Today's NYT Midi Crossword Answers
August 17, 2026
Stuck on puzzle #23,596? Work through a hint at a time, or jump straight to the grid. Nothing spoils until you tap.
Hints, one at a time
Welcome back, puzzler. The Midi Crossword for Monday, August 17, 2026 is live: a 11x9 grid with 36 clues to fill in, 15 Across and 21 Down, built around the theme "Split Hairs".
Here's how this page works: the hints below work only from the clues themselves, nothing about the answers, so work through them in order and stop the moment you're ready to solve. The full set of answers sits in the green box further down, locked behind a tap. Nothing on this page shows itself until you ask, not a hint and not an answer.
Start with the clue count and stop whenever you're ready to solve.
Drumroll, please…
NYT Midi Crossword Answers for August 17
Spoiler below · tap an answer to revealAcross (15)
Clues 1-30
Question with an obvious answer
Ish
Not together
Like some specialized committees
Miraculous solution to a complicated problem
Genre for Dom Dolla and Disclosure, for short
"Headphones On" pop star Addison ___
"Unfortunately, that's true"
Fire (up)
In favor of
Slow-moving creatures shaped like a fruit
Something an influencer might "chase"
Clues 31-33
Participate in a spin class
Asks to show ID
Like questions in 20 Questions
Down (21)
Clues 1-18
Angry Birds or Candy Crush
Apple tablet
Underground rock?
Diagnostic scan, for short
"You get the idea"
Hawaiian island that's home to Polihale State Park
Did nothing
Org. for Ducks and Penguins
Bambi's mom, for one
Play pretend
Praise for a diva
Impostor
Clues 19-29
Has a flat, perhaps?
Potatoes, by another name
Brain, but not mind
Capital of Norway
Email discreetly
___ carte menu
Neither's partner
Mole, for one
Second-most-common Korean surname (after Kim)
Tap an answer to reveal it, open a clue range to browse it, or show the whole grid at once.
Yesterday's longest answer (#23,611): DUSTY · full breakdown ›
About today's grid #23,596
36 answers in total: 15 Across and 21 Down.
The longest answer runs 11 letters; the shortest run 3 letters (14 of them).
A is the most common letter, appearing 13 times across the grid.
Puzzle #23,596, published Monday, August 17, 2026, edited by Ian Livengood and built by Adrianne Baik.
Midi Crossword strategy that actually helps
Proven habits from top solvers, useful today and every day.
Skim the whole list before writing anything. An easy Down clue often unlocks a tricky Across neighbor.
The Midi often builds several answers around one theme. Spotting it early can crack a few tricky clues at once.
Three and four letter answers lean on common words and abbreviations, so bank those first.
A "?" at the end of a clue signals wordplay or a pun, not a literal definition.
Unsure of a letter? Solve the crossing clue instead of guessing, and let it fill in the gap for you.
The longest answers usually need the most crossing letters, so they're often the last ones to click.
NYT Midi Crossword, answered
Quick answers to the questions we get every day.
What time does the new Midi Crossword come out?
The Midi resets at midnight in your local timezone, wherever you are. This page updates within minutes of the reset, so if the date above matches today, the hints and answers are current.
How is the Midi different from the Mini and the full Crossword?
The Midi sits between the two: a mid-size grid, usually 10x10, with more clues than the tiny Mini but far fewer than the full daily Crossword. It's built around a single theme, the way the full Crossword often is, but finishes in a fraction of the time.
Why do some Midis feel harder than others?
Like the other NYT crosswords, difficulty can vary day to day: some puzzles lean on straightforward definitions, while others lean more on wordplay, theme logic, and less common phrasing.
Can I play past Midi Crossword puzzles?
Yes, if you're an NYT Games subscriber, the app and site keep an archive of past Midis. This page's own archive grows day by day as we cover more puzzles.
Does using hints count as cheating?
We'd say no. A nudge that keeps you playing beats a broken streak. That's why this page is built hints-first: you choose exactly how much help you get, one clue at a time.
Today's hints for every game
Same spoiler-safe format, for each daily puzzle we cover.