| 100% | BASICS | 6 | The fundamentals of a subject or issue |
| 56% | ABCS | 4 | Fundamentals of a subject |
| 50% | BIRDSANDBEES | 12 | Subject of "the talk" about sex … or a hint to the answers to the four starred clues |
| 49% | PRINCE | 6 | The son of a sovereign or king |
| 49% | TEXTURE | 7 | The feel of a surface or substance |
| 49% | ACADEMIA | 8 | The interests of a university or college |
| 49% | REVERSE | 7 | The back of a coin or banknote |
| 49% | CHIEFTAIN | 9 | The leader of a clan or tribe |
| 49% | PILEI | 5 | The cap of a mushroom or toadstool |
| 49% | NARRATOR | 8 | The storyteller of a book or film |
| 49% | ROTOR | 5 | The mechanism of a helicopter or turbine |
| 49% | BRANDING | 8 | The promoting of a product or a company |
| 49% | STORYLINE | 9 | The plot of a book or a film |
| 49% | TAGLINE | 7 | The point of a joke or humorous story |
| 49% | CHIEF | 5 | The leader of a village or police force |
| 48% | RENDERING | 9 | The performance of a drama or piece of music |
| 48% | PIZZABASE | 9 | The bottom of a Margherita or ham and pineapple |
| 48% | NERO | 4 | A subject of the ''Twelve Caesars'' bios |
| 47% | PIT | 3 | The center of a cherry, or a deep hole |
| 47% | TEXTURE | 7 | The feel of a surface, bumpy or smooth |
| 47% | ATELIER | 7 | The studio of a dress designer or needlemaker |
| 47% | PRINCIPAL | 9 | The head of a school or amount advanced in a loan |
| 47% | TOPIC | 5 | Subject of a conversation or school report |
| 46% | CELEB | 5 | Many a subject of the E! channel |
| 46% | ALI | 3 | Boxer who was the subject of a recent commemorative issue of Time |
| 46% | WHET | 4 | Sharpen the blade of a tool or weapon |
| 46% | NEBULOUS | 8 | In the form of a haze or cloud |
| 46% | GROOMING | 8 | Brushing the coat of a horse or dog |
| 46% | REWRITE | 7 | Change the wording of a book or speech |
| 46% | DIRECT | 6 | Control the creation of a film or play |