NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD PUZZLE

Laura Taylor Kinnel, of Newtown, Pa., teaches math and is the director of studies at a Friends boarding school near Philadelphia. Since her last puzzle appeared in March, she has spent lots of time with colleagues developing best methods and new processes for remote learning. Laura remarks that she was sitting and conducting classes from home in the same spot where she normally makes crosswords! — W.S. ACROSS

1 1/48 of a cup: Abbr.

4 Ad Council offerings, for short 8 Home of the Kaaba 13 Spartan 17 ‘‘The Problem With ____’’ (2017 documentary) 18 Orator’s platform 19 ‘‘Never meet your ____’’ (maxim) 20 Less wild 21 Done working: Abbr. 22 About which you might always say, ‘‘Bee prepared’’? 23 They take the form of selfflying paper airplanes in the Harry Potter books 24 Topping for a 25-Across 25 Piece of cake, say 27 Improv-class exercises 29 Kids 30 Without aim 31 Mob

33 Fish whose males bear the young 35 Evening gala 37 Note-taking spot? 38 Sustained period of luck, as with dice 39 Litter critter 40 Floor-plan unit 42 Restless desire 46 What Franklin famously asked for 49 Floor-plan spec 50 Blog-feed inits. 52 Debtor’s letters 53 Email holder 54 Something lent to a friend 55 Set of skills, metaphorically 57 Father of Scout, in ‘‘To Kill a Mockingbird’’ 59 Declare 61 Best-actor winner Malek 63 Normandy battle site 65 Wads

66 Last dance? 69 Managed an unmanageable group, figuratively 72 Wonder Woman accessory 73 Aware of 75 Playroom chest 76 Downwind 77 They’re worn on heads with tails

79 Store

81 Was first

83 Ka ____ (southernmost point on Hawaii) 84 Prefix with -graph

85 Run on 86 Singer Brickell 87 Believed something without question 89 Commercial lead-in to land 91 Elizabeth Warren vis-à-vis former chief justice Earl Warren, e.g. 95 It’s frequently under fire 96 Prepare to bathe 98 Olivia Benson’s division on TV: Abbr. 99 Conditional word 102 Expressively creative 104 First of the metalloids 106 Border 107 Flight recorder 108 ____ complex 111 A much greater quantity 113 Lead-in to fit or active

114 ____ New Guinea 115 Foreword 117 Org. that kicked off again in 2020 after a 19-year hiatus 118 Studio behind ‘‘Platoon’’ and ‘‘Amadeus’’ 119 Salary negotiator 120 Adversary 121 Embodiment of slipperiness 122 Word before or after short 123 One of the six simple machines 124 State pair: Abbr.

125 Mrs., in Mexico

DOWN

1 Transportation for the Doctor on ‘‘Doctor Who’’ 2 Small suit 3 Tries to make the unappealing attractive 4 Eeyore-ish sentiment 5 Stocking stuffer 6 Donkey Kong, e.g. 7 Imbroglios 8 Play charades 9 Setting for a Sistine Chapel painting 10 Results from 11 Near 12 ‘‘Methought I was enamour’d of an ____’’ : Titania 13 Brand of rum 14 Improper 15 Best-actress winner Zellweger 16 Tiny fractions of joules 18 ‘‘____ Would Be King,’’ 2018 novel by Wayétu Moore 20 Attach, in a way 26 Stack topper 28 Iconic Chevy 29 ‘‘You nailed it!’’ 32 ____ page 34 Spanish ‘‘now’’ 36 Olympic pentathlete’s need 38 Well-being 40 Purse part 41 Flying Clouds and Royales 43 Be fully qualified . . . or a hint to this puzzle’s theme 44 Author of ‘‘The Silent World: A Story of Undersea Discovery and Adventure’’ 45 Czech reformer Jan 46 Coastal inlets 47 It might get a licking 48 Combination meant to change behavior 51 Starter earring 56 Play piano, informally 58 Machu Picchu builder 60 Something frequently made with the eyes shut 62 X-ray alternative, maybe 64 Spanish treasure 67 Anthem starter 68 Businesses with a portmanteau name

70 ‘‘It Ain’t Me Babe’’ songwriter 71 Percolate

74 Zip

77 No. in a directory 78 Wimbledon wear, perhaps 80 Chooses not to act 82 Academia figure 88 It follows the Hijri calendar 90 Protruding bit of bedrock 92 Form a new mental picture of 93 Got away 94 Sharing word 97 Canon competitor 99 Leaves weaponless 100 One participating in a new Summer Olympics sport in 2021 101 Fashion designer McCartney 102 Heads-up 103 Two to one, say 105 Time and again 107 Warner ____ 109 Like the Liberty Bell in 1846, for the last time 110 Big name in British art 112 Hall-of-Fame catcher Campanella 114 Print maker 116 Tulsa-to-Des Moines dir.