NYT Mini Crossword Answers May 16, 2025

Across

1 Unit of distance that can precede “stone” and “age” (Answer: MILE)
📏 4 letters, starts with M, ends with E
🚶 5,280 feet
🏃 Standard in marathons
🪨 Can come before “stone”
⌛ Can come before “age”
🗺️ Used in U.S. road signs
📊 Common distance measure
🎖️ “Go the extra ___”
🧭 Found on odometers

5 Kind of powder used for hot chocolate (Answer: COCOA)
☕ 5 letters, starts with C, ends with A
🌰 Made from cacao beans
🍫 Base of chocolate
🥣 Mixed into milk or water
🌱 Comes from a tropical tree
🍪 Used in brownies and cakes
🛒 Found in baking aisles
🌍 Grown in West Africa
🎁 Common holiday flavor

6 On the button (Answer: EXACT)
🎯 5 letters, starts with E, ends with T
✅ Precisely right
🕒 Down to the second
📍 Not even a smidge off
📏 No margin of error
🔍 100% accurate
🔢 Matches perfectly
📐 Mathematically correct
💬 “That’s ___ what I meant!”

7 Connections (Answer: LINKS)
🔗 5 letters, starts with L, ends with S
🌐 Web page connectors
⛳ Golf courses have them
🪝 What a chain consists of
🧠 Logical relationships
🧵 Things that tie together
📚 Research references
👥 Social media connectors
🎮 Multiplayer matchmaking

8 “___ not and say we did!” (Answer: LETS)
🗣️ 4 letters, starts with L, ends with S
🧒 Common in kids’ play
🎭 Precedes pretend actions
🙋‍♂️ Suggestion starter
🚀 Short for “Let us”
🧩 Word in many game titles
📢 Often shouted before doing something
🪩 “___ dance!”
🎮 Seen in co-op gaming

Down

1 Gutsy determination (Answer: MOXIE)
🔥 5 letters, starts with M, ends with E
💪 Bold spirit
🧠 Bravery with cleverness
🎬 A 2021 Netflix film title
🗣️ Old-school slang for grit
🎤 What performers have
🧱 Backbone or nerve
🚀 Energy + courage
👊 Takes this to speak up

2 “That’s not gonna work for me” (Answer: ICANT)
🗯️ 5 letters, starts with I, ends with T
🙅 Politely declining
🕒 “Sorry, I’m busy” cousin
📅 Scheduling conflict phrase
🚫 Rejecting an invitation
😩 Sign of overload
💬 Often said with a sigh
📱 Text reply shorthand
😬 Not gonna happen

3 Strands (Answer: LOCKS)
💇 5 letters, starts with L, ends with S
💁 Hair sections
🔐 Used to secure doors
🧑‍🦱 Curls or tresses
🗝️ Associated with keys
📸 Often styled in salons
🧬 Genetic expressions in hair
🪮 Combed or braided
📚 Rapunzel had long ones

4 Has a bite (Answer: EATS)
🍴 4 letters, starts with E, ends with S
🥗 Consumes food
🐾 What animals do
🕒 Happens at lunch
🍽️ Related to meals
🍔 Opposite of fasts
🧃 “___ out” is a weekend plan
📸 Seen in food blogs
🧠 Figuratively “devours” books

5 Spreadsheet unit (Answer: CELL)
📊 4 letters, starts with C, ends with L
🧮 Found in Excel
📈 Holds data or formulas
🔢 Grid component
💻 Where values go
🧱 Basic spreadsheet block
📧 Can be merged
🧬 Also found in biology
📱 Rhymes with “shell”