| 100% | DARK | 4 | ___ matter, spooky-sounding term for an invisible, hypothetical form of matter that makes up most of the Universe |
| 40% | SPAIN | 5 | Country that makes up most of the Iberian Peninsula |
| 36% | ALDER | 5 | Wood that makes up the foundation of much of Venice |
| 34% | MOHAIR | 6 | Long soft silky hair that makes up the outer coat of an Angora goat |
| 34% | AWARD | 5 | Any of the four prizes that make up an EGOT |
| 34% | AWARD | 5 | Any one of the four honors that make up an EGOT |
| 33% | SALTY | 5 | Making a comeback is this "sodium-rich" slangy term for an annoyed person that originated in the late 1930's |
| 33% | NITROGEN | 8 | Gas that makes up most of Earth's atmosphere |
| 33% | NITROGEN | 8 | Element making up most of the world's atmosphere |
| 33% | EXAM | 4 | Test that could make up a large percentage of the grade for a course |
| 33% | ATL | 3 | Ocean that makes up most of Virginia's coast (Abbr.) |
| 33% | ERIE | 4 | Great Lake that makes up most of Ohio's northern border |
| 33% | BAMBOO | 6 | Plant that makes up most of a Giant Panda's diet |
| 32% | ISLANDS | 7 | Bodies of land that make up the Caribbean |
| 32% | FELDSPAR | 8 | Rock-forming mineral that makes up over half of the earth's crust |
| 32% | DANK | 4 | Making a comeback is this "wet and unpleasant" slangy term for something of high quality that originated in the '80s |
| 31% | SPECTRAL | 8 | ___ lines, spooky-sounding term for the colored bands that appear when light is split in physics |
| 30% | OBOE | 4 | Instrument that makes the sound of the duck in "Peter and the Wolf" |
| 30% | MEKONG | 6 | River that forms much of the Laos/Thailand border |
| 30% | LIBRETTO | 8 | Term for the text of an opera |
| 30% | COPPER | 6 | Term for dark reddish-brown hair that resembles a metal of the same name |
| 30% | HYDROGEN | 8 | Gas that makes up around 74 percent of the Sun |
| 30% | HELIUM | 6 | Gas that makes up around 24 percent of the Sun |
| 30% | CATSCAN | 7 | Term for an X-ray imaging technique that now more commonly omits its second letter |
| 30% | SONY | 4 | Tech giant that originally got its name from a combination of the Latin word for sound and a slang term for a young boy |
| 30% | TAMAR | 5 | River that forms most of the border between Cornwall and Devon |
| 30% | TIN | 3 | Metal that makes up about 12% of the material in bronze |
| 30% | USSR | 4 | Country that included Russia for much of the 20th century: Abbr. |
| 30% | FOURTHWALL | 10 | TV term for an "invisible, imaginary barrier" that separates the cast and the audience... and the theme that connects 25a, 43a, 50a, 22d, and 54d: 2 wds. |
| 30% | ALARM | 5 | First sound of the day, for many |