Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Clues And Answers For Monday, August 18th

I still find it kind of funny that the Sunday Mini Crossword kicks off halfway through Saturday. I guess it’s because the Saturday edition is even more challenging if we have less time to complete it. It’s a race against the clock! The Sunday edition is loads easier, but just because there are fewer words to solve doesn’t mean they can’t be tricky.

If you’re looking to end your fun in the sun with some good TV shows or movies, be sure to check out my weekend streaming guide with all the best current streaming options and theatrical releases. Let me know what you’re watching, too! I’m always looking for recommendations.

Looking for yesterday’s NYT Mini Crossword? Check out our hints and answers right here.

The NYT Mini is a smaller, quicker, more digestible, bite-sized version of the larger and more challenging NYT Crossword, and unlike its larger sibling, it’s free-to-play without a subscription to The New York Times. You can play it on the web or the app, though you’ll need the app to tackle the archive.

Spoilers ahead!


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How To Solve Today’s Mini Crossword

Hints and Clues

We’ll start with some extra hints and clues for today’s Mini Crossword, then move on to the first letter of each word and finally the answers below that. Buckle up!

Across

1A. Fast-food chain that sells 50-piece nuggetsFried in the South.

4A. Circle above an angel’s headXbox first-person-shooter.

5A. Queen or kingPoker’s better flush.

6A. SeparatelyI can’t stand it when we’re “____”

7A. Karaoke bar accessoriesSing into them.

Down

1D. Lake craft with a palindromic nameAlso a travel website.

2D. Distress signal for a broken-down carFire in the sky.

3D. Indianapolis N.F.L. teamLittle horses.

4D. Indigenous people of ArizonaRearrange yesterday’s 6-Down.

5D. Hard-headed animalAlso a truck.


Before we get to the answers, here’s the first letter for each word in today’s Mini.

Across

1A. – K

4A. – H

5A. – R

6A. – A

7A. – M

Down

1D. – K

2D. – F

3D. – C

4D. – H

5D. – R


Okay, onto the answers! Remember, spoilers ahead!

Across

1A. Fast-food chain that sells 50-piece nuggetsKFC

4A. Circle above an angel’s headHALO

5A. Queen or kingROYAL

6A. SeparatelyAPART

7A. Karaoke bar accessoriesMIKES

Down

1D. Lake craft with a palindromic nameKAYAK

2D. Distress signal for a broken-down carFLARE

3D. Indianapolis N.F.L. teamCOLTS

4D. Indigenous people of ArizonaHOPI

5D. Hard-headed animalRAM

Not quite as quick as yesterday’s Mini, but also not too bad. My problem wasn’t with the words, it was with me being stupid. I read the wrong “Down” for 5-down and thought that was supposed to be a palindrome. RAR made no sense and didn’t fit at all. RIKES aslo has nothing to do with karaoke. Once I’d gotten that sorted, I finished the Mini in 1:11. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.

How did you do? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.

If you also play Wordle, I write guides about that as well. You can find those and all my TV guides, reviews and much more here on my blog. Thanks for reading!

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2025/08/17/todays-nyt-mini-crossword-clues-and-answers-for-monday-august-18th/