NYT Crossword Answers — June 1, 2026
The NYT-style Mini for June 1, 2026 packs a full puzzle into a tiny grid, and today's solution set spans everyday vocabulary from CAT, TOKYO, DAY, ICE. A gentle Monday-style grid to kick off June, with a fun food fill-in-the-blank at 8-Across. Because the Mini is so compact, every square does double duty — each letter belongs to both an across answer and a down answer — so a single confident entry can unlock the whole board. Today the shortest answer, CAT, is the kind of gimme that gives you crossing letters for the trickier fill, while the longest entry, CHEESE, anchors the grid and often takes a crossing or two to confirm. If you're checking your work or you got stuck on one stubborn square, the complete answer key below lists every across and down clue with its solution and a short explanation. We publish these Mini answers every day, so bookmark the archive and come back whenever a clue has you second-guessing. And if reading the answers gives you the itch to solve one yourself, our free Mini Crossword plays the same way — no subscription and no account required.
NYT Mini Crossword Answers
A gentle Monday-style grid to kick off June, with a fun food fill-in-the-blank at 8-Across.
Across
| Clue | Answer | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Feline pet | CAT | A cat is the most common small feline kept as a pet. |
| 4. Capital of Japan | TOKYO | Tokyo has been the capital of Japan since 1868. |
| 6. Opposite of night | DAY | Day is the period of daylight, the opposite of night. |
| 7. Frozen water | ICE | Ice is the solid form that water takes when frozen. |
| 8. Mac and ___ | CHEESE | Macaroni and cheese is a classic comfort dish. |
Down
| Clue | Answer | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Yellow taxi city, for short | NYC | NYC is the common abbreviation for New York City. |
| 2. Applaud | CLAP | To clap is to applaud by striking the hands together. |
| 3. Curved fruit | BANANA | A banana is a long, curved yellow fruit. |
| 4. Hot beverage with leaves | TEA | Tea is brewed by steeping leaves in hot water. |
| 5. Sworn promise | OATH | An oath is a solemn sworn promise. |
Every answer explained
CAT
Clue: Feline pet
A cat is the most common small feline kept as a pet. As a 3-letter word with 1 vowel, CAT is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
TOKYO
Clue: Capital of Japan
Tokyo has been the capital of Japan since 1868. As a 5-letter word with 2 vowels, TOKYO is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
DAY
Clue: Opposite of night
Day is the period of daylight, the opposite of night. As a 3-letter word with 1 vowel, DAY is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
ICE
Clue: Frozen water
Ice is the solid form that water takes when frozen. As a 3-letter word with 2 vowels, ICE is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
CHEESE
Clue: Mac and ___
Macaroni and cheese is a classic comfort dish. As a 6-letter word with 3 vowels, CHEESE is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
NYC
Clue: Yellow taxi city, for short
NYC is the common abbreviation for New York City. As a 3-letter word with 0 vowels, NYC is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
CLAP
Clue: Applaud
To clap is to applaud by striking the hands together. As a 4-letter word with 1 vowel, CLAP is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
BANANA
Clue: Curved fruit
A banana is a long, curved yellow fruit. As a 6-letter word with 3 vowels, BANANA is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
TEA
Clue: Hot beverage with leaves
Tea is brewed by steeping leaves in hot water. As a 3-letter word with 2 vowels, TEA is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
OATH
Clue: Sworn promise
An oath is a solemn sworn promise. As a 4-letter word with 2 vowels, OATH is a crossword-friendly entry — its letters interlock easily, which is why it turns up in grids so often.
NYT Daily Crossword Answers
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Explore clues from this puzzle
Tips for solving
- 1Start with the fill-in-the-blank and short (3-letter) clues — they're usually the fastest points and hand you crossing letters for everything else.
- 2Work outward from your most confident answer instead of top-to-bottom; in a Mini, one solid entry unlocks four or five neighbors.
- 3If a clue ends in a question mark, expect wordplay or a pun rather than a literal definition.
- 4Plural clues almost always mean the answer ends in S — pencil that last letter in early.
- 5When two answers seem possible, let the crossing clue break the tie rather than guessing.