| 100% | ETHER | 5 | Anesthetic that used to be used by dentists, or a term for the sky |
| 45% | AGNUSDEI | 8 | Liturgy that takes its name from a term for Jesus used by John the Baptist |
| 44% | IRAN | 4 | Persian Gulf country that used to be ruled by a shah |
| 44% | FINAL | 5 | "Is that your ___ answer?", catchphrase used by Regis Philbin on the reality show "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" |
| 43% | HARD | 4 | ___ pass, term for a firm rejection that was added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary in 2021 |
| 43% | BUTTONS | 7 | Song by The Pussycat Dolls or things to use for a snowman's eyes |
| 42% | MARATHON | 8 | Long race that used to be the name for Snickers |
| 42% | FOOD | 4 | ___ scarcity, term referring to a lack of nutritional sources that is a proposed theory for the extinction of dinosaurs |
| 42% | KEDGE | 5 | Light anchor dropped away from a ship so that the anchor chain can be used to move the ship by hauling |
| 41% | NAT | 3 | Member of the baseball team that used to be the Expos, for short |
| 41% | MAD | 3 | 2008 song by Ne-Yo whose title is also a word for being upset that's often used to describe a bull's emotions |
| 40% | WHITEBAIT | 9 | A collective term for the immature fry of fish that are considered delicacies |
| 40% | GAS | 3 | Laughing ___ (layman's term for the nitrous oxide used by dentists) |
| 40% | MORIA | 5 | Underground kingdom known as Khazad-dum that used to be a famed realm of the Dwarves |
| 40% | SLOP | 4 | Waste water from a kitchen, bathroom, or chamber pot that has to be emptied by hand |
| 40% | SWORD | 5 | Weapon used for duels and adventures on the high seas that would be a great addition to your "Pirate" Halloween costume |
| 40% | NERD | 4 | Term for a bookish person that was coined by Dr. Seuss |
| 40% | ISP | 3 | Term for a company that provides access to the Web: Abbr. |
| 39% | WHATARETHEODDS | 14 | "How lucky was that?" ... or a hint to the answers to the starred clues |
| 39% | EAGLE | 5 | Bird that has been used by the Dutch police to take down illegal drones |
| 39% | MACGUFFIN | 9 | Term for an item that is essential to a film's plot |
| 39% | WHATARACKET | 11 | "Boy, is that loud!" ... or a hint to the ends of 17-, 25-, 38- and 49-Across |
| 39% | PHOTOSHOP | 9 | Adobe ___, digital art software that is often used synonymously as a term for image editing |
| 39% | WATER | 5 | ___ Bearer, shape of a human that is said to be represented by the constellation Aquarius |
| 39% | GMT | 3 | Time zone that is used as a central reference point for all the others: Abbr. |
| 39% | PDA | 3 | Term for a handheld computer that has largely been replaced by "smartphone": Abbr. |
| 39% | SNIGLET | 7 | Term for a word that isn't in the dictionary but should be |
| 39% | SMS | 3 | Protocol that was first used to send the text "Merry Christmas," for short |
| 39% | SCREWTOP | 8 | Lid for a bottle or jar that is closed by twisting |
| 39% | NODOFF | 6 | At midnight when I'm still writing clues for the puzzle that absolutely has to be in Florida by 8:00 am, I have a tendency to do this |