| 100% | STLOUISMISSOURI | 15 | City with a landmark spelled out by the circled letters, reading left to right |
| 39% | AVANTGARDE | 10 | Like the work spelled out by the circled letters |
| 38% | THEPRICEISRIGHT | 15 | Long-running game show with a feature spelled out clockwise by this puzzle's circled letters |
| 37% | KARAOKESCREEN | 13 | One place to follow the object named in the circled letters (reading left to right) |
| 36% | INNER | 5 | Private ... or a hint to the words spelled by the circled letters |
| 36% | CUT | 3 | With the circled letters, a hint to solving seven Across clues |
| 36% | THEHURTLOCKER | 13 | Oscar-winning film whose Oscar-winning director is spelled out by the letters cutting the circled Oscar-winning directors |
| 36% | CHRISTMASEVE | 12 | Apt phrase spelled out by the first letters of the answers to the starred clues |
| 35% | ARMORYSHOW | 10 | Event at which the work spelled out by the circled letters was first exhibited in America |
| 35% | WACO | 4 | Only major U.S. city with a radio station whose call letters spell the city's name |
| 35% | THREE | 5 | With the circled letters, a literal depiction of what you need to win tic-tac-toe? |
| 35% | DOUBLEORNOTHING | 15 | Risky wager ... with a hint to the letters in this puzzle's circled squares |
| 34% | ITSRAINING | 10 | With 63-Across, the opening lines to a nursery rhyme suggested by this puzzle's circled letters |
| 34% | PLOT | 4 | What's spelled out, appropriately, after mapping the coordinates indicated by this puzzle's circled letters |
| 34% | LATENESS | 8 | Result of pushing things back, and what's spelled out by eight letters that have been literally pushed to the back |
| 33% | BOWLSOVER | 9 | Leaves flabbergasted, and a hint to the circled letters |
| 32% | DIAMONDHEAD | 11 | Hawaiian landmark, and a hint to the circled letters |
| 32% | BASEBALL | 8 | With 49-Across, a hint to the circled letters |
| 32% | DELHI | 5 | Indian city with a similar name to the capital |
| 32% | GOAT | 4 | Superlative acronym spelled out by the starts of the answers to the starred clues |
| 31% | UPSET | 5 | Sports shocker … with a hint to the circled letters |
| 31% | YOLO | 4 | "Carpe diem" acronym spelled out by the starts of the answers to the starred clues |
| 31% | NATURAL | 7 | With 39-Across, subject of study represented literally by the words spelled out by this puzzle's circled letters |
| 31% | INFANT | 6 | One delivered by the labor specialist spelled out in the circled letters that touch six dividing black squares in this puzzle |
| 31% | PUPA | 4 | Life stage originally represented by the circled letters, prior to metamorphosis |
| 31% | TOOMUCHTOOSOON | 14 | A lot to deal with right out of the gate |
| 30% | PHYSICS | 7 | Science that deals with the phenomenon spelled out by 10 missing letters in this puzzle |
| 30% | ABCS | 4 | The letters, to a beginning reader |
| 30% | DOGLEGS | 7 | Some links holes ... with a hint to the circled letters |
| 30% | TAKE | 4 | With this puzzle's circled letters, exercise a certain constitutional right, and how to answer each starred clue |