NYT Crossword Answers — August 16, 2026
The NYT-style Mini for August 16, 2026 packs a full puzzle into a tiny grid, and today's solution set spans everyday vocabulary from BYOB, BRAVO, OOHED, STORY. Today's mini is straightforward with no overarching theme, featuring a mix of social, business, and wordplay clues. 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, BYOB, is the kind of gimme that gives you crossing letters for the trickier fill, while the longest entry, BRAVO, 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
Today's mini is straightforward with no overarching theme, featuring a mix of social, business, and wordplay clues.
Across
| Clue | Answer | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| 1. [Guests must provide drinks] | BYOB | BYOB is an acronym for 'bring your own bottle' or 'bring your own booze,' fitting guests providing drinks. |
| 5. "A hearty congratulations!" | BRAVO | BRAVO is an exclamation of approval or congratulations, fitting 'a hearty congratulations.' |
| 6. ___ and aahed | OOHED | OOHED is the past tense of 'ooh,' as in saying 'ooh' and 'aah' in wonder. |
| 7. Part of a skyscraper or Snapchat feed | STORY | STORY can mean a level of a building or a post on Snapchat, both part of a skyscraper or feed. |
| 8. Goal-scoring attempt | SHOT | SHOT is a term for an attempt to score in sports like soccer or basketball. |
Down
| Clue | Answer | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Soup base | BROTH | BROTH is a liquid soup base, often made from simmering meat or vegetables. |
| 2. Internet giant with a purple logo | YAHOO | YAHOO is a major internet company whose logo is indeed purple. |
| 3. In-your-face | OVERT | OVERT means done openly or publicly, so it's in-your-face in the sense of not hidden. |
| 4. Word before "language" or "lotion" | BODY | BODY precedes 'language' (nonverbal communication) and 'lotion' (skin moisturizer). |
| 5. Person to whom you might say "I'll have it on your desk tomorrow" | BOSS | BOSS is the person you'd report to and often the one to whom you promise work by the next day. |
Every answer explained
BYOB
Clue: [Guests must provide drinks]
BYOB is an acronym for 'bring your own bottle' or 'bring your own booze,' fitting guests providing drinks. BYOB is a tidy 4-letter fill (1 vowel); constructors like it because it plays well in both directions.
BRAVO
Clue: "A hearty congratulations!"
BRAVO is an exclamation of approval or congratulations, fitting 'a hearty congratulations.' As a 5-letter word with 2 vowels, BRAVO interlocks easily with crossing entries — one reason it turns up in grids so often.
OOHED
Clue: ___ and aahed
OOHED is the past tense of 'ooh,' as in saying 'ooh' and 'aah' in wonder. With 3 vowels across 5 letters, OOHED is exactly the kind of crossword-friendly answer worth recognizing on sight.
STORY
Clue: Part of a skyscraper or Snapchat feed
STORY can mean a level of a building or a post on Snapchat, both part of a skyscraper or feed. STORY is a tidy 5-letter fill (1 vowel); constructors like it because it plays well in both directions.
SHOT
Clue: Goal-scoring attempt
SHOT is a term for an attempt to score in sports like soccer or basketball. As a 4-letter word with 1 vowel, SHOT interlocks easily with crossing entries — one reason it turns up in grids so often.
BROTH
Clue: Soup base
BROTH is a liquid soup base, often made from simmering meat or vegetables. As a 5-letter word with 1 vowel, BROTH interlocks easily with crossing entries — one reason it turns up in grids so often.
YAHOO
Clue: Internet giant with a purple logo
YAHOO is a major internet company whose logo is indeed purple. With 3 vowels across 5 letters, YAHOO is exactly the kind of crossword-friendly answer worth recognizing on sight.
OVERT
Clue: In-your-face
OVERT means done openly or publicly, so it's in-your-face in the sense of not hidden. As a 5-letter word with 2 vowels, OVERT interlocks easily with crossing entries — one reason it turns up in grids so often.
BODY
Clue: Word before "language" or "lotion"
BODY precedes 'language' (nonverbal communication) and 'lotion' (skin moisturizer). As a 4-letter word with 1 vowel, BODY interlocks easily with crossing entries — one reason it turns up in grids so often.
BOSS
Clue: Person to whom you might say "I'll have it on your desk tomorrow"
BOSS is the person you'd report to and often the one to whom you promise work by the next day. As a 4-letter word with 1 vowel, BOSS interlocks easily with crossing entries — one reason it turns up in grids so often.
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.