You’re staring at the grid. It’s a Wednesday—or worse, a Saturday—and the black and white squares are mocking you. You see a short, three or four-letter space, and the clue says something like "No-side." Or maybe it's "Without a side." You think of "Even." You think of "Fair." You might even think of "Neutral." But the letters don't fit, and suddenly your streak on the New York Times Crossword app is in serious jeopardy.
The no side nyt crossword clue is a classic example of what enthusiasts call "crosswordese" or, more accurately, a "rebus-adjacent" linguistic trick. It's frustrating. It's basically a rite of passage for anyone trying to move from the Monday-level "gimme" clues into the deep end of the late-week puzzles. Honestly, the NYT editors, currently led by Will Shortz (though the daily operations often involve various digital editors and assistants), love these kinds of directional or conceptual puns.
If you’ve been stuck on this, you aren't alone. It’s one of those clues where the answer is so simple it feels like a slap in the face once you finally see it.
The Common Answers for No Side NYT Crossword
In the world of the Gray Lady's puzzles, "No-side" usually points toward a few specific directions. The most frequent answer is EVEN. It makes sense when you think about a score. If a game has "no side" in the lead, the score is even.
But it’s rarely that straightforward in a Friday puzzle.
Sometimes, the clue is looking for AMORAL. Think about it. If you don't take a side in a moral conflict, you aren't necessarily "neutral"—you might just be operating outside the "sides" of morality altogether. Another common culprit is ONE. Wait, what? Yeah, if something is one-sided, it technically has a side, but a "one" (like a circle or a mobius strip, sort of) can be a trick play on the concept of boundaries.
However, the big one—the one that really gets people—is ADRIFT.
When a boat has "no side" it’s moored to, or no direction it's tethered to, it’s adrift. It’s a metaphorical stretch that the NYT is famous for. You have to stop thinking literally and start thinking like someone who spends their weekends reading the Oxford English Dictionary for fun.
Why the NYT Crossword is Built to Confuse You
The New York Times doesn't just want you to know facts. They want to see how your brain handles ambiguity. This is why the no side nyt crossword clue appears in so many variations.
Crossword construction is an art form. Creators like Robyn Weintraub or Brendan Emmett Quigley don't just pick words; they pick "angles." A word like "side" has dozens of meanings. It’s a surface. It’s a team. It’s an attitude (as in "don't give me any side"). It’s a part of your torso. When a constructor uses the word "no," they are essentially negating one of those dozens of definitions.
Your job is to figure out which one they are deleting.
Take the word NONPARTISAN. That’s a long one. If the grid has eleven spaces and the clue is "Taking no side," you’re looking at a political context. But if it’s four letters? You’re back to EVEN or maybe TIED.
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The difficulty curve of the NYT puzzle is legendary. Monday is the easiest, and Saturday is the hardest. Sunday is just a big Thursday—it's mid-level difficulty but high-level endurance. If you see a "no side" clue on a Tuesday, the answer is probably EVEN. If you see it on a Saturday, may God have mercy on your soul because it’s probably a pun involving geometry or 18th-century maritime law.
Decoding the Syntax of the Clue
Crosswords use a specific grammar. If the clue has a question mark at the end, like "No side?", it means there is a pun involved. This is crucial.
Without the question mark, "No side" is a definition. With the question mark, "No side?" could be the answer CIRCLE. Why? Because a circle has no "sides" in the traditional sense of a polygon. It’s a continuous curve.
- Look for the Tense: If the clue is "Taking no sides," the answer likely ends in "-ING."
- Check the Plurals: "No sides" (plural) might lead you to ROUND or SPHERE.
- The "Aha" Moment: Crossword pros wait for the "crosses"—the words that intersect the clue. If you have the "V" and the "N" from other words, EVEN becomes obvious.
People get mad at these clues. I’ve seen Reddit threads where users vent about how "unfair" a specific clue was. But that’s the game. The NYT crossword is a battle of wits between you and the editor. They want you to fail, but only just enough so that winning feels like a triumph.
Real Examples from the Archives
In a 2014 puzzle, the answer was NEUT. Short for neutral. People hated that one. It felt "lazy." But in a 2021 grid, "Having no side" led to TOPLESS.
See? That’s the NYT humor. "No side" can refer to a physical object, like a box that hasn't been finished, or a piece of clothing. If you aren't thinking about every possible definition of "side," you’re going to be staring at those white squares for a long time.
How to Get Better at Identifying These Clues
You can't just memorize a dictionary. You have to learn the logic of the people making the puzzles.
- Think about the "Meta" context. Is the puzzle's theme about sports? Then "no side" is probably TIED. Is the theme about geometry? Then it’s ARC or LOOP.
- Don't get married to your first guess. This is the biggest mistake. You put in "EVEN" and then you refuse to delete it even when the vertical clues aren't working. Kill your darlings.
- Use a crossword solver only as a last resort. Sites like Wordplay (the official NYT crossword blog) or Rex Parker’s blog provide daily breakdowns. Rex Parker (the pseudonym of Michael Sharp) is famously grumpy about clues he finds "stale" or "poorly constructed." Reading his critiques will teach you more about the mechanics of crosswords than any "how-to" guide.
The NYT crossword is a culture. It's why people pay for the standalone subscription even if they don't care about the news. It’s a daily mental hygiene ritual. When you finally nail a tricky clue like no side nyt crossword, it gives you a tiny hit of dopamine that carries you through your morning coffee.
The Evolution of Crosswordese
Language changes, and so do crosswords. Back in the 70s and 80s, clues were much more focused on rote memorization of obscure facts—opera singers, obscure rivers in Europe, that sort of thing. Today, the "New Era" of construction focuses more on wordplay and pop culture.
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"No side" used to almost always mean EVEN. Now, it’s a wildcard. It’s a "pivot point" clue. It exists to bridge two different sections of the grid, often acting as the connector between a difficult corner and an easier center.
Actionable Strategy for Your Next Puzzle
Stop trying to find the "correct" word and start looking for the "logic" word. When you see "No side" or any variation, follow this mental checklist immediately:
- Count the squares first. 4 squares? Try EVEN. 5 squares? Try TIED (if pluralized) or ROUND. 6 squares? Try ADRIFT.
- Look at the Day of the Week. If it's Monday/Tuesday, it’s a literal definition. If it's Thursday/Friday/Saturday, it’s a pun, a metaphor, or a piece of slang.
- Check for "Hidden" Sides. Does the clue refer to a team? A debate? A physical object? A moral stance?
- Fill the Crosses. Never stay on one clue for more than thirty seconds. Move to the vertical clues that intersect it. The second letter is usually the "key" that unlocks the whole word.
The secret to mastering the New York Times crossword isn't being the smartest person in the room. It's being the most flexible. The grid is a living thing, and it changes every day. Tomorrow, "No side" might mean something completely different, and you have to be ready to forget everything you thought you knew today. That’s the beauty of it. That’s why we keep playing.