NYT Mini Crossword Answers, Hints For Nov 17, 2025

The New York Times Mini Crossword is a delightful daily mental stretch, offering a bite-sized challenge that’s perfect for a coffee break or a quick commute. While usually a breeze, some days, the clues just hit differently, making you pause and think a little longer than expected. If you found yourself scratching your head over a few of the entries in today’s puzzle, you are certainly not alone.

For Thursday, November 13th, the grid presented a few clever wordplays and common crossword staples that might have tripped up even seasoned solvers. Whether you’re aiming to keep your streak alive or just want to see the completed grid, we’ve got the full breakdown of the clues and their solutions right here.

And if you’re a fan of the full suite of NYT games, don’t forget to check out our daily guides for Wordle, Connections, and Strands to keep your puzzle-solving momentum going strong.

NYT Mini Crossword Answers – Across and Down

Stuck on today’s NYT Mini Crossword? Here’s a quick, easy breakdown of all the Across and Down clues with their answers, plus a bit of context to help them stick in your memory.

Mini Across Clues and Answers

The Across clues generally flowed well, but one or two required a second look to lock in the correct word.

1A. Taylor Swift's ___ Tour

Answer: ERAS
This refers to Taylor Swift’s massively popular Eras Tour, celebrating different phases (or “eras”) of her music career.

5A. Counterpart of "found"

Answer: LOST
A simple opposite pair: if something isn’t found, it’s lost.

6A. Difficult thing to achieve in a noisy office

Answer: FOCUS
In a loud, distracting environment, focus is exactly what’s hard to maintain.

8A. India's prime minister since 2014

Answer: MODI
This points to Narendra Modi, who has served as India’s prime minister since 2014.

9A. River of the underworld, in Greek myth

Answer: STYX
In Greek mythology, the River Styx separates the world of the living from the underworld.

Mini Down Clues and Answers

The Down clues offered a mix of body parts, game components, and common verbs. The intersecting letters from the Across answers should have provided enough help to fill these in.

1D. Will Ferrell holiday movie

Answer: ELF
This is the beloved Christmas movie “Elf,” starring Will Ferrell as Buddy.

2D. Buckingham Palace has 775 of these

Answer: ROOMS
London’s Buckingham Palace is famously huge, with a staggering 775 rooms.

3D. Fancy necktie

Answer: ASCOT
An ascot is a formal, often decorative necktie, typically worn with dressy attire.

4D. What's found next to the Hall and Library on a Clue board

Answer: STUDY
On the classic Clue board game, the Study is one of the rooms on the map, located near the Hall and Library.

5D. Carbon's atomic number

Answer: SIX
In the periodic table, carbon has the atomic number 6.

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers for Nov, 17. #890

Stuck on today’s NYT Connections for November 17, game #890? You’re in the right spot. Below you’ll find gentle hints first, followed by the full groups and answers once you’re ready for spoilers.

If you’re looking for more daily puzzle help, many players like to check out hints and solutions not just for Connections, but also for the NYT Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition, and Strands to keep the brain warm all day long.

About Today’s Connections Hints

Today’s puzzle has a fun mix of straightforward groups and one especially quirky purple category that asks you to notice a hidden word at the start of each phrase. It’s the kind of set that feels a bit “out there” at first, but really satisfying once you see the pattern.

If you’re having trouble sorting the words into four clean groups, don’t worry—that’s exactly what this guide is here to help with.

Four clues to nudge you in the right direction—from the easier yellow set to the often trickier purple.

A quick note about the Connections Bot

The New York Times now offers a Connections Bot, similar to the one they have for Wordle. After you finish playing, you can:

Get a numeric score
See how efficient your guesses were
Track your win rate, total puzzles solved and streaks
See how often you manage a perfect game

If you’re signed in to the Times Games section, it’s a nice way to nerd out over your progress and see how consistent your solving skills are.

Now, let’s dive into today’s NYT Connections hints and answers and start connecting the clues!
Read more Wordle hints and visit our website for daily updates.

Hints for Today’s Connections Groups

Here are light clues for each color group in today’s puzzle, in order from the typically easiest (yellow) to the trickiest (purple).

Yellow group hint: A confident way to say “yes.”
Green group hint: Things you’re not supposed to do or touch.
Blue group hint: All about basketball shots.
Purple group hint: Phrases that start with words meaning “Get lost!” or “Scram!”

Scroll slowly if you want to try solving with just hints. Everything below includes direct spoilers.

Answers for Today’s Connections Groups

Here are today’s official categories:

Yellow group: “You bet”
Green group: Forbidden
Blue group: Basketball shots
Purple group: Starting with synonyms for “scram!”

Now let’s break down which words belong where and why.

Yellow Group: “You Bet”

Category: “You bet”
These words and phrases are all spirited ways of saying “yes” or “definitely.”

ABSOLUTELY
OF COURSE
OKEY-DOKE
SURE THING

Each one works as an enthusiastic confirmation—exactly the kind of expression you might use when you agree with someone without hesitation.

Green Group: Forbidden

Category: Forbidden
This set centers on things that are not allowed or are strongly discouraged.

OFF-LIMITS
PROSCRIBED
TABOO
VERBOTEN

All four relate to rules, bans or social boundaries. Whether it’s an official restriction or an unspoken cultural rule, these words signal “don’t go there.”

Blue Group: Basketball Shots

Category: Basketball shots
Every word in this group is a type of move you can see on the court during a basketball game.

ALLEY-OOP
FADEAWAY
FINGER ROLL
SLAM DUNK

From graceful layups to high-flying finishes, this group is all about how players get the ball into the hoop in style.

Purple Group: Starting With Synonyms for “Scram!”

Category: Starting with synonyms for “scram!”
This is the clever, slightly wild purple set. Each phrase begins with a word that can mean “go away,” “get out of here” or “scram,” but in the full phrase, the meaning changes completely.

GO-GETTER
LEAVENING
SCATTERGORIES
SHOO-IN

Here’s the trick:

GO, LEAVE, SCATTER, and SHOO can all function as “get out of here” verbs.
In these full expressions, they’re part of new meanings:
- A go-getter is an ambitious, driven person.
- Leavening is what makes dough rise.
- Scattergories is a party game.
- A shoo-in is someone almost guaranteed to win.

It’s a very Connections-style twist: the link is hidden in how the words start, not in what the full phrases mean.

Final Thoughts

oday’s Connections puzzle for November 17 (#890) is a nice mix of:

Everyday expressions (“You bet” group)
Strong no-go signals (Forbidden group)
Sports terminology (Basketball shots)
A playful wordplay set (synonyms for “scram!” at the start of each phrase)

If any of the groups tripped you up, that’s totally normal. Connections is designed to stretch how you see relationships between words—from meaning and tone, to structure and hidden parts.

Keep at it, and over time you’ll get faster at spotting these patterns. And when you’re done here, you can always check out today’s Wordle, Mini Crossword, Strands, or Connections: Sports Edition to keep the streak going.

Today’s Wordle Hints, Answer for Nov, 16. #1612

Looking for today’s Wordle solution? You’re in the right place! Below, we’ve got hints, the full answer for today’s Wordle hints Answer and yesterday’s solution, along with recent answers to keep you on track. You’ll also find links to our daily coverage of the NYT Mini Crossword, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition, and Strands puzzles.

Get more help Crack Wordle in Seconds with Expert Hints