Jump to: Tricky Clues | Today’s Theme
MONDAY PUZZLE — Congratulations to Gia Bosko, who is making her second appearance in the New York Times Crossword. Ms. Bosko had her Times debut just six weeks ago, and I’m thrilled to see her back again so soon.
This puzzle was a smooth solve for me, chock-full of fun phrases and charming clues. The theme is rich and well developed while still being approachable for a Monday. We’ll look at the theme in a moment, but first let’s unpack a handful of the tougher clues from today’s puzzle.
Tricky Clues
15A. Clues in quotation marks, like “Actually, you’re way off …,” typically require the solver to identify a conversational equivalent of the clue. Here, the answer is “UH, NO,” which maps nicely onto “Actually, you’re way off” — “Actually” and “UH” serve the same purpose, indicating a small hesitation before delivering the bad news.
22A. The answer to the clue “‘May that happen,’ in Shakespeare” is BE IT SO. I was instantly reminded of Jean-Luc Picard saying “Make IT SO” in “Star Trek,” but BE IT SO is actually from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
3D. I admit that I have never used a money order to transfer funds, but if a person sending a money order is a payer, then a “Money order recipient” must be a PAYEE.
5D. Today I learned that “suffix” can be used as a verb! (Presumably the same is also true of prefix and infix.) The answer to the clue “Added at the end, like the ‘-ness’ in ‘kindness’” is SUFFIXED.
7D. Film buffs and lovers of musical theater will know that the “‘West Side Story’ role for Rita Moreno and Ariana DeBose” is ANITA. Here is a lovely interview with the two of them about their experiences playing the same character in different versions of the movie.
37D. As with 15A, the quotation mark clue “They just want to see how we’ll react” requires you to identify a conversational phrase that evokes the same meaning. The answer here is IT’S A TEST.
43D. “O’Connor with the 1990 hit ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’” is a clue for SINEAD. It’s a beautiful song!
Today’s Theme
This puzzle features five theme entries that are all tautologies. Merriam-Webster defines a tautology as a “needless repetition of an idea, statement or word” or “a statement that is true by virtue of its logical form alone.” In this puzzle, the repetition is far from needless. Instead, it pokes fun at a somewhat absurd aspect of the English language, drawing our attention to five redundant sayings that are used to emphasize an idea.
First we have the entry FAIR IS FAIR (“‘The rules apply to everyone,’ redundantly”). Of course, we know this isn’t always true, but it’s a nice thought.
Next is A DEAL IS A DEAL (“‘Stick to the agreement,’ redundantly”). This expression is perhaps more commonly said as “a deal’s a deal,” which is what I initially tried to enter into the grid, but when I had a leftover space, it was clear that I needed to add the “I” back into “IS.”
The third theme entry is the tautology WHAT’S DONE IS DONE (“‘There can be no changing things now,’ redundantly”). This entry feels similar in tone and meaning to the fourth entry, IT IS WHAT IT IS (“‘We’ll just have to adapt,’ redundantly”); both seem to emphasize the finality of what has just occurred, though I appreciate the forward-looking clue for IT IS WHAT IT IS.
Finally, we have my favorite of the set: LOVE IS LOVE (“‘We all deserve to have our intimate relationships honored,’ redundantly”). This entry reminded me of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s beautiful Tony Award acceptance sonnet, which addressed both his love for his wife and his support for L.G.B.T.Q. communities in the wake of the 2016 shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla.
I appreciate how all five of these tautological theme entries are rich, conversational phrases that are common in speech and writing. Kudos to Ms. Bosko for putting together this theme set and for building it into such a clean, delightful puzzle. Now let’s hear from Ms. Bosko about the origin of this theme.
Constructor Notes
The only thing more exciting than having my debut puzzle earlier this year is being able to say I am not a one-hit wonder. This puzzle’s theme was inspired in part by my husband, who wagered me that I would not be able to fit five tautologies into a weekday-size puzzle. A BET IS A BET, so I had to try! With a great deal of work and persistence, I was able to do it — FACTS ARE FACTS! But ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. I just hope folks will find this straightforward Monday theme to be fun.
P.S. Hello to all my friends and family who are UTES! This one’s for you!
Want to Submit Crosswords to The New York Times?
The New York Times Crossword has an open submission system, and you can submit your puzzles online.
For tips on how to get started, read our series, “How to Make a Crossword Puzzle.”
The Tipping Point
Almost finished solving but need a bit more help? We’ve got you covered.
Spoiler alert: Subscribers can take a peek at the answer key.
Trying to get back to the main Gameplay page? You can find it here.
