| 100% | MISTLETOE | 9 | Plant kept under the pillow by singletons in an Irish New Year's Eve tradition to help them dream of their future partners |
| 26% | GRAPES | 6 | Twelve ___, fruits eaten as a Spanish New Year's Eve tradition to bring luck to each month of the new year |
| 24% | BALLDROP | 8 | New Year's Eve celebration in Times Square commonly referred to as the ___: 2 wds. |
| 24% | BALLDROP | 8 | New Year's Eve tradition in the Big Apple, and what can be found in 3-, 8-, 33-, and 37-Down? |
| 23% | LEAD | 4 | ___ pouring, German New Year's Eve tradition that's meant to predict one's future |
| 22% | POLKA | 5 | ___ dots, pattern worn on New Year's Eve in the Philippines to welcome prosperity |
| 22% | GRAPES | 6 | Twelve ___, Spanish New Year tradition to bring in a year of prosperity |
| 21% | BROOKLYN | 8 | Colm Tóibín novel about an Irish woman who moves to New York in the 1950s |
| 21% | NFT | 3 | Collectible targeted at people "who have met all their material needs and still can't fill that empty hole inside of them," according to an explainer by The Onion |
| 20% | CHAMPAGNE | 9 | New Year's Eve libation whose uncorking sound can be found in the starred answers |
| 20% | REUNION | 7 | A __ dinner is a New Year's Eve tradition in China |
| 20% | FIVE | 4 | (1/5) Start of a New Year's Eve countdown...or the result of 100 divided by 20 |
| 20% | ELEVATOR | 8 | "Love in an ___," song by Aerosmith that describes the exciting ride to the top of the Eiffel Tower |
| 20% | BROOKLYN | 8 | 2009 novel by 38-Across about an Irish woman who moves to New York in the 1950s (2 wds.) |
| 20% | TET | 3 | Vietnamese New Year, which is represented by the Zodiac animals at the starts of the answers to the starred clues |
| 20% | WAVES | 5 | Jumping seven ___, Brazilian New Year's Eve tradition meant to bring good luck |
| 20% | FAIRY | 5 | Kids leave their baby teeth under their pillows, in the hope of a present from the Tooth ___ |
| 20% | BLOOD | 5 | "Bad ___," song by Taylor Swift that won an MTV VMA for Video of the Year in 2015 |
| 19% | CEDILLA | 7 | Character such as that placed under the c in French name Francois that softens the sound from that of k to s |
| 19% | END | 3 | *"As the night came to an ___, they gathered by the fireplace, holding hands, with hearts full of gratitude..." |
| 19% | SAAR | 4 | Area governed by the League of Nations for 15 years and returned to Germany in a 1935 plebiscite |
| 19% | LOSEWEIGHT | 10 | Common New Year's resolution -- as hinted at by the answers to the four starred clues |
| 19% | EARTO | 5 | Keep an ___ the ground (be alert to what's new): 2 wds. |
| 19% | CHEERS | 6 | Rallying words from fans in the stands, or a cry to mark the New Year's tradition of raising glasses |
| 19% | RING | 4 | Boxer's arena, or a New Year's tradition that announces the beginning of the New Year (with "in") |
| 19% | FEARAND | 7 | , 6D & 13D 1972 volume by Hunter S. Thompson subtitled A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream |
| 19% | CROWE | 5 | Sara —, 1991 Performance of the Year by an Actress in a Supporting Role Olivier Award-winner for Private Lives |
| 19% | MOXA | 4 | Downy material obtained from the dried leaves of an Asian plant related to mugwort used in traditional Chinese medicine |
| 19% | ALE | 3 | "___ Street News", founded in 1992 by Tony Forder and Jack Babin to provide info about the world of beer |
| 19% | TOPHATS | 7 | Partners of tails ... and what's found in the answers to starred clues |