The New York Times Mini Crossword for October 30, 2025, is a compact 5×5 grid designed to challenge players in just a few minutes. As part of the Thursday lineup, it offers a moderate difficulty level—slightly tougher than early-week puzzles but still approachable for most solvers. The Mini Crossword remains a quick daily brain exercise, perfect for a short break or warm-up before tackling the full-sized puzzle.
Complete Clues and Answers
Across
| Number | Clue | Answer | Initial Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1A | Words surrounding “___ what ___” | IT IS | I |
| 5A | Breathes like a canine | PANTS | P |
| 7A | Medium for a podcast | AUDIO | A |
| 8A | Examine with one’s nose | SNIFF | S |
| 9A | President succeeding Teddy Roosevelt | TAFT | T |
Down
| Number | Clue | Answer | Initial Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1D | Hoppy beers, abbreviated | IPAS | I |
| 2D | Insult verbally | TAUNT | T |
| 3D | The “I” in 1-Down | INDIA | I |
| 4D | How one might feel after a lengthy car journey | STIFF | S |
| 6D | Soft and fluffy | SOFT | S |
Key Puzzle Insights
This Mini Crossword blends wordplay, trivia, and everyday vocabulary. The inclusion of TAFT adds a historical touch, while PANTS, SNIFF, and AUDIO keep the tone light and familiar. A neat link appears between IPAS (1-Down) and INDIA (3-Down), as the latter spells out the “I” from the beer abbreviation, adding a subtle thematic tie within the grid.
Solving Time
An experienced solver finished this puzzle in 1 minute and 1 second, showing that it offers a modest level of challenge typical of midweek Minis—fast but not too simple.
Access Information
The New York Times Mini Crossword is now available only to NYT Games subscribers. While it was once free to play, access to both current and archived puzzles now requires a subscription through the official NYT Games platform.
