- Sunday Grid Strategy: The February 15, 2026, puzzle utilizes a central 5-letter bridge (“MIXED”) that is essential for unlocking both the northwest and southeast quadrants.
- Key Solve Metric: Today’s difficulty is rated at 3/5, with a community average solve time of 1 minute and 14 seconds.
- Critical Clue Focus: Success hinges on identifying pop culture icons and common financial acronyms located at the grid’s perimeter.
Sunday mornings in 2026 continue the long-standing tradition of the quick-fire mental sprint. The NYT Mini Crossword for February 15 offers a compact but clever 5×5 grid that tests your ability to pivot from mathematical verbs to Hollywood stardom in seconds. Whether you are chasing a personal best on the leaderboard or simply clearing the board over your morning brew, the technical construction of today’s puzzle demands precision.
Puzzle Metadata: Feb 15, 2026
- Grid Size: 5×5
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Primary Themes: Cinema, Arithmetic, and Geography
- Average Solve Time: 01:14
Hints for Today’s Mini Crossword
If you’re looking to maintain your streak without viewing the full solution just yet, use these strategic nudges to navigate the trickier sections of the grid.
Across Hints
- 1 Across: What a mathematician does to find a total sum.
- 5 Across: This can describe a relaxing vacation or an accidental stumble on the sidewalk.
- 6 Across: Think of a genre of nuts or a playlist containing various musical styles.
- 8 Across: A common, polite compliment for something pleasant.
- 9 Across: The first name of the multi-talented “Nope” and “Hustlers” actress.
Down Hints
- 1 Down: Where you head when you need physical cash in a hurry.
- 2 Down: This category includes everything from water to a stiff cocktail.
- 3 Down: A nostalgic nickname for the American South, often associated with a famous song.
- 4 Down: A very tiny, almost insignificant piece of dust.
- 7 Down: The fourth letter of the alphabet, spelled out phonetically.
NYT Mini Crossword Answers for 15 February 2026
While we encourage solvers to check their work against our previous NYT Mini guides to sharpen their pattern recognition, sometimes a direct answer is necessary to clear a mental block. Below is the verified solution set for the Sunday grid.
| Direction | Number | Clue | Answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Across | 1 | Performs addition | ADDS |
| Across | 5 | Voyage or fall | TRIP |
| Across | 6 | Blended together | MIXED |
| Across | 8 | Kind or pleasant | NICE |
| Across | 9 | Actress Palmer | KEKE |
| Direction | Number | Clue | Answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Down | 1 | Cash machine | ATM |
| Down | 2 | Liquid refreshment | DRINK |
| Down | 3 | Heart of ___ (Southern term) | DIXIE |
| Down | 4 | Tiny particle | SPECK |
| Down | 7 | Letter after ‘C’ | DEE |
The beauty of the official NYT Mini Crossword lies in its accessibility; it offers the prestige of the daily crossword with only a fraction of the time commitment. Today’s use of “KEKE” and “DIXIE” highlights the editor’s penchant for mixing contemporary culture with classic regional idioms.
Pro Tip: When stuck on a 5×5 grid, focus on the “Down” clues for columns 1 and 5. These usually provide the structural bookends that reveal the start and end of every “Across” word, significantly narrowing down the possibilities.
If you’re looking to challenge yourself further today, you can also explore the NYT Mini archive to see how specific clue styles evolve over the seasons. Happy puzzling!
