October 5, 2026archive
NYT Mini Crossword — October 5, 2026
Hints — one at a time
Hint 1 of 5
Today's grid opens across with a young bear, then a word for coming out on the losing end of a contest.
Hint 2 of 5
Continue across with the prefix attached to "-3" in a nutritious fatty acid found in salmon, and the email service with folders like "Sent" and "Snoozed."
Hint 3 of 5
The last across answer describes someone who's basically a complete angel.
Hint 4 of 5
Down starts with a punctuation mark that looks like a semicolon with the dot removed, and a phrase for querying an AI chatbot like Claude.
Hint 5 of 5
Finish down with a word meaning to start something, the fuel you'd toss on a campfire, and the dominant flavor you'd taste in a bite of anchovy.
The answer — spoilers!
Reveal the full answer
- Baby bear — CUB
- Goes down in defeat — LOSES
- ___-3 fatty acids, nutritious compounds found in salmon — OMEGA
- Tech service with folders like "Sent," "Starred" and "Snoozed" — GMAIL
- Total angel — SAINT
- Semicolon without the dot — COMMA
- Ask a question to Claude, e.g. — USEAI
- Start — BEGIN
- Fuel for a campfire — LOGS
- Predominant taste of anchovies — SALT
This puzzle by the numbers
- 5 across, 5 down
- LOSES (5)
Counted from our own archive of NYT Mini Crossword answers — not published anywhere else.
