| 78% | HUNG | 4 | "The stockings were ___ by the chimney with care ..." |
| 51% | ENDUPINLAST | 11 | With 73-Across, be beaten by the rest of the field |
| 51% | BYTHECHIMNEYWITHCARE | 20 | ''The stockings were hung __ . . .'' |
| 49% | AMELIA | 6 | Joni Mitchell song with the lyric "She was swallowed by the sky" |
| 49% | WHOKILLED | 9 | With 59-Across, old English nursery rhyme being investigated by the detectives in this puzzle |
| 49% | DUDS | 4 | Milk ___, caramel candies coated with chocolate which are made by The Hershey Company |
| 49% | SHELLCOMPANIES | 14 | Corporations with little business activity, and what are formed by the circled letters |
| 48% | INTERNATIONALE | 14 | Left-wing anthem whose lyrics were written by the anarchist Eugène Pottier, with “The” |
| 48% | MADLIB | 6 | Story with blanks to be filled in by the reader |
| 47% | WHOLEHOG | 8 | With 49-Across, Southern cooking tradition that can be described by the transformation happening in this puzzle |
| 47% | JOE | 3 | ___ Morgan, second baseman with the jersey number 8 that was retired by the Cincinnati Reds |
| 47% | CEMENTSHOES | 11 | Things that may be worn by someone sleeping with the fishes |
| 47% | AMELIA | 6 | Joni Mitchell song with the lyrics "A ghost of aviation / She was swallowed by the sky" |
| 47% | EVIL | 4 | "Most of the ___ in this world is done by people with good intentions": T.S. Eliot |
| 46% | SWIMMING | 8 | "___ with Sharks," TV series starring Kiernan Shipka and Diane Kruger that was inspired by the eponymous 1994 film |
| 46% | RIO | 3 | With 21-Down, John Wayne western that was the last film directed by Howard Hawks |
| 46% | REAL | 4 | With 27-Across, novel by 42-Across that was shortlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize |
| 46% | JUMPINJACKFLASH | 15 | 1968 hit with the line "I was raised by a toothless, bearded hag" |
| 46% | SONOFMAN | 8 | Magritte work in which a face is obscured by an apple, with The |
| 45% | INASCRABBLEGAME | 15 | With 30- and 49-Across, test question to be answered by filling in the correct circle |
| 45% | LIT | 3 | "It was a dimly ___ room with old pictures hanging from the walls." (not bright) |
| 45% | NEED | 4 | "All You ___ Is Love," 1967 song by The Beatles that starts with the chorus |
| 45% | RAMA | 4 | "Rendezvous with ___," 1973 novel by Arthur C. Clarke that is set in the 2130s |
| 44% | ALEX | 4 | With 50-Across, French forward who was selected by the Washington Wizards as the second overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft |
| 44% | IMNOTADOCTOR | 12 | With 40- and 48-Across, much-mocked ad phrase that could have been said by the answers to the four starred clues |
| 44% | STOCKING | 8 | *Long foot covering hung by the fireplace for Santa to fill with 13a, 17a, 46a, 13d, 29d, 44d or 51d |
| 44% | STOCKING | 8 | * Long foot covering hung by the fireplace for Santa to fill with 13a, 17a, 46a, 13d, 29d, 44d or 51d |
| 44% | SPREADTHEWEALTH | 15 | Be generous with one's good fortune, as depicted by the movement of this puzzle's circled letters |
| 43% | BAKES | 5 | Is oppressed by the heat |
| 43% | ENTERS | 6 | Is welcomed by the doorman |