* Go through our NYT Mini Crossword Answers Today to see the right entries in today's puzzle.

The NYT Mini Crossword is a classic puzzle with simple rules to follow. To finish the whole game, you need to follow the clues for the down and across columns that should not be too much of an ask if you try sincerely. New York Times readily releases a new puzzle every day.

An NYT Mini is a 5 by 5, meaning the words in it cannot be longer than five letters. An answer can also be a combination of two words. These small crosswords aren't as difficult as their longer counterparts that NYT also releases regularly but they are by no means a cake walk. NYT Mini Crosswords tend to get tougher toward the end of a week and hence, it is important to know the tricks that are followed to solve these puzzles.

How To Play NYT Mini Crossword

You will be required to follow the clues for the Across and Down columns and enter letters in the white squares that will help you form words or phrases that overlap each other.

How will you know whether you have finished the puzzle?

If you finish a puzzle, you will hear a music and see a congratulatory message on your screen. If you do not see a message even on filling up the entire grid, it means there is an incorrect entry somewhere. A blue star signifies the end of an NYT Mini Crossword.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Arrow keys - It is with the arrow keys that you can choose a new direction within a square, move in the direction pointed by an arrow, and jump to either the first square in a word or the next clue.

Spacebar - With spacebar, you can switch between Across and Down columns.

Backspace (Delete on Macs) - It helps you remove one or more letters from a word.

Tab - It lets you move to the next clue.

Shift + Tab - With this keyboard shortcut, you can return to the previous clue.

Escape - The Escape button allows you to enter the Rebus mode and fill in multiple letters in a box.

NYT Mini Crossword is generally in the default pen mode wherein the letters are black in color. As you select the pencil icon, you will enter the pencil mode and the color of the letters will turn from black to gray. And the one that you confirm with Check will be blue in color.

Mini Timer

You can use the timer to check how long it takes for you to complete a puzzle. You have the option to Pause and Continue and when you clear a puzzle, the timer will restart. There is also an option to hide the timer that you will find in the puzzle settings at the top of a puzzle.

Note: NYT Mini Crossword games are released at 10 p.m. EST from Sunday to Friday and 6 p.m. EST on Saturday. [RETAIN]

Free NYT Mini Crossword Answer Today

Here is the answer to NYT Mini Crossword for today, December 5:

NYT Mini Crossword Hints

When you play NYT Mini Crossword, you will find that there are multiple options to help you out when you are not able to make the right entry in a cell. At the top of every puzzle, there is a lifesaver icon that provides you with the following options:

Clear - You can wipe out the whole puzzle and start again.

Reveal - True to its name, this option reveals the right answer for a cell, an entire across or down column, or the whole puzzle.

Check - This option is meant to check a cell, an across or down column, or the whole puzzle. When the autocheck option is on, you will see that it will automatically check a cell as you enter a letter in it.

NYT Mini Crossword Clues

The Across and Down clues could require you to fill in a missing word, find one word for an instruction, enter a synonym, look for an answer to a question, etc.