Like pen smudges

Latest answer — November 24, 2025

38 Across

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NYT Crossword

This clue's Monday, November 24, 2025 appearance

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Across

  1. 1Pop music's Lady ___
  2. 5Kid
  3. 10Sandwich shop
  4. 14Nerve fiber
  5. 15Product of a grapevine?
  6. 16Company bigwig
  7. 17Opposite of surplus
  8. 18Kind of acid that is the building block for a protein
  9. 19Something you click that starts "http"
  10. 20Comfortably well-off
  11. 23Dashboard reading, for short
  12. 25Top color in a rainbow
  13. 26Pecan or pistachio
  14. 27Rub out
  15. 29What you might drive while your car is in the shop
  16. 32Cereal with "marbits" and a leprechaun mascot
  17. 35Above, poetically
  18. 38Like pen smudges
  19. 39Wall for an outdoor maze
  20. 40Italian volcano
  21. 41A white one is a wardrobe staple
  22. 42Toy that comes out of a spray can
  23. 44Horse with a spotted coat
  24. 46What The Week puts out once a week
  25. 47Result of putting two and two together
  26. 48Off-roader, in brief
  27. 50What Bart Simpson sometimes calls Lisa
  28. 51Fowl play? ... or words that can follow the starts of 20-, 32- and 42-Across
  29. 57Universal building block
  30. 58"Nuh-uh!"
  31. 59Enclose in fancy paper, say
  32. 62Root vegetable used for poi
  33. 63Playing card better known as a jack
  34. 64Classroom helper
  35. 65[I'm standing right here!]
  36. 66Went downhill or cross-country, say
  37. 67Cat call

Down

  1. 1Gallivant, with "about"
  2. 2Tool for Paul Bunyan
  3. 3Flabbergasted
  4. 4Not pro
  5. 5Dog-napping spot?
  6. 6Muggy
  7. 7"Let's do it!"
  8. 8Yearn (for)
  9. 9Casually talk about one's connections to celebrities
  10. 10Backspace, maybe
  11. 11On a plane, keep in mind that the nearest one might be behind you
  12. 12Given for a time
  13. 13Gross
  14. 21Three-point hoops shot
  15. 22Trains for a marathon, e.g.
  16. 23Ignited again
  17. 24It's plum dried out!
  18. 28"The Brain -- is wider than the ___" (Emily Dickinson poem)
  19. 29Stew server
  20. 30Bacchanalian party
  21. 31Cooking appliance with a rotating spit
  22. 33Alvin and his backup singers
  23. 34Dante divided it into nine circles
  24. 36Ho-hum feeling
  25. 37Reacts with violent anger
  26. 40Triage sites, for short
  27. 42Tater
  28. 43DVR pioneer
  29. 45Dad's noncommittal response to a kid's request
  30. 48Desert plant with many uses
  31. 49Played (with)
  32. 51What some tech companies mine
  33. 52Home of Canyonlands National Park
  34. 53Planks strengthen it
  35. 54Fall asleep, with "out"
  36. 55"The Bridge on the River ___"
  37. 56Did some laps
  38. 60Hoopla
  39. 61Place to pray

The answer to “Like pen smudges” in the New York Times crossword is INKY — a 4-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on November 24, 2025, a Monday puzzle, at 38-Across. 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.

“Like pen smudges” answer

INKY (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 INKY.

Why the answer is INKY

INKY is the 4-letter solution that fits "Like pen smudges" in the NYT Crossword crossword on November 24, 2025 (38-Across). Use the letter tiles above if you'd rather reveal it one letter at a time.

What does INKY mean?

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

(adjective)

  • as dark as ink
  • stained with ink

When else has “Like pen smudges” 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.

November 24, 2025 (most recent) → INKY. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Like pen smudges”?

The answer is INKY, a 4-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on November 24, 2025.

How many letters is the answer to “Like pen smudges”?

4 letters: INKY.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the New York Times crossword on November 24, 2025 (a Monday puzzle), at 38-Across.

Can “Like pen smudges” 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 November 24, 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.

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