Need help with today's NYT Mini Crossword? Here are all the clues, hints, and full answers for Saturday, March 21, 2026. Hints come first — scroll past them only when you're ready for the full solutions.
What Is the NYT Mini Crossword?
The NYT Mini Crossword is a fast 5x5 crossword puzzle published daily by The New York Times. It's designed to be solved in minutes, making it a perfect daily brain warm-up. Saturday's grid is slightly larger than the weekday version, giving you a few extra clues to work through.
Across Clues and Answers — March 21, 2026
1 Across: Spring Cleaning Box 1: I still love it!
Answer: KEEP
Something you want to hold onto — this answer is the first of a fun spring cleaning theme running through today's grid.
5 Across: First name of poet Poe
Answer: EDGAR
Edgar Allan Poe, the 19th-century American writer best known for gothic poetry and short fiction.
7 Across: Let ___ be ___
Answer: BYGONES
As in "let bygones be bygones" — a phrase meaning to forgive past grievances and move on.
9 Across: Gorilla or chimpanzee
Answer: APE
A broad term covering the great apes, including gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos, and orangutans.
10 Across: Clock setting in the U.K.: Abbr.
Answer: GMT
Greenwich Mean Time — the time zone based on the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London.
11 Across: Eugene Levy, to Dan Levy
Answer: DAD
Eugene and Dan Levy are real-life father and son, as well as co-stars of the beloved sitcom Schitt's Creek.
12 Across: ___ G BIV (color mnemonic)
Answer: ROY
ROY G BIV is the classic mnemonic for the colours of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.
13 Across: Spring Cleaning Box 2: Someone else will love it!
Answer: DONATE
The second spring cleaning answer — things you no longer need but could still be useful to someone else.
15 Across: "If you don't like it, that's your problem!"
Answer: SUEME
A defiant two-word phrase — "Sue me!" — used when someone doesn't care what others think.
16 Across: Spring Cleaning Box 3: It's worthless!
Answer: TOSS
The final spring cleaning answer, for anything that belongs straight in the bin.
Down Clues and Answers — March 21, 2026
1 Down: Panels of buttons on which passcodes are entered
Answer: KEYPADS
Found on ATMs, security doors, and phones — keypads are the numbered panels used to enter PIN codes and passcodes.
2 Down: Just barely defeated
Answer: EDGEDOUT
To someone out means to win by the narrowest of margins.
3 Down: A narcissist has a big one
Answer: EGO
A classic crossword answer — the ego is the sense of self-importance, and narcissists are known for having an outsized one.
4 Down: High-scoring words in Spelling Bee
Answer: PANGRAMS
In the NYT Spelling Bee, a pangram is a word that uses all seven of the day's letters — and earns bonus points.
6 Down: Channel changers
Answer: REMOTES
Television remote controls — the handheld devices used to change channels and adjust volume without leaving the sofa.
7 Down: ___ Bunny, musician known as the "King of Latin Trap"
Answer: BAD
Bad Bunny is the Puerto Rican reggaeton and Latin trap artist who has become one of the most-streamed musicians in the world.
8 Down: Painful eye malady
Answer: STYE
A stye is a small, painful lump that forms on or inside the eyelid, usually caused by a bacterial infection.
14 Down: Prefix for a modern genre
Answer: NEO
"Neo-" is used as a prefix to indicate a new or revived form of something — as in neo-soul, neo-classical, or neo-noir.
Quick Answer Summary — March 21, 2026
Across: KEEP · EDGAR · BYGONES · APE · GMT · DAD · ROY · DONATE · SUEME · TOSS
Down: KEYPADS · EDGEDOUT · EGO · PANGRAMS · REMOTES · BAD · STYE · NEO
More Daily Puzzle Help
Looking for hints from other recent Mini Crossword puzzles? Check out our recent guides: