| 100% | NEW | 3 | "...and a happy ___ year" |
| 100% | NEW | 3 | "...and a Happy ____ Year" |
| 87% | LET | 3 | "___ us all pray and wish for a safe and Happy New Year!" |
| 82% | FRANKLINPADAMS | 14 | "I wish you a meretricious and a happy New Year" penner |
| 72% | MARITAL | 7 | __ bliss; state of a happy husband and wife |
| 68% | AGED | 4 | A term for years-old wine and cheese |
| 67% | PLAYFUL | 7 | Happy and seeking amusement, like a pair of puppies |
| 66% | SMILEYEMOJI | 11 | … something yellow and happy in a text message |
| 65% | CRONIN | 6 | A J —, author of novels The Green Years and The Citadel |
| 65% | STEP | 4 | Have a spring in your ___ (be happy and energetic) |
| 64% | MCQUEEN | 7 | Steve __, artist and director of 12 Years a Slave |
| 64% | NYONGO | 6 | Lupita, star of Us and Twelve Years a Slave |
| 64% | BRADPITT | 8 | Actor in "12 Years a Slave" and "12 Monkeys" |
| 63% | CALENDAR | 8 | Chart with the days, weeks, and months of a year |
| 63% | GET | 3 | "Pay now and ___ access for a year" (subscription promo message) |
| 63% | BIRDMAN | 7 | Best Picture winner between "12 Years a Slave" and "Spotlight" |
| 62% | BIDEN | 5 | "Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose" author |
| 62% | SIN | 3 | "It's A ___," 2021 collaboration between Elton John and Years & Years |
| 61% | ECSTATIC | 8 | Deliriously overjoyed and a synonym for "happy" |
| 61% | OTIS | 4 | A 164 year old American company that focuses on "Moving People" horizontally and vertically |
| 61% | ANNAT | 5 | A half year's stipend, over and above what is owing for the incumbency |
| 61% | HENRY | 5 | Winkler who jumped over a shark on Happy Days and Arrested Development |
| 61% | MMI | 3 | New millennium year, or a part of 20-, 37- and 49-Across |
| 61% | DAD | 3 | "Promise Me, ___: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose" (Joe Biden memoir) |
| 61% | GNP | 3 | Market value of all goods and services produced in a year: Abbr |
| 61% | AGO | 3 | "It was many and many a year ___" (opening line of "Annabel Lee") |
| 60% | ARGO | 4 | Best Picture Oscar winner between "The Artist" and "12 Years a Slave" |
| 60% | TOAD | 4 | "A Year With Frog and ___" |
| 59% | AGOOD | 5 | "___ Year," a British-American comedy-drama starring Russell Crowe and Marion Cotillard: 2 wds. |
| 59% | CLAPS | 5 | Joins a rendition of "If You're Happy and You Know It," say |