| 100% | OHI | 3 | First two words of "Dixie," often |
| 81% | IWISH | 5 | First two words of "Dixie" |
| 72% | INTHE | 5 | First two words of Genesis |
| 71% | ONCEA | 5 | First two words of "Waltzing Matilda" |
| 70% | ATALE | 5 | First two words of a Dickens novel |
| 70% | ODETO | 5 | First two words of many poem titles |
| 70% | ODETO | 5 | First two words of some tribute poems |
| 70% | IMET | 4 | First two words of Shelley's "Ozymandias" |
| 70% | OURFATHER | 9 | First two words of the Lord's Prayer |
| 70% | IAM | 3 | First two words of "Green Eggs and Ham" |
| 69% | OCAPTAIN | 8 | First two words of Walt Whitman poem about Lincoln |
| 68% | OLEOLE | 6 | The first two words of “Hot Hot Hot” |
| 67% | ISEE | 4 | First two words of the song "Bad Moon Rising" (2 wds.) |
| 62% | HERES | 5 | First word of a toast, often |
| 62% | DEAR | 4 | First word of a letter, often |
| 59% | ONCE | 4 | First word of a fairy tale, often |
| 59% | BORN | 4 | First word of two Springsteen album titles |
| 59% | ITWAS | 5 | First words of "A Tale of Two Cities" |
| 59% | BORN | 4 | First word of two Bruce Springsteen hit songs |
| 56% | NIGHTY | 6 | First of two nearly identical words to a tucked-in tot |
| 56% | IAM | 3 | First (and last) two words of "Green Eggs and Ham" |
| 54% | BYTHE | 5 | First two words in "btw" |
| 53% | FORSAKE | 7 | Abandon ... or two words often seen next to the starts of 17-, 27-, 47- and 60-Across |
| 52% | DONOT | 5 | First two words in "DND": 2 wds. |
| 51% | ISEE | 4 | Last two words of "Amazing Grace" |
| 51% | ICRIED | 6 | Last two words of Love Story |
| 50% | ROBERTLOUIS | 11 | First two of a novelist |
| 50% | HENRYDAVID | 10 | First two of an essayist |
| 50% | ERICHMARIA | 10 | First two of a novelist |