| 100% | THEDESCENTOFMAN | 15 | Darwin work ... with a hint to three consecutive letters in 3-, 4-, 7-, 9- and 11-Down |
| 38% | ACTUP | 5 | Make mischief, and a hint to what's found in 3-, 5-, 7-, 34- and 38-Down |
| 38% | THEBIGAPPLE | 11 | Empire State Building locale ... or a hint to three letters in 16-, 19-, 52- and 57-Across |
| 37% | RATEHIKE | 8 | Fed proposal, and a hint to what's hidden in 3-, 9-, 25- and 29-Down |
| 37% | STRETCHTHETRUTH | 15 | Exaggerate ... or a hint to five nonconsecutive letters in 20-Across, 36-Across and 7-Down |
| 35% | CONSEQUENTIALLY | 15 | As a result, and a hint to a three-letter chunk in the five long Down answers |
| 35% | CHARTTOPPER | 11 | #1 hit, or a hint to 3-, 8-, 11- and 24-Down |
| 35% | DUDEWHERESMYCAR | 15 | 2000 stoner comedy whose title is a hint to 3-, 6-, and 9-Down |
| 35% | GANDHI | 6 | Icon born 10/2/1869 ... with a hint to three squares in this puzzle |
| 35% | DOUBLEFEATURE | 13 | Drive-in theater draw ... with a literal hint to 4- and 21-Down |
| 34% | BLONDEONBLONDE | 14 | 1966 Bob Dylan album whose title is a hint to 3-, 6-, and 9-Down |
| 34% | DOTDOTDOT | 9 | Indication of more to come … or a hint to a feature of three consecutive letters in 18-, 20-, 59- and 61-Across |
| 34% | DROPSHOTS | 9 | Tricky tennis returns, and a hint to the starts of 3-, 7-, 9- and 24-Down |
| 34% | FOLLOWINGTHE | 12 | With 58-Down, a patient process? ... or a hint to two consecutive letters in the answer to each of the seven starred clues |
| 33% | DOUBLEORNOTHING | 15 | Risky wager ... with a hint to the letters in this puzzle's circled squares |
| 33% | WHATCHAUPTO | 11 | "Anything fun on the agenda today?," or a hint to the starts of 3-, 7-, 21-, and 29-Down |
| 32% | TENPINBOWLING | 13 | Popular sport played with a ball that has three holes and whose history has been traced back to the Egyptians living in 3200 BCE: 3 wds. |
| 32% | DOWNWARDDOG | 11 | Popular yoga pose ... or a literal hint to the ends of 3-, 7-, 9- and 21-Down |
| 32% | SOCIALCAPITAL | 13 | Network of personal relationships ... or a punny hint to 3-, 7- and 11-Down |
| 31% | RAINDROPS | 9 | Shower units, and a hint to three answers in this puzzle |
| 31% | TURNONAD | 8 | With 69-Across, change quickly, and a hint to completing three other long answers in this puzzle |
| 31% | LOOSELEAF | 9 | Kind of paper ... and a hint to a sequence, each starting with a different letter, found in four other puzzle answers |
| 31% | RAISECAIN | 9 | Cause a commotion, and a hint to a feature of 3-, 6- and 9-Down |
| 30% | KEEPITBETWEENUS | 15 | "Let this be our little secret" … or a hint to letter sequences hidden in 16-, 32- and 40-Across |
| 30% | THESUNALSORISES | 15 | Hemingway title, and a hint to a three-letter answer that fits with four stealthy seven-letter answers |
| 30% | LITTLEITALY | 11 | Neighborhood near SoHo, and a hint to three squares in this puzzle |
| 30% | BRAKEJOBS | 9 | Garage offerings, and a phonetic hint to what the black squares in rows 3, 5, 11 and 13 do |
| 30% | WORDSQUARE | 10 | Classic letter puzzle -- or, when parsed differently, a hint to three Down answers in this puzzle |
| 30% | OTANNENBAUM | 11 | Seasonal song with a hint to the last words in 17-, 25-, 37- and 45-Across |
| 30% | TWISTANDSHOUT | 13 | 1964 Beatles hit, and a hint to the circled letters in this puzzle |