| 100% | BEANSTALK | 9 | Storied locale for the circled letters in 8- and 65-Across |
| 46% | TURNINGAPROPHET | 15 | Punny description of the circled letters in 17-, 27- and 48-Across |
| 46% | EYE | 3 | Either of the circled letters in 4-Across, for this puzzle's face |
| 45% | ABC | 3 | Kind of order for the circled letters in this puzzle |
| 45% | FULLHOUSE | 9 | Hit 1980s-'90s sitcom ... or what the circled letters in 16-, 26- and 43-Across represent? |
| 44% | HIDDENFIGURES | 13 | 2016 Best Picture nominee ... or a hint to the circled letters in 20-, 25- and 43-Across |
| 40% | OFFONALARK | 10 | What's depicted by the circled letters in 41-/49-Across |
| 39% | CROSSPARTYLINES | 15 | Act in a bipartisan way, and what the circled letters do Across and Down |
| 39% | LONGWINDED | 10 | Verbose, and what the circled letters in this puzzle literally are? |
| 38% | INFO | 4 | What the final letter in 1 Across stands for, casually |
| 38% | BUTTERFLY | 9 | Word that must be added to 1-, 8-, 65- and 66-Across for their clues to make sense [with a visual hint in the grid] |
| 38% | NOTES | 5 | Staff members, and what the circled letters in this puzzle represent |
| 37% | WHITE | 5 | The circled letters in the second shaded area |
| 37% | BLACK | 5 | The circled letters in the first shaded area |
| 37% | MONKEY | 6 | With the circled letters and 46-Across, playground keep-away game |
| 37% | SPIRAL | 6 | When preceded by [the circled letters], natural shape said to be seen in 61-Across and 27-Down |
| 37% | COLDOPEN | 8 | Certain TV intro ... or a description of each of 12 letters in the grid (the starts of six Across entries and then six Down entries) that spell out an alternate title for this puzzle |
| 37% | SUBCONTRACTED | 13 | Outsourced, and what happened to the circled letters in this puzzle |
| 36% | EYE | 3 | Locale for the pupil and iris |
| 36% | URBANSPRAWL | 11 | Unrestricted city expansion ... and what begins in the circled letters (and ends in uncircled ones for you to find) |
| 36% | SEEYOUINCOURT | 13 | What the circled letters in this answer represent, homophonically |
| 36% | BEEINONESBONNET | 15 | What the circled letter in this answer represents, homophonically |
| 36% | SEAOFCORTEZ | 11 | What the circled letter in this answer represents, homophonically |
| 36% | EYEOFTHETIGER | 13 | What the circled letter in this answer represents, homophonically |
| 36% | PRIMETIME | 9 | 8 to 11 p.m., for TV programming in the eastern and western US: 2 wds. |
| 35% | SMILEYFACE | 10 | What's formed by the circled letters in this puzzle |
| 35% | CELESTIALBODIES | 15 | Astronomical objects represented by the circled letters in this puzzle |
| 35% | DISCO | 5 | Locale for the hustle and the funky chicken |
| 35% | MEDI | 4 | Prefix for "care" in the name of a health plan for Americans 65 and up |
| 35% | CHANGEPURSE | 11 | *Spot for coins, and what five letters do in the answer to each starred clue? |