Washington Post Sunday Crossword Answers Today

Today’s Washington Post Sunday Crossword answers for the big 21x21. Read the theme entries together first; the mechanism opens up the grid. Updated daily with the complete Across and Down answer key.

Latest available answers: Sunday, August 9, 2026. Today’s puzzle is still being published — check back soon.
Sunday Sunday, August 9, 2026

I Need a Lift

Evan Birnholz 148 clues Across 72 Down 76
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ACROSS 72
1 What a protester or a sports fan might hold SIGN
5 Start to hydrate? CARBO
10 Agency concerned with labor pains, briefly? OSHA
14 Three, in Torino TRE
17 Chicago Bulls star Kukoc who became a Hall of Famer in 2021 TONI
18 Annually AYEAR
19 Storage place for old photographs, maybe ATTIC
20 Ifill of "PBS NewsHour" GWEN
21 "Doctor Sleep" actor McGregor EWAN
22 See 65 Across MEARA
23 ___ song (opening number on a TV show) THEME
24 Citrus layer RIND
25 *Flavor of some Jell-O shots WATER
27 "The Ghost of Frankenstein" actor ___ Chaney Jr. LON
28 *Handball and volleyball, at the Summer Olympics TEA
29 Conduits for escaping air VENTS
30 Sounding like Big Ben PEALING
33 Buildup of power between superpowers ARMSRACE
36 Jane Goodall's subjects PRIMATES
39 "Superman's Not Coming" author Brockovich ERIN
41 Saw through, as a trick WASONTO
44 "+" or "-" particle ION
45 Salami or sausage, e.g. MEAT
46 Former ONETIME
48 Needle-nosed fish GAR
49 *Person recognized as one of the best college athletes in this country ALLA
51 Costa ___ (resident of San José) RICAN
54 *Seething SIM
55 Marriage status symbol RING
56 French lit? FLAMBE
59 Rid of impurities CLEANSE
61 Sound of springing BOING
63 "Point Break" actor Patrick SWAYZE
65 With 22 Across, Veronica Rooney's portrayer on "Archie Bunker's Place" ANNE
66 Stage crews? TROUPES
68 With 70 Across, "Help, I can't get up there on my own" ... or, what you must do when entering the starred answers in this puzzle GIVEME
70 See 68 Across ABOOST
72 Brought into accord ATTUNED
75 "Now, about ..." ASTO
77 Those who are right across the pond? TORIES
81 Major embarrassment SHAME
82 What a propane furnace generates GASHEAT
85 Inner strength METTLE
87 *Glowed unsteadily SHIM
88 Color accompanying the black stripes on Calvin's shirt RED
89 *Becomes locked together INTER
91 "___ a bad mama jama" (lyric from a Carl Carlton song) SHES
92 ___ capita PER
93 Fruits and vegetables PRODUCE
96 Overthrow of a regime COUP
99 Miami summer hrs. EDT
100 Operating system on Google Pixel phones ANDROID
102 "___ we forget ..." LEST
104 Picante dip, maybe HOTSALSA
106 Caesar salad shreds PARMESAN
108 Least sufficiently lit DIMMEST
110 *Competitions in which observers can provide running commentary? TRACK
112 Xenomorphs in the Alien franchise, e.g. ETS
113 *He drew the gods' ire by taking their fire PRO
114 2026 FIFA World Cup co-host THEUS
118 "How does that ___?" WORK
119 Quintet of a kids' song EIEIO
121 Zero AUGHT
124 Trade show, briefly EXPO
125 Results of being tagged OUTS
126 Zohran Mamdani's title MAYOR
127 Impoverished areas SLUMS
128 Zero NADA
129 Piglet's place STY
130 Land of Frankincense locale OMAN
131 Starting point of civil rights marches in 1965 SELMA
132 Running wild AMOK
DOWN 76
1 Hearty bowlful STEW
2 State where the author N.K. Jemisin was born IOWA
3 Fly in a cloud GNAT
4 2100, in military time NINEPM
5 Vid recorder CAM
6 "Sure thing, Cap'n!" AYE
7 Having reasonable expectations REALISTIC
8 Noble rank for Porthos in "The Three Musketeers" BARON
9 Color accompanying the black stripes on Hobbes's back ORANGE
10 "A concept that describes how minority or less powerful groups are positioned as inferior to dominant groups," per the sociologist Zuleyka Zevallos OTHERNESS
11 Geyser emanation STEAM
12 "That guy?" HIM
13 Great pitcher, or a great serve ACE
14 Like aircraft with a pair of motors TWINENGINE
15 Tenant's obligation RENT
16 Farthest points ENDS
19 Accomplish ATTAIN
20 ___-Roman GRECO
26 Quantity of paper REAM
29 Annual setting? VASE
31 Took a few beets, say ATE
32 King who says to Kent, "My wits begin to turn" LEAR
34 Get along in school? SWIM
35 Head-butting creature RAM
36 "L'Accordéoniste" singer Édith PIAF
37 Does somersaults, say ROLLS
38 Relative by marriage INLAW
40 "Blitz" actress Saoirse RONAN
42 Zesty flavors TANGS
43 Part of a charity's URL ORG
47 Connect with TIETO
50 Group for drs. AMA
52 Chowder ingredient CLAM
53 He battles Achilles in "The Iliad" AENEAS
55 Upholstery problem RIP
57 "Good golly!" BYGUM
58 Online pub EZINE
60 Spruce (up) NEATEN
61 ___ buddies BOSOM
62 Shockingly strange OUTRE
64 Celebratory night EVE
67 Become moldy ROT
69 Defeated, but barely EDGED
71 Dockside sight BOAT
72 Drained of color ASHEN
73 Group challenging a political duopoly THIRDPARTY
74 Floppy topper TAM
76 Recoils, with "away" SHIES
78 TGIF or FWIW contraction ITS
79 ___ Kennedy Bridge (D.C. river crossing) ETHEL
80 Cold-weather coasters SLEDS
83 Hero worship ADULATION
84 Apple head, e.g. TECHMOGUL
86 This, en español ESTA
87 Chemical peel venue SPA
88 Got a Lyft, say RODE
90 "Read the ___!" ROOM
93 Pig roast staple PORK
94 Glass lip RIM
95 Get the @#$%&! in here? CENSOR
97 Indigenous group for whom the Garden of the Gods is sacred ground UTE
98 Sneaky summons PSST
101 Spice jar spaces RACKS
103 Fantasy football stat TDPASS
105 Goddess played by Zendaya in the 2026 film "The Odyssey" ATHENA
107 "Gotta run!" SEEYA
109 Boast of dominance IRULE
110 "Terrible" period TWOS
111 Romp on the field, say ROUT
115 Cram session focus EXAM
116 Bride's style, maybe UPDO
117 Relax in the tub SOAK
119 ___'s Not Dead (lifestyle brand selling Sad Kid Society shirts) EMO
120 Concise confirmation IAM
122 "I wonder ..." HMM
123 LAX screening group TSA
Last updated: 2026-09-08

Today’s Washington Post Sunday Crossword answers for the big 21x21. Read the theme entries together first; the mechanism opens up the grid.

Washington Post Sunday: Quick Facts

Publisher The Washington Post Sunday (Evan Birnholz)
Grid 21×21 large Sunday
Difficulty Medium–hard with big themes
Typical solve 45–75 minutes
Schedule New big puzzle every Sunday
Best for Weekend ritual, theme fans, ambitious solvers

History of the Washington Post Sunday

The Washington Post Sunday Crossword is the weekend flagship — a large 21×21 grid in the tradition of great Sunday puzzles, with an ambitious theme and room for constructors to stretch. Evan Birnholz’s Sunday work is widely admired for wedding scale to solvability: big grids that never feel like slogs because the theme carries you through. Sunday solvers who know the NYT Sunday should absolutely add this one; theme fans often rate the Post’s inventiveness even higher.

Large Sundays play differently. Theme density is higher, crossings are longer, and one cracked theme answer can open a quarter of the grid. Conversely, a misunderstood gimmick stalls everything — which is why this answer key matters most on Sundays. Check the theme entries first when stuck; the mechanism explanation hidden in them restarts the whole solve.

Make it a ritual. An hour with coffee, the big grid, and this key for emergencies is among the finest cheap entertainments available.

How to Read This Washington Post Sunday Answer Key

Start with the longest Across answers in the key — read them as a set to extract the theme idea before solving anything else. Then work the grid with the mechanism in mind, verifying individual entries by number as needed.

Confirm the Sunday date on the card. Sunday editions have the longest shelf life and the most search traffic, so stale-key mix-ups peak on Mondays — the date line prevents them.

Solve in zones. Finish one quadrant against the key, study any missed wordplay, then move to the next. Batch verification teaches more than end-of-grid checking.

Washington Post Sunday Solving Tips That Work

Name the gimmick early

Read all theme answers together and state the trick in one sentence. An explicit mechanism (“each theme answer hides a state capital”) guides every subsequent guess.

Exploit long crossings

Sunday grids give long, checkable crossings. Fill every certain letter — length plus crossings makes even hard clues tractable.

Budget a real session

Plan 45–75 minutes. Rushing a Sunday guarantees frustration; patience guarantees the theme click that makes it worthwhile.

Check themes, solve fill

Verify confusing theme entries here, then solve the surrounding fill yourself. That split preserves both progress and pride.

Replay the theme

After finishing, explain the theme to someone (or write it down). Articulating the mechanism cements the pattern for future Sundays.

Stuck on One Washington Post Sunday Clue?

Crack the theme mechanism from the long answers first, then verify individual entries. The solver confirms fill while the key explains themes.

Open our free crossword solver for any remaining entry. Archive-backed matches appear first, so the answer that real crosswords have used most often sits on top.

Big grid, big theme, big satisfaction. Give Sunday the hour it deserves, keep this key within reach for the theme entries, and enjoy the best long-form puzzle of the American weekend.

CrosswordAnswer is independent and not affiliated with The Washington Post. Puzzle content belongs to its publisher; this key and guide are original editorial content.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where are today's Washington Post Sunday Crossword answers?

Right here on this page. The answer key above shows today's complete Washington Post Sunday Crossword solution — every Across clue with its answer and every Down clue with its answer, plus the puzzle date, author and total clue counts. The page refreshes daily as soon as the newest The Washington Post (Evan Birnholz Sunday) puzzle is available.

What time is the Washington Post Sunday Crossword published?

Big puzzle every Sunday. This page updates the same morning so you can check answers before work, at lunch, or with your evening solve.

How hard is the Washington Post Sunday Crossword?

Medium–hard large Sunday theme. If you get stuck on one entry, copy the clue into our free crossword solver with the letters you know and it will rank the most likely answers from millions of archived clues.

Can I see answers without spoiling the whole grid?

Yes. The Across and Down lists are grouped by number, so scroll to just the clue you need. Use your browser find (Ctrl+F or Cmd+F) and type the clue number to jump straight to it.

Is this page affiliated with the publisher?

No. CrosswordAnswer is an independent answers guide and is not affiliated with or endorsed by The Washington Post (Evan Birnholz Sunday) or any puzzle publisher. All puzzle titles belong to their respective owners.

How This Page Is Made

Answer keys on this page are generated from the current puzzle data feed for this edition, showing clue texts, answers, author and editor credits, and clue counts together so you can confirm the key matches your grid. Guides and FAQs are original editorial notes written by working solvers, refreshed regularly, and dated above. CrosswordAnswer is an independent guide with no affiliation to any puzzle publisher.