Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Well, today’s NYT Mini Crossword started out easy. 1-Across was simple. And then, the clues started to lose me. Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get at those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Uneaten part of toast, often
Answer: CRUST

6A clue: Like stud muffins
Answer: HUNKY

7A clue: Prepare for use, as a marker
Answer: UNCAP

8A clue: Nick of «48 Hrs.»
Answer: NOLTE

9A clue: Strike zone’s lower boundary
Answer: KNEES

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Alternative to a chip, in the baking aisle
Answer: CHUNK

2D clue: Kind of sentence that keeps going and going, it should have been made into two sentences
Answer: RUNON

3D clue: Cousin’s dad
Answer: UNCLE

4D clue: Spin out on the ice, say
Answer: SKATE

5D clue: Uses a keyboard
Answer: TYPES

How to play more Mini Crosswords

The New York Times Games section offers a large number of online games, but only some of them are free for all to play. You can play the current day’s Mini Crossword for free, but you’ll need a subscription to the Times Games section to play older puzzles from the archives.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Connections: Sports Edition features a big mix today, including team names, human names, and simple sports-related words. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.  

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Get on the ice.

Green group hint: Not the majors.

Blue group hint: TV talkers.

Purple group hint:  Throw it in there.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Hockey equipment

Green group: Triple-A baseball teams.

Blue group: «SportsCenter» anchors.

Purple group:____ pitch.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is hockey equipment. The four answers are gloves, helmet, skates and stick.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is triple-A baseball teams. The four answers are Aces, Chihuahuas, Express and Isotopes.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is «SportsCenter» anchors. The four answers are 

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ____ pitch. The four answers are fever, payoff, quick and wild.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections puzzle contains a hilarious category for me and my fellow Gen Xers. I’ve co-written two books about Gen X pop culture, Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? and The Totally Sweet ’90s, and this category is in the first book. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group, to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: No, no, no.

Green group hint: Enjoy the show.

Blue group hint: Can you make it to Oregon?

Purple group hint: Not Nixon, but …

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Restrict.

Green group: Ticketed events.

Blue group: Associated with the game The Oregon Trail.

Purple group: What «Ford» might refer to.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is restrict. The four answers are block, check, dam and stop.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is ticketed events. The four answers are concert, game, movie and play.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is associated with the game The Oregon Trail. The four answers are dysentery, ford, hunt and oxen.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is what «Ford» might refer to. The four answers are actor, car, director and president.