The longer they are, the harder they'll be to beat

Latest answer — August 22, 2026

51 Down

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A betting display showing different sports odds, including a long-shot price.

Clue explained

The longer the ODDS against a competitor, the less likely that competitor is to win, making it harder to beat those odds. ODDS is plural because betting odds are conventionally expressed as a pair or ratio.

Clue type:
Pun or wordplay

NYT Crossword

This clue's Saturday, August 22, 2026 appearance

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Across

  1. 1Dish such as Germany's hasenpfeffer
  2. 11Set of 24 for a box jellyfish
  3. 15"Hello?" follower
  4. 16Straight-up
  5. 17Beset by impossible circumstances
  6. 18___ noche (tonight, in Spanish)
  7. 19"Let's talk about it afterward"
  8. 20From scratch
  9. 21Haul
  10. 22Convinced of
  11. 24Benjamin Franklin invention of the 1780s
  12. 29Hardly a luxury
  13. 30Fellow fellows
  14. 31Net alternative
  15. 34Mideast shrub with leaves that are chewed as a stimulant
  16. 35It includes a series of stations
  17. 38"Lemme think ..."
  18. 39Irreverence, of a sort
  19. 42Name shared by the locales of University of South Carolina and the University of Missouri
  20. 45What might wind up in your mattress?
  21. 47Refrain from foul language, say
  22. 48Follow around
  23. 50Portal released concurrently with Windows 95
  24. 51Many a guest writer's piece
  25. 52Genetically rare feline that represents autumn in Chinese astronomy
  26. 58Tied up with?
  27. 59It's commonly made upside down
  28. 60___ Lydic of "The Daily Show"
  29. 61"This is a travesty!"
  30. 62Acknowledged
  31. 63"Relax, it'll be fine"

Down

  1. 1"Into each life some ___ must fall": Longfellow
  2. 2Common word in Latin dating
  3. 3Tournament passes?
  4. 4Analytical graphic that divides data into quartiles
  5. 5Having communication
  6. 6She played Sandy Lester in "Tootsie"
  7. 7Author Silverstein
  8. 8"As I see it ..."
  9. 9Many members of Kuwait's al-Sabah royal line
  10. 10Crisco competitor
  11. 11Volume control device?
  12. 12"Absolutely, positively!"
  13. 13Down the hatch, perhaps
  14. 14Popular topping for fish tacos
  15. 23Segment
  16. 24Smoking events, for short
  17. 25Major exporter of pistachios
  18. 26Tidbits of Greek culture?
  19. 27Francis's successor
  20. 28Dipped (out)
  21. 32Icebreaker, e.g.
  22. 33Iconic hairstyle of Jane Fonda and Stevie Nicks
  23. 36Support while "en pointe"
  24. 37I, O, U and Y, but not A or E
  25. 40Success in another's field, say
  26. 41Engage in tomfoolery
  27. 43Arriviste
  28. 44Subcompact vehicle
  29. 46Contract winner, typically
  30. 48Binge
  31. 49Maker of the Hacky Sack and Hula-Hoop
  32. 51The longer they are, the harder they'll be to beat
  33. 53Part of
  34. 54Lacking slack
  35. 55Greenish plum variety
  36. 56Barely makes (out)
  37. 57Wine list header

The answer to “The longer they are, the harder they'll be to beat” in the New York Times crossword is ODDS — a 4-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on August 22, 2026, a Saturday puzzle, at 51-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.

“The longer they are, the harder they'll be to beat” answer

ODDS (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 ODDS.

What does ODDS mean?

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

(noun)

  • the ratio between the amounts staked by the parties to a bet, based on the expected probability either way

When else has “The longer they are, the harder they'll be to beat” 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 22, 2026 (most recent) → ODDS. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “The longer they are, the harder they'll be to beat”?

The answer is ODDS, a 4-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on August 22, 2026.

How many letters is the answer to “The longer they are, the harder they'll be to beat”?

4 letters: ODDS.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the New York Times crossword on August 22, 2026 (a Saturday puzzle), at 51-Down.

Can “The longer they are, the harder they'll be to beat” 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 22, 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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