The five-letter answer that stopped solvers cold last August? RUSES. The clue “Deceptive ploys” appeared at 8 Across in the New York Times Mini Crossword on Sunday, August 24, 2025, and while the definition seemed simple enough, the answer didn’t come easy for everyone.
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What Made This Clue Work
RUSES sits in that sweet spot of crossword vocabulary where everyday language meets puzzle construction. The word means tricks or stratagems designed to deceive, which lines up directly with “deceptive ploys.” No wordplay, no misdirection, just a straightforward synonym match.
The plural form matters here. “Ploys” signals multiple deceptions, so the answer needed that final S. At five letters, RUSES fits the standard Mini Crossword grid without forcing constructors to bend the puzzle around it.
The Complete August 24, 2025 Mini Crossword
That Sunday’s puzzle ran as a typical 5×5 grid with nine total entries. Here’s how the full board broke down:
Across answers:
- 1A. Perch for a family photo: SHELF
- 6A. Burnett with a variety show from 1967 to 1978: CAROL
- 7A. Plant that yields mezcal: AGAVE
- 8A. Deceptive ploys: RUSES
- 9A. “You’ve gotta be kidding me!”: YEESH
Down answers:
- 1D. How a leap of faith might feel: SCARY
- 2D. Dutch seat of government, with “The”: HAGUE
- 3D. What many pencils can do that magic markers can’t: ERASE
- 4D. Holds dear: LOVES
- 5D. ___ and blood (kin): FLESH
The grid mixed pop culture (Carol Burnett), geography (The Hague), botany (agave), and vocabulary across both directions. Standard fare for a Sunday Mini.
Why Some Solvers Got Stuck
The problem with “Deceptive ploys” comes down to options. English offers plenty of five-letter words for trickery: TRICKS, PLOYS, WILES, FEINTS, DODGES. Your brain cycles through possibilities until the crossing letters narrow things down.
If you worked the Down clues first, letters from SCARY (1D) and ERASE (3D) would have given you the R and S. That eliminates most alternatives. RUSES becomes the logical answer once you have even two letters in place.
Some solvers might have hesitated because RUSES feels slightly formal compared to TRICKS. But crossword constructors prefer it for grid flexibility. The letter pattern (R-U-S-E-S) uses common consonants and vowels that connect well with other words.
How the Mini Crossword Actually Works
The Times launched the Mini in 2014 as a condensed version of their main puzzle. While the standard daily crossword runs 15×15 squares (21×21 on Sundays), the Mini keeps it tight at 5×5. Most solvers finish in under five minutes.
The puzzle refreshes at 10 p.m. ET, an hour different from Wordle, Connections, and Strands. According to Parade’s Ni’Kesia Pannell, who covers the daily puzzle scene, the Mini built a dedicated following among players who want a quick word challenge without committing to the full-size grid.
Will Shortz has edited the main Times crossword since 1993. His operation oversees the Mini as part of the broader NYT Games platform, which became a cultural fixture during the Wordle boom of 2022.
Solving Strategy When You Hit a Wall
Crossing letters give you the biggest advantage in any crossword. Fill in what you know immediately. In the August 24 puzzle, CAROL (Carol Burnett) and AGAVE (the plant used for mezcal) were giveaways for anyone familiar with 1970s television or Mexican spirits.
Those easy wins create a framework. Once you have CAROL running vertically at 6 Across, you get the C that starts SCARY at 1 Down. That S becomes the final letter of RUSES at 8 Across.
The Mini’s compact size means every letter does double duty. You’re never working in isolation. A single correct answer can unlock two or three others through shared letters.
Where RUSES Shows Up in Crossword History
Puzzle databases show RUSES appears regularly across decades of crosswords, not just in the Times. The word works well for constructors because it balances common usage with useful letter patterns.
XWord Info, which tracks New York Times crossword statistics back to 1993, shows how often certain answers recur. Short words with flexible letters (like ERA, AREA, and ALOE) dominate the frequency charts. RUSES sits in the middle tier: common enough that regular solvers recognize it, but not so overused that it feels stale.
The direct definition clue (“Deceptive ploys”) shows up more often in Monday through Wednesday puzzles, when the Times keeps things accessible. Thursday through Saturday constructors typically add layers of wordplay or thematic connections that require lateral thinking.
What Happened After August 24
The Mini Crossword continues running daily as one of the Times’ most popular free offerings. The puzzle format hasn’t changed since launch: 5×5 grid, quick solve time, new puzzle every evening at 10 p.m. ET.
Solvers looking for archived puzzles can access the full history through the NYT Games app or website. Independent puzzle sites also track past answers and statistics for players who want to practice or study patterns.
The August 24 puzzle represented a standard Sunday Mini: accessible vocabulary, mix of cultural references and wordplay, designed for a quick mental workout. RUSES fit the brief perfectly, even if it made some solvers pause before filling in those five letters.
