NYT Mini Crossword — August 14, 2026
Hints — one at a time
Hint 1 of 5
Today's five-by-five leans on a chaotic gathering, slang for cash, a trio of words all pointing to the same shoreline setting, and a rich coffee drink to wrap up the across side.
Hint 2 of 5
Across, look for a word for a disorderly, unruly gathering of people, then an informal term for cash tied to shellfish and dairy slang, followed by three different answers that could each fill in for "this, at the beach."
Hint 3 of 5
Down, start with a rich drink that blends coffee and chocolate, then a phrase for successfully deceiving someone, filled in with a single word before "on."
Hint 4 of 5
Continue down with the coarse facial hair of a famous pirate captain known by a color, and the tail end of a classic New Year's Eve song title.
Hint 5 of 5
Finish down with the fuzzy green growth you'd find clinging to the base of a tree trunk.
The answer — spoilers!
Reveal the full answer
- Unruly crowds — MOBS
- What "clams" and "cheddar" are slang for — MONEY
- This, at the beach — OCEAN
- This, at the beach — SHORE
- This, at the beach — SAND
- Chocolaty coffee drink — MOCHA
- Pull a fast ___ (trick) — ONEON
- "Black" facial feature for pirate Edward Teach — BEARD
- "Auld Lang ___" — SYNE
- Growth at the base of a tree — MOSS
This puzzle by the numbers
- 5 across, 5 down
- MONEY (5)
Counted from our own archive of NYT Mini Crossword answers — not published anywhere else.
