Theme: This is HUGE!
Constructor Doug Peterson has accomplished another tremendous feat, as revealed here:
63-Across. Finale that earns a standing ovation, and a feature of 17-, 24-, 38-, and 50-Across: BIG FINISH. Each of the theme answers FINISHes with a synonym for BIG.
The other theme answers are:
17-Across. Piano studio instrument: BABY GRAND.
24-Across. Indulging in a luxurious existence: LIVING LARGE.
38-Across. Mascot on cans of peas and corn: JOLLY GREEN GIANT.
50-Across. NHL team in Salt Lake City: UTAH MAMMOTH. This ice hockey team was created in 2024 -- not long enough ago for your sports-challenged blogger to have heard of it, but perpendicular entries in the grid were very helpful.
I racked my brain for additional phrases that would fit the pattern. Can you think of a common, two or three word phrase that ends with a synonym for BIG? I couldn't. Doug Peterson thought of four of them, fit them into perfectly symmetrical spaces in his grid, and made one of them span the grid right in the middle. Wow.
Let's see what else Doug came up with to top off his colossal achievement.
Across:
1. Young men: LADS.
5. Add voice-over to: DUB.
8. Dark expression: SCOWL.
13. __ Puffs: chocolaty cereal: OREO. Here's a new clue for crosswords' favorite cookie. I never heard of the cereal. Please don't tell my grandchildren about it.
5. Add voice-over to: DUB.
8. Dark expression: SCOWL.
13. __ Puffs: chocolaty cereal: OREO. Here's a new clue for crosswords' favorite cookie. I never heard of the cereal. Please don't tell my grandchildren about it.
14. Atlas section: ASIA.
16. "Star Trek" role for Nichelle Nichols: UHURA.
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| Nichelle Nichols as Lieutenant Uhura |
17. [Theme clue]
19. Tag call: NOT IT.
20. Gain possession of: OBTAIN.
21. Yahtzee cube: DIE. Singular form of "dice."
23. Apartment payment: RENT.
24. [Theme clue]
27. Word before planning or sale: ESTATE. If you have anything of value that you'd like to leave to your heirs or to charity, consider having an attorney create a trust for you! It will cost you something, but nothing compared to what your heirs will spend on probate attorneys -- and the years they will invest in the process -- if you leave only a will. If you have a legal trust, the transfer to your heirs is almost immediate and does not involve the courts. I see the difference in my work all the time.
30. Young women: GALS.
31. Three, in Germany: DREI.
32. Printer brand: EPSON.
35. Liveliness: PEP.
38. [Theme clue]
42. NNW reversal: SSE. Opposite points on the compass.
43. Borden spokescow: ELSIE. The Borden Company was established in 1857. Its dairy subsidiary has gone through many changes of ownership, and even bankruptcy in 2020. Poor Elsie! Created in 1936, the old gal once had a husband, Elmer the Bull, but he went off to be the mascot for Elmer's Glue under Borden's chemical division. True story!
 |
| Elsie and Elmer grilling beef (!) in the good old days |
44. CBS military series in its 23rd season: NCIS. NCIS (Naval Criminal Investigative Service) is a military police procedural television series. 23 seasons, and I've never seen an episode! Any fans here?
45. Body part with a bridge: NOSE. The nasal bridge is the elevated region of the nose between and just below the eyes. It is formed by two small, oblong bones, which meet in the middle.
 |
| The "bridge" is indicated at top as "Nasal bone." |
47. __ on: added hastily: TACKED.
50. [Theme clue]
54. Gym pads: MATS.
55. Extinct New Zealand bird: MOA. Do you remember this from a Monday puzzle in February? Moa are an extinct group of flightless birds formerly endemic to New Zealand. There were likely a couple million of them circa 1300 CE when Polynesians settled New Zealand. Some species were 12 feet tall! Extinction occurred within 100 years of human settlement, thanks to overhunting.
 |
| Moa and human nemesis |
56. Bit of fridge decor: MAGNET.
61. "I knew it all __!": ALONG.
63. [Theme clue]
65. Fable lesson: MORAL.
66. __ gin fizz: SLOE. Shake with ice: 1.5 oz sloe gin (gin infused with blackthorn fruits, i.e. sloes), 1 oz lemon juice, and 0.75 oz simple syrup. Strain into glass filled with fresh ice. Top with club soda and stir gently.
67. Midrange voice: ALTO.
68. Motivation for a project, in hashtags: INSPO. "Inspo" is an informal abbreviation for "inspiration," used on social media to describe motivating ideas, visual references, or creative concepts in fashion, lifestyle, and design.
69. Canonized Fr. woman: STE. The abbreviation for Sainte, which is feminine for Saint in French. For example, the woman we call St. Joan of Arc is called Ste Jeanne d'Arc in her homeland of France.
70. Have on: WEAR. And just as importantly ...
70. Have on: WEAR. And just as importantly ...
Down:
1. Basketball Hall of Famer Rebecca: LOBO. Rebecca Lobo-Rushin is a television basketball analyst and former professional women's basketball player in the WNBA from 1997 to 2003. I did not know (DNK) this, and it gave me a rough start in the northwest part of the puzzle.
 |
| Try to identify the former professional basketball player. |
2. Many a Syrian: ARAB.
3. Balance owed: DEBT.
4. Bean used to make tofu: SOYA.
5. "Well, shoot!": DARN IT.
6. Alysa Liu's Olympic team: Abbr.: USA. Alysa Liu, an American figure skater, is the 2026 Olympic champion in both women's singles and in the team event, the 2025 World champion, the 2022 World bronze medalist, the 2025–26 Grand Prix Final champion, a two-time Grand Prix medalist, a four-time Challenger Series champion, and a two-time U.S. national champion.
 |
| Alysa Liu at the recent winter Olympics |
7. Bright forehead adornment: BINDI. A bindi is a decorative dot or jewel worn on the forehead, representing the "third eye" in Hindu and Indian culture.
 |
| Woman wearing a bindi. |
8. Star that warms Mars: SUN.
9. Written for group singing: CHORAL.
10. Vast cosmic expanse: OUTER SPACE.
11. Squeeze dry: WRING.
12. Milky coffee order: LATTE.
15. Possible score after deuce: AD IN. Tennis scoring!
0 points = Love
1 point = 15
2 points = 30
3 points = 40
Tied score = All
40-40 = Deuce
Server wins deuce point = Ad-In
Receiver wins deuce point = Ad-Out
18. __ monster: Arizona lizard: GILA. The Gila monster is a venomous lizard native to the Southwestern United States and the Mexican state of Sonora. It is a heavy, slow-moving reptile, up to 22 inches long, and is the only venomous lizard native to the United States.
 |
| Gila monster |
22. Actively encourage: EGG ON.
25. Swerves sharply: VEERS.
26. "Auld __ Syne": LANG.
27. Greek Cupid: EROS.
28. Devoted fans of singer/actress Gomez: SELENATORS. This I did not know (DNK in the comments section), but I do know Selena Gomez, especially from Hulu's "Only Murders in the Building," so it wasn't too hard to fill.
 |
| Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez |
29. Up to, briefly: TIL.
31. Some radio personalities: DJS.
33. Shar-__: PEI. The Shar Pei dog breed nearly became extinct in the 20th century due to cultural changes in China. In 1978, it was named by The Guinness Book of Records as the world's rarest breed, with only 60 remaining. The publicity led to demand in the United States. Breeders in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan crossed the Shar Pei with bull terriers, pugs, and bulldogs, and passed them off to American buyers as purebred. The American Kennel Club now recognizes the Shar Pei, but with the fleshier appearance of the cross breeds. The original type of Shar Pei is still down to 50 to 100 dogs.
 |
| Chinese "bone mouth" Shar Pei on the left, American "meat mouth" Shar Pei on the right. |
34. Deal with: SEE TO.
36. City in northern Oklahoma: ENID.
37. Scoreboard nos.: PTS.
39. Quaint affirmative: YES'M. "Yes'm" is a contraction of "yes ma'am," used as a polite, often regional (Southern US) or dated, affirmative response to a woman. Like "Yessir," but for the ladies.
40. Sparkle: GLEAM.
41. Printmaker's fluid: INK.
46. Slangy "Touché!": OH SNAP.
48. Charge for using a card: ATM FEE.
49. Spiced tea from India: CHAI.
50. So-called "fifth taste": UMAMI.
51. Owl's claw: TALON.
52. Crowds around, as a celebrity: MOBS. In our neighborhood, the big excitement is when a group of crows MOBS a hawk. They don't want a selfie or a signature. They want the hawk out of the neighborhood, so it won't eat their eggs or nestlings. Mockingbirds MOB the crows for the same reason. I was anti-crow until I saw them mobbing hawks. Hawks eat songbirds, including the tired migrant birds that come to our yard twice a year, on their way from colder climes to warmer, and back the other way. Hawks have to eat, too, but you know, Not In My Back Yard.
 |
| Crows mobbing a hawk. |
53. Stamps and sends: MAILS.
57. Nibble (on): GNAW.
58. Khartoum's river: NILE. Khartoum is the capital of Sudan, upriver on the Nile from Egypt.
57. Nibble (on): GNAW.
58. Khartoum's river: NILE. Khartoum is the capital of Sudan, upriver on the Nile from Egypt.
 |
| The red flag marks Khartoum. |
59. "¿Cómo __ usted?": ESTÁ. "How are you?" (formal) in Spanish.
60. Marvel's hammer thrower: THOR.
62. Day-__ paint: GLO.
64. Comprehended: GOT.
Here's the grid:
Solvers,
Did this puzzle GNAW at you, causing you to WRING your hands and SCOWL?
Or did it put PEP in your step, and a GLEAM in your eye, on the way to a BIG FINISH?
Maybe we can take some INSPO from your experience. Please comment!
-- NaomiZ
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