4You might pull one out for a guest
  5. 5With 38-Across, one way to sit
  6. 6Feel gross
  7. 7"Gross"
  8. 8Playwright who wrote "You see things; and you say 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say 'Why not?'"
  9. 9"Tell Mama" singer James
  10. 10Rocky road ingredient?
  11. 11Distinction for a classic underground work
  12. 12Bind
  13. 13Sticks a fork in
  14. 15Part of NOW
  15. 21"Fiddlesticks!"
  16. 23Disney princess in New Orleans
  17. 24Workshop debris
  18. 26Possible need for entry
  19. 27Each
  20. 28Colleague who might be solutions-oriented?
  21. 29Tropical plants said to bring good fortune
  22. 32"That's the truth"
  23. 33Kid's parent
  24. 34Hagfish lookalikes
  25. 36Company whose logo has a hidden arrow between its fourth and fifth letters
  26. 39Performance that isn't prerecorded
  27. 40Word from the Greek for "folded paper"
  28. 43Butcher shop buys
  29. 44Pleasing to the palate
  30. 45"Buss It" rapper ___ Banks
  31. 48Way
  32. 49Arm of the Dept. of Labor
  33. 51Part of a cabinet
  34. 52French 101 verb
  35. 55Whitehouse in D.C., e.g.: Abbr.
  36. 56Physics unit equivalent to roughly 624 gigaelectronvolts
  37. 57Thoroughly evaluate

The answer to “Grounds” in the New York Times crossword is CAUSE — a 5-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on December 12, 2025, a Friday puzzle, at 5-Across. Other answers we've seen for this clue include REASON. 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.

“Grounds” answer

CAUSE (5 letters) — most recent; also seen as REASON

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 CAUSE.

Why the answer is CAUSE

CAUSE is the 5-letter solution that fits "Grounds" in the NYT Crossword crossword on December 12, 2025 (5-Across). Use the letter tiles above if you'd rather reveal it one letter at a time.

What does CAUSE mean?

Reading the plain dictionary sense of CAUSE is often the fastest way to see why it answers this clue.

(noun)

  • a person or thing that gives rise to an action, phenomenon, or condition
  • a principle, aim, or movement to which one is committed and which one is prepared to defend or advocate
  • a matter to be resolved in a court of law

Other answers for “Grounds”

New York Times has used this clue with more than one solution. Besides CAUSE, it has also been REASON. Every appearance we've indexed is listed below with the date it ran.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Grounds”?

The answer is CAUSE, a 5-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on December 12, 2025. Other answers for this clue include REASON.

How many letters is the answer to “Grounds”?

5 letters: CAUSE. Earlier fills for this clue have also been REASON (6).

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the New York Times crossword on December 12, 2025 (a Friday puzzle), at 5-Across. Earlier appearances: February 27, 2025 → REASON.

Can “Grounds” have a different answer?

Yes. Besides CAUSE, New York Times has also used REASON for this clue. Every date and answer is listed above.

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

The full grid for December 12, 2025 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.

Crossword Clues

Looking up a clue? Jump into today's answers and clue help from top puzzles.