Zen riddle

Latest answer — October 24, 2025

64 Across

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NYT Crossword

This clue's Friday, October 24, 2025 appearance

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Across

  1. 1Apple product
  2. 6Where the monster and Frankenstein cross paths, in "Frankenstein"
  3. 10It helps with server loads
  4. 14Draw forth
  5. 15Opener for an aerial act
  6. 17Fictional sidekick on a donkey
  7. 18Synthetic oil producer?
  8. 19Settings for a mixer
  9. 21Silly ones
  10. 22Complimentary words?
  11. 24Key of "Spring" in Vivaldi's "Four Seasons": Abbr.
  12. 28About 9% of the earth's total surface area
  13. 29Site once promoted with the slogan "A place for friends"
  14. 31Track unit
  15. 34Modern device with no filter, informally
  16. 36Sidesteps
  17. 37Snarky reply to a question that starts "Can I ...?"
  18. 40Sight you can hardly believe
  19. 41Thai money
  20. 42Returns home?
  21. 43Spread followers
  22. 45Film director Nicolas
  23. 47Bounce
  24. 48Groups of assistants in some old offices
  25. 53Number discovered in the 1500s
  26. 55Makeshift arrangement
  27. 56Flag-waving, say
  28. 60Clarence ___, "The Wire" mayor
  29. 61Bobblehead, e.g.
  30. 62Ezra who co-founded Vox
  31. 63Made out
  32. 64Zen riddle
  33. 65"What a shame"

Down

  1. 1One side of a consumer "war"
  2. 2Not put up resistance, say
  3. 3Characters in "The Lord of the Rings"
  4. 4Condition formally known as atopic dermatitis
  5. 5Starting line at a starting line
  6. 6Mental health org.
  7. 7Word with extra or living
  8. 8Spinning ring, informally?
  9. 9Plan B, for seniors
  10. 10It's on the right in the second row
  11. 11Throw, maybe
  12. 12Bolted some nuts down
  13. 13"___ Blues" (Beatles song)
  14. 16Derivative of sin
  15. 20Dismayed reaction to a tag
  16. 23Contents of some sheets
  17. 25"Bloody" queen
  18. 26Job that requires a lot of memorization
  19. 27Figure in Michelangelo's "The Last Judgment"
  20. 30Locales with many banks
  21. 31Kind of bar that's hard to pass
  22. 32It comes with a parting of the ways
  23. 33Houston and New Orleans
  24. 35Hunk
  25. 38Ramble away
  26. 39Sound the alarm
  27. 44Chest: Prefix
  28. 46Break from the group, say
  29. 49Actress Alexander of "Get Out"
  30. 50"No doubt!"
  31. 51Saint ___ (Caribbean isle)
  32. 52Lay out
  33. 54Small songbird
  34. 56Scoreboard tally: Abbr.
  35. 57It's good for tricks
  36. 58Not just a
  37. 59The 1900s, e.g.: Abbr.

The answer to “Zen riddle” in the New York Times crossword is KOAN — a 4-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on October 24, 2025, a Friday puzzle, at 64-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.

“Zen riddle” answer

KOAN (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 KOAN.

Why the answer is KOAN

KOAN is the 4-letter solution that fits "Zen riddle" in the NYT Crossword crossword on October 24, 2025 (64-Across). Use the letter tiles above if you'd rather reveal it one letter at a time.

What does KOAN mean?

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

(noun)

  • a paradoxical anecdote or riddle without a solution, used in Zen Buddhism to demonstrate the inadequacy of logical reasoning and provoke enlightenment

When else has “Zen riddle” 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.

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

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Zen riddle”?

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

How many letters is the answer to “Zen riddle”?

4 letters: KOAN.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the New York Times crossword on October 24, 2025 (a Friday puzzle), at 64-Across.

Can “Zen riddle” 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 October 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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