The NYT Midi Crossword is a delightful challenge that ticks green on the difficulty curve but still requires at least 5-6 minutes of your undivided attention. It slots right in between the traditional Crossword and the Mini, offering a puzzle that’s somewhat easy to solve, but moderately lengthy – hence the “Midi.” But as is the case with any crossword, some terms can be tricky to uncover. Rest assured, you’re in the right place, as we provide the NYT Midi hints and answers for the theme “Brand Spell Check” on September 18, 2026.
NYT Midi Crossword Hints and Answers Today for September 18
The NYT Midi Crossword comes in a grid of either 9×9, 11×11, or somewhere in between every day. In terms of difficulty, these crosswords are designed to be easy and accessible, so you don’t need to worry about the challenge getting steeper as the week draws on. If you need a specific NYT Midi hint to keep your streak alive, check our solver below.
What really sets the Midi Crossword apart from its NYT contemporaries is the daily theme. Just like today’s Strands puzzle, the crossword carries a new theme every day, which dictates its many clues and answers. Moreover, the grid’s designs are asymmetrical, with the constructors confirming that at least one weekly puzzle will carry animations and colorful visual patterns.
If you’re looking to learn more about the game, including useful tips and strategies, be sure to check out our guide on how to play the Midi Crossword.
With all that out of the way, here are today’s Midi Crossword hints and answers for September 18, 2026, which carries the theme – Brand Spell Check:
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How to play
Click a cell to reveal its letter.
Click a revealed cell again to toggle Across / Down.
Click “Reveal all” to show the full solution.
Click on a clue to highlight its answer cells.
1Magician's stage item, e.g.
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Also the word for something you lean against a wall to hold it up
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Actors use these on stage or set besides their costumes
5Pleads
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What a dog does at the dinner table for scraps
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"I ___ to differ"
9BMW rival
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German automaker known for its four-ring logo
15Classic movie theater candy with white sprinkles
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Chocolate nonpareils sold at the concession stand
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Box has a little snow-capped mountain on it
18Treats that sound like something Santa would enjoy
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A Hostess snack cake with a creamy filling
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Homophone of Santa's laugh
19Pulled up a chair
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Took a seat
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Past tense of "sit"
22Informative TV spot, for short
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Airs between shows to educate, not sell
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Often about safety or health topics
24Government org. with a forerunner known as the Cipher Bureau
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Handles U.S. signals intelligence
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Headquartered at Fort Meade, Maryland
25Colorful cereal with a toucan mascot
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Kellogg's slogan is "Follow your nose"
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Rainbow-colored rings in a bowl
29Nickname for Louise
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Also a slang word for something remarkable or a "doozy"
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Short, repeated-sound nickname
30Green ogre
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DreamWorks character voiced by Mike Myers
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Famous for comparing himself to an onion
31Throw forcefully, in Gen Z slang
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Popular internet meme/slang term
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What you might shout while chucking something
32Signs of things to come
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A black cat crossing your path is considered one
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Superstitious warnings
1Al of "The Godfather"
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Played Michael Corleone
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Also starred in "Scarface" and "Scent of a Woman"
2Worried exclamation from Scooby-Doo
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What the Great Dane says when trouble's coming
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Scooby's catchphrase for uh-oh
3Praiseful poem
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Keats wrote one "to a Nightingale"
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A short poem honoring a person or thing
4Dessert with a lattice crust, perhaps
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Apple, pumpkin, and pecan are common flavors
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Often has a crisscross pattern on top
5Cries one's eyes out
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What a toddler does during a meltdown
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Wails loudly
6Reverberation
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What you hear shouting into a canyon
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Amazon's smart speaker shares this name
7"No pain, no ___" (gym rat's motto)
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Opposite of "loss"
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Muscle ___ from working out
8L, XL or XXL
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Something you check before ordering clothes online
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Shoe ___, waist ___
12Sound in a sci-fi comic
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Noise for a laser blast
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What a bug zapper does
13___ Wednesday
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Marks the start of Lent
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What's left after something burns
16Unsatisfying excuse
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Backing out of a commitment weakly
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A chickening-out move
17Helper: Abbr.
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Short title often paired with "manager" or "coach"
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Appears on office door nameplates
19Make 💤 sounds
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The noise you might make while asleep
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Can also describe something painfully boring
20Ski town near Buttermilk Mountain
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Colorado resort favored by celebrities
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Also a type of white-barked tree
21Workplace assignments
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Items on a to-do list
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Duties or chores at a job
23Additionally
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Synonym for "as well" or "too"
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Used to tack on extra info
25Travel by plane
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What airlines let you do
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Also a small buzzing insect
26Regret
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Wish you hadn't done something
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Also French for "street"
27Nashville's Grand ___ Opry
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A folksy way of saying "old"
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Sounds the same as the bullfighting shout, spelled differently
28Unit of electrical resistance
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Named after a German physicist
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Symbol is the Greek letter omega (Ω)
If you’re ready to move on to other NYT puzzles, be sure to check out today’s Wordle hints and answer right here.
Difficulty Level for NYT Midi Crossword Answers Today
Based on my experience, the difficulty level for finding today’s NYT Midi answer was a 2 out of 5.
It’s important to mention that these medium-sized crosswords are generally super easy. Even if the difficulty rating reaches 5, the puzzle will still be much simpler than the intense and brain-teasing NYT Crossword. With that context in mind, my personal rating assesses the relative complexity of today’s Midi Crossword compared to previous editions.
Today’s grid leaned heavily on snack and brand names, with CHEEZ WHIZ, SNO-CAPS, HO HOS, and FROOT LOOPS all filling in nicely as longer entries. A couple of clues added a little friction, like the trivia nod to the NSA’s Cipher Bureau origins and the wordplay in ZAP for a comic book sound effect, but nothing that should have stalled solvers for long.
Shorter fills such as ODE, PIE, RUE, and OHM kept things moving at a brisk pace, and crossings like PACINO and ASPEN offered a bit of pop culture flavor. Overall, today’s Midi wrapped up as a quick, satisfying solve.
Yesterday’s NYT Midi Crossword Hints
If the puzzle above isn’t the NYT Midi crossword you require assistance with, then you are likely looking for yesterday’s solutions. Yesterday’s Midi theme was “So Many Ways to Go,” and it scored a 2 out of 5 on our difficulty scale.
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How to play
Click a cell to reveal its letter.
Click a revealed cell again to toggle Across / Down.
Click “Reveal all” to show the full solution.
Click on a clue to highlight its answer cells.
1Beta ___ Kappa
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A Greek letter that's also the name of a prestigious college honor society.
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Also used in math and physics as a symbol (like the golden ratio).
4Two of them make a U-turn
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Plural of a turn you'd take at a traffic light.
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Do it twice and you end up facing the opposite direction.
9Org. focused on the 50+ crowd
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A well-known advocacy group for older Americans, known by its initials.
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You might start getting mail from them right around your 50th birthday.
11"Sk8er Boi" singer Lavigne
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Canadian pop-punk star famous for skater fashion in the early 2000s.
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Her first name sounds like the month right before May.
12"Mind. Blown."
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An exclamation of shock or amazement.
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Keanu Reeves made this word iconic in the Bill & Ted movies.
13New Zealand native
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Indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand.
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Their haka dance is often performed before rugby matches.
14Like the interior of a car after a beach trip, often
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Gritty and full of stuff tracked in from the shore.
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You'll be vacuuming this out of the seats later.
16Contacted on social media, for short
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Past tense of sending someone a private message on Instagram or X.
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Not a public post — the private kind of message.
17Where all roads lead, in a classic saying suggested by this puzzle's circled letters
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Ancient Italian capital, once the seat of a massive empire.
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Home to the Colosseum and Vatican City.
19Formal wedding attire
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Sharp black-tie outfit often worn by the groom.
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Comes with a bow tie and cummerbund.
22Moo ___ pork
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A Chinese-American dish often wrapped in thin pancakes.
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Pairs with hoisin sauce and scallions.
25Shape of a marble
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Small, round, and spherical.
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Fortune tellers gaze into a crystal one of these.
26Largest arteries in human bodies
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Major blood vessels carrying oxygenated blood from the heart.
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Plural of the body's main artery.
28Id's counterpart
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Freudian term for the part of the mind balancing desire and reality.
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Someone with a big one is often called conceited.
29Path from point A to point B
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What a GPS calculates for your trip.
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Could also describe a delivery driver's daily path.
30"An emotion in motion," per Mae West
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A short, three-letter word the sultry actress used for intimacy.
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Also the word for biological gender.
31Flowed back, as the tide
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Past tense of water receding from the shore.
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The opposite of flowing in.
1Fido's feet
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What a dog uses to walk, dig, or "shake."
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You'd wipe these off after a rainy walk.
2"Too funny!"
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A written-out laugh, often typed in a text.
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Repeats the same syllable twice for laughter.
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Metallic element with the chemical symbol Fe.
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Also what makes some meteorites magnetic.
4On the ___ (fleeing capture)
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A short phrase often paired with "run" or "go."
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Someone hiding from the police is said to be doing this.
5Avoid paying, as taxes
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What a tax cheat does to dodge their obligations illegally.
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Different from legally minimizing what you owe.
6Cut ___ the same cloth
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Completes a phrase meaning two people are very alike.
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A short preposition showing origin or source.
7Goodyear product
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The round rubber part that goes on a car wheel.
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Goodyear's famous blimp shares its name with this company known for these.
8Went down, as stocks
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Describes a gradual decline, not a sudden crash.
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Prices moved smoothly downward, like on a slope.
10San Diego ballplayer
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Singular form of the MLB team based in Southern California.
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Spanish for "father" — also the inspiration for the team's mascot, the Swinging Friar.
15Green film character with a green lightsaber
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Small, wise Jedi Master from Star Wars.
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Known for speaking with reversed sentence structure.
18Demi of "The Substance"
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Actress also known for "Ghost" and "G.I. Jane."
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Her surname is a homophone for "additional."
19Body parts touched after the knees, in a nursery song
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Completes the line "head, shoulders, knees, and…"
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The digits at the end of your feet.
20Egg (on)
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To push or encourage someone toward doing something.
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As a noun, a strong impulse or desire.
21Console for the game Forza Horizon
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Microsoft's gaming system, rival to PlayStation.
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Comes in versions like "Series X" and "Series S."
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The small torn-off piece you keep after handing over your ticket.
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Also what's left of a check after you tear off the main part.
23"Don't ___ the player, ___ the game"
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This popular saying suggests blaming the system rather than the individual.
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Both blanks are the same word — the opposite of "love."
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Not brand new — previously owned.
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"Secondhand" is a synonym.
27Actor Lowe
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Star of "The West Wing" and "Parks and Recreation."
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Short for "Robert," a common first name.
How to Solve the NYT Midi Crossword Today
Since the NYT Midi Crossword is a relatively new puzzle game, coming to grips with its format and asymmetrical design can be tricky. So, here are some tips and tricks to help you find the NYT Midi answer today without spoiling the fun:
Start with the obvious entries: Just like warming up before a big game, the best approach is to begin with the clues you know immediately. Filling in a few obvious answers gives you letters that can help unlock tougher clues elsewhere in the grid.
Use the crossings to your advantage: Every NYT Midi answer in the crossword intersects with another. If a clue has you stuck, check the letters you’ve already filled in from crossing words. Even one or two confirmed letters can point you toward the correct answer.
Ignore interchangeable letters/multiple clues: Occasionally, the Midi Crossword will feature multiple clues denoted by arrows. Their respective cells will also feature the arrow, indicating that the letters are swappable. Our advice is to ignore this mechanic entirely. Don’t get caught up in the artificial complexity and focus on the one clue that you’re more familiar with. That’s really all you need to do to progress through the grid.
That’s all for today’s NYT Midi Crossword hints and answers guide. If you struggled with the puzzle, remember that you can always start the next day anew, and we’ll be back with simple hints to help you out. In the meantime, check out today’s Contexto answer or browse the latest NYT Spelling Bee answers to keep going.
What is today’s NYT Midi Crossword theme?
The theme for today’s NYT Midi Crossword on September 18, 2026, is ”Brand Spell Check”
What is the hint for the September 18 NYT Midi Crossword ‘Informative TV spot, for short’?
The clue for ‘Informative TV spot, for short’ in today’s Midi Crossword is “Airs between shows to educate, not sell”.
What is the hint for the September 18 NYT Midi Crossword ‘_ Wednesday’?
The clue for ‘_ Wednesday’ in today’s Midi Crossword is “Marks the start of Lent”.
What is the hint for September 18 NYT Midi Crossword ‘Unit of electrical resistance’?
The clue for ‘Unit of electrical resistance’ in today’s Midi Crossword is “Symbol is the Greek letter omega (Ω)”.
Is the NYT Midi Crossword free to play?
No, the Midi is a subscriber-exclusive game. You need a New York Times Games subscription or a Home Delivery subscription to play.
NYT Midi Crossword (also known as The Midi) is the perfect balance between the traditional longer Crossword and the quicker Mini. It gives you enough challenge, while not taking too much time to solve. Like other NYT games, this daily […]
Sanmay Chakrabarti
