NYT Midi Crossword Answers for Saturday, August 15, 2026: “Circle of Life”

Saturday, August 15, 2026 · Today's NYT Midi Crossword answers

AUG15

NYT Midi Crossword

Saturday, August 15, 2026

9×9“Circle of Life”By Joel FaglianoEdited by Ian Livengood

31 clues. Tap Reveal on any clue for just that answer, or open the full solution at the bottom.

This Midi was titled “Circle of Life” — the title hints at the theme. Clues that point at it: 16A.

Across

  1. 1What a spare key is often hidden under (3)
    RevealMAT
  2. 4Little ___ (kid's nickname) (5)
    RevealFELLA
  3. 9Continent with lions and hyenas: Abbr. (3)
    RevealAFR
  4. 10Sour green fruits (5)
    RevealLIMES
  5. 11Accusatory cry (3)
    RevealYOU
  6. 12Not up to the job (5)
    RevealUNFIT
  7. 13Obama's predecessor (4)
    RevealBUSH
  8. 15In the past (3)
    RevealAGO
  9. 16Musician who co-composed the song from "The Lion King" suggested in this puzzle (9)
    RevealELTONJOHN
  10. 19See 21-Down (4)
    RevealFLOE
  11. 20Two dots above a vowel, as in Brontë and naïve (9)
    RevealDIAERESIS
  12. 25Org. defending individual rights (4)
    RevealACLU
  13. 26Land of Lima (and llamas) (4)
    RevealPERU
  14. 27App with restaurant reviews (4)
    RevealYELP
  15. 28"The Lion King" villain (4)
    RevealSCAR

Down

  1. 1Parent's response that sometimes means "I'm stalling, but no" (5)
    RevealMAYBE
  2. 2Run ___ of (clash with) (5)
    RevealAFOUL
  3. 3Corporate team-building exercise (9)
    RevealTRUSTFALL
  4. 4Winter bug (3)
    RevealFLU
  5. 5German "a" (3)
    RevealEIN
  6. 6Texter's "That's hilarious!" (5)
    RevealLMFAO
  7. 7Vivien ___, Oscar winner for "Gone With the Wind" (5)
    RevealLEIGH
  8. 8___ Martin (sports car) (5)
    RevealASTON
  9. 14Take shelter in a safe place (6)
    RevealHOLEUP
  10. 17Neither's partner (3)
    RevealNOR
  11. 18Wrangler and Grand Wagoneer (5)
    RevealJEEPS
  12. 20The "15" of 8/15/26, e.g. (3)
    RevealDAY
  13. 21With 19-Across, floating chunk in the Arctic Ocean (3)
    RevealICE
  14. 22Triple ___ (margarita ingredient) (3)
    RevealSEC
  15. 23Appropriate missing letters in RET_ _EMENT PL_N (3)
    RevealIRA
  16. 24Spanish for "south" (3)
    RevealSUR
Crossword regulars in this grid (spoilers)

Answers in this NYT Midi Crossword that had shown up before, counted over the 171 puzzles since February 2026:

AGO ×10ICE ×7MAT ×3PERU ×3YOU ×3DAY ×2IRA ×2NOR ×2

Show all 31 answers and the solved grid

Across: 1A MAT4A FELLA9A AFR10A LIMES11A YOU12A UNFIT13A BUSH15A AGO16A ELTONJOHN19A FLOE20A DIAERESIS25A ACLU26A PERU27A YELP28A SCAR

Down: 1D MAYBE2D AFOUL3D TRUSTFALL4D FLU5D EIN6D LMFAO7D LEIGH8D ASTON14D HOLEUP17D NOR18D JEEPS20D DAY21D ICE22D SEC23D IRA24D SUR

About This NYT Midi Crossword

The NYT Midi for Saturday, August 15, 2026 was a 9×9 grid by Joel Fagliano, edited by Ian Livengood, titled “Circle of Life”, with 31 clues; the longest answer ran 9 letters. That is 2 fewer than the average Saturday before it (33.0).

Also on Aug 15: the NYT Mini Crossword and the NYT Crossword.

Earlier August 2026 NYT Midi Crossword Answers

Aug 1Aug 2Aug 3Aug 4Aug 5Aug 6Aug 7Aug 8Aug 9Aug 10Aug 11Aug 12Aug 13Aug 14Aug 15

Every earlier puzzle is in the NYT Midi Crossword archive. For the newest one, see today's NYT Midi Crossword answers, which switch to the next puzzle as soon as it's released.

Unofficial fan guide — not affiliated with or endorsed by The New York Times. Clues are quoted for reference.