Word before food or mate

Latest answer — September 22, 2025

55 Down

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NYT Crossword

This clue's Monday, September 22, 2025 appearance

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Across

  1. 1School stat like 3.5 or 4.0
  2. 4Yeast, mold and mushrooms
  3. 9Desert plants with needles
  4. 14Tree with "American" and "slippery" varieties
  5. 15Alaskan native
  6. 16Synthetic fabric once common in sweaters
  7. 17Born as
  8. 18Wine choice in southern France
  9. 20Bonkers
  10. 22Compete (for)
  11. 23Changes with the times
  12. 24Females that may be fleeced
  13. 26Cinema showing
  14. 27Canadian P.M. who is the son of another Canadian P.M.
  15. 32Cyber Monday sector
  16. 33Put to work
  17. 34Ask God (for)
  18. 37Identify in a Facebook photo
  19. 38Where canines sleep
  20. 42"Du-u-ude!"
  21. 43Basketball's O'Neal, to fans
  22. 45Keanu Reeves's character in "The Matrix"
  23. 46To no ___ (ineffectively)
  24. 48Platform for Donkey Kong Country
  25. 52Ingredient in many hand lotions
  26. 53The lion's share
  27. 54Cigarette butt receptacle
  28. 57Major N.Y.C. concert venue
  29. 58Do the backstroke or breaststroke
  30. 62Chunks found in Ben & Jerry's Half Baked ice cream
  31. 65Avant-garde musical artist Yoko
  32. 66Fixed, as a piano
  33. 67"The Godfather" author Puzo
  34. 68Frequently, to a poet
  35. 69Winter coasters
  36. 70Surgical tube
  37. 71Cry from Homer ... or a phonetic hint to the ends of 18-, 27-, 48- and 62- Across

Down

  1. 1Kids these days
  2. 2"Not guilty," e.g.
  3. 3"You got that right, sister!"
  4. 4Certain evergreen
  5. 5Like some bars in gymnastics
  6. 6One who is barely seen?
  7. 7Jeer
  8. 8"How was ___ know?"
  9. 9Pamper
  10. 10Tour guide?
  11. 11Crash of thunder
  12. 12Promote enthusiastically
  13. 13"Need You Tonight" rock band
  14. 19Like speakeasies and refrigerators, at times
  15. 21Brand of cooler that shares its name with a Himalayan legend
  16. 25Opposite of tame
  17. 26Join into one
  18. 27Jacuzzi features
  19. 28Where to find the Jazz
  20. 29Long-winded tales
  21. 30Apply, as ointment
  22. 31City-related
  23. 35Desertlike
  24. 36Carefree motto, in modern lingo
  25. 39Low-scoring deadlock
  26. 40Richard of "Pretty Woman"
  27. 41Hurdles for srs.
  28. 44Sounded like a duck
  29. 47Farm docs
  30. 49Tartan patterns
  31. 50"Yeah, right"
  32. 51Bean
  33. 54Does some theater work
  34. 55Word before food or mate
  35. 56Refine, as a skill
  36. 57Castle defense
  37. 59What a whittler whittles
  38. 60Facts
  39. 61Relative of a butterfly
  40. 63Private online chats, for short
  41. 64Spicy

The answer to “Word before food or mate” in the New York Times crossword is SOUL — a 4-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on September 22, 2025, a Monday puzzle, at 55-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.

“Word before food or mate” answer

SOUL (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 SOUL.

Why the answer is SOUL

SOUL is the 4-letter solution that fits "Word before food or mate" in the NYT Crossword crossword on September 22, 2025 (55-Down). Use the letter tiles above if you'd rather reveal it one letter at a time.

What does SOUL mean?

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

(noun)

  • the spiritual or immaterial part of a human being or animal, regarded as immortal
  • emotional or intellectual energy or intensity, especially as revealed in a work of art or an artistic performance
  • soul music

When else has “Word before food or mate” 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.

September 22, 2025 (most recent) → SOUL. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Word before food or mate”?

The answer is SOUL, a 4-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on September 22, 2025.

How many letters is the answer to “Word before food or mate”?

4 letters: SOUL.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the New York Times crossword on September 22, 2025 (a Monday puzzle), at 55-Down.

Can “Word before food or mate” 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 September 22, 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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