NYT Crossword
Monday, May 18, 2026
By Rena Cohen
Tap a square to reveal a letter.
Or reveal one clue at a time with the Hint and Answer buttons below.
NYT Crossword Clues
Across
Down
Crossword clues, hints, and answers
Across
- 1. Like a game that has gone into a penalty shootout — Answer: TIED
- 5. Luxury handbag brand — Answer: PRADA
- 10. Petri dish gel — Answer: AGAR
- 14. West Coast sch. that joined the Big Ten in 2024 — Answer: UCLA
- 15. Stereotypical meal for a college student — Answer: RAMEN
- 16. "Veni, ___, vici" — Answer: VIDI
- 17. Like the Code of Hammurabi — Answer: BABYLONIAN
- 19. Enterprise rival — Answer: AVIS
- 20. Got to one's feet — Answer: AROSE
- 21. Elmer's product — Answer: GLUE
- 23. "There's a cockroach!" — Answer: EEK
- 24. Patch up some clothes, say — Answer: SEW
- 25. Pioneering hybrid car — Answer: TOYOTAPRIUS
- 29. Pouty expression — Answer: MOUE
- 30. Future atty.'s exam — Answer: LSAT. Hint: This test is a must for those aiming to attend law school! 📚
- 31. Rae who played President Barbie in "Barbie" — Answer: ISSA
- 34. Tackling of the quarterback — Answer: SACK
- 37. Nebraska's largest city — Answer: OMAHA
- 40. Governing body in the Harry Potter universe — Answer: MINISTRYOFMAGIC
- 43. Fibrous part of broccoli — Answer: STALK
- 44. Nothin' — Answer: NADA
- 45. Cool, slangily — Answer: DOPE
- 46. "___ Calm and Carry On" — Answer: KEEP
- 48. Region — Answer: AREA. Hint: A stretch of land or a particular part of a place 🌍
- 50. Gardener's tool — Answer: WEEDWHACKER
- 54. Kit ___ bar — Answer: KAT
- 57. Woodcutter's tool — Answer: AXE
- 58. Beauty queen's accessory — Answer: SASH
- 59. Garlicky condiment — Answer: AIOLI
- 61. Eye irritation — Answer: STYE. Hint: This pesky bump can make you squint! 👁️
- 63. Advice for the overambitious ... or a hint to 17-, 25-, 40- and 50-Across — Answer: STARTSMALL
- 66. ___ leches cake — Answer: TRES. Hint: This cake is a sweet treat from Latin cuisine that features three types of milk! 🍰
- 67. Oopsie — Answer: ERROR
- 68. Lotion ingredient — Answer: ALOE
- 69. Toward sunrise — Answer: EAST
- 70. "Same!" — Answer: SODOI
- 71. Stereotypically antisocial pets — Answer: CATS
Down
- 1. Large brass instruments — Answer: TUBAS
- 2. "You have my sympathy" — Answer: ICARE
- 3. Macaroni shape — Answer: ELBOW. Hint: The bent kind you’d spot in a pasta bowl or on your arm 😄
- 4. 14 of these make up a fortnight — Answer: DAYS
- 5. Con's opposite — Answer: PRO
- 6. Sprinted — Answer: RAN
- 7. Friend in Mexico — Answer: AMIGO
- 8. Gave out cards — Answer: DEALT
- 9. Zinnia or sunflower — Answer: ANNUAL
- 10. Director DuVernay — Answer: AVA. Hint: Think of the filmmaker behind “Selma” and “A Wrinkle in Time” 😊
- 11. Attempt something — Answer: GIVEITAGO
- 12. "Au revoir!" — Answer: ADIEU
- 13. Puts on the line — Answer: RISKS
- 18. Oscar winner Jared — Answer: LETO
- 22. English town famous for its salts — Answer: EPSOM
- 26. Throw out of office — Answer: OUST
- 27. Long (for) — Answer: YEARN
- 28. Holiday Inn competitor — Answer: RAMADA
- 29. Sent by post — Answer: MAILED
- 31. Writes to on WhatsApp, in brief — Answer: IMS
- 32. Puppy school command — Answer: SIT
- 33. Roll of two ones — Answer: SNAKEEYES
- 35. "Ta-ta," in a text — Answer: CYA
- 36. Camera company known for its "moments" — Answer: KODAK
- 38. With it — Answer: HIP
- 39. Unreturned serve — Answer: ACE
- 41. Distorts, as data — Answer: SKEWS
- 42. Ticket price — Answer: FARE
- 47. The "terrible twos" and the "threenager" years, for example — Answer: PHASES
- 49. Chapters of history — Answer: ERAS
- 50. Squander — Answer: WASTE
- 51. Outlandishly over the top, in modern slang — Answer: EXTRA
- 52. Houston baseballer — Answer: ASTRO
- 53. Swiss ___ (salad green) — Answer: CHARD
- 54. Marsupial often mistermed a "bear" — Answer: KOALA
- 55. Apportion — Answer: ALLOT. Hint: To distribute something among several people or groups is to do this. ⚖️
- 56. There are 100 of these in every Scrabble game — Answer: TILES
- 60. Apple desktop — Answer: IMAC
- 62. Superlative suffix — Answer: EST. Hint: Think of how you might describe the best of the best! 🏆
- 64. Down Under bounder, for short — Answer: ROO
- 65. Prefix between bi- and tetra- — Answer: TRI
The answer to “Toward sunrise” in the New York Times crossword is EAST — a 4-letter word. This clue ran in the New York Times crossword on May 18, 2026, a Monday puzzle, at 69-Across. If it's the entry standing between you and a clean grid, that's the word you need — and below you'll find why it fits, plus links to the day's other clues if more than one square is giving you trouble.
“Toward sunrise” answer
EAST (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 EAST.
Why the answer is EAST
EAST is the 4-letter solution that fits "Toward sunrise" in the NYT Crossword crossword on May 18, 2026 (69-Across). Use the letter tiles above if you'd rather reveal it one letter at a time.
When else has “Toward sunrise” 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 before, and what the answer was each time — handy if you landed here from a puzzle on another date.
May 18, 2026 (this puzzle) → EAST. We haven't indexed an earlier appearance of this exact clue yet.
More clues from the NYT Crossword on May 18, 2026
Stuck elsewhere in the grid? Here are some of the crossing and nearby clues from the same puzzle — tap any for its answer and explanation.
- Roll of two ones → SNAKEEYES
- Squander → WASTE
- Outlandishly over the top, in modern slang → EXTRA
- Superlative suffix → EST
- Lotion ingredient → ALOE
- "Same!" → SODOI
- Oopsie → ERROR
- Stereotypically antisocial pets → CATS
Want every clue in one place? The full New York Times answer list for May 18, 2026 is on that day's grid page, and today's live NYT Crossword answers are always one tap from the today page.
About the NYT Crossword
The New York Times crossword, edited by Will Shortz, is the most famous daily puzzle in the United States. It runs a 15×15 grid Monday through Saturday and a larger 21×21 grid on Sunday, and its difficulty deliberately ramps through the week: Monday is the most approachable, Saturday the toughest, with Thursday often reserved for a trick or twist like rebus squares. This page covers a Monday puzzle. A straight-definition entry is the kind of solid mid-grid answer that anchors the trickier crossings around it. Because the NYT reuses short, crossing-friendly words regularly, seeing them once makes them easier to spot next time.
Frequently asked questions
What is the answer to “Toward sunrise”?
The answer is EAST, a 4-letter word. It appeared in the New York Times crossword on May 18, 2026.
How many letters is the answer to “Toward sunrise”?
4 letters: EAST.
Where did this clue appear?
In the New York Times crossword on May 18, 2026 (a Monday puzzle), at 69-Across.
Can “Toward sunrise” 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 May 18, 2026 is on the NYT Crossword answers page, with every clue and answer from that puzzle.