| 100% | HARDIEST | 8 | The most resilient and tough |
| 53% | FEISTIER | 8 | More spirited and tough |
| 52% | CLASSIEST | 9 | The most stylish and sophisticated |
| 52% | CRISPEST | 8 | The most crunchy and dry |
| 49% | MEALIEST | 8 | The most dry and powdery in food texture |
| 47% | TATTIEST | 8 | Showing the most wear and tear |
| 47% | ETC | 3 | And more of the same: Abbr. |
| 47% | HIGHER | 6 | More on the up and up? |
| 47% | NEILSIMON | 9 | Writer with the most combined Tony and Oscar nominations |
| 47% | NEILSIMON | 9 | Writer with the most combined Oscar and Tony nominations |
| 46% | RACERS | 6 | Most "The Fast and the Furious" drivers |
| 46% | LEADSTORY | 9 | The first and most important news item |
| 46% | ETAL | 4 | And more of the same, in brief |
| 46% | SKILIFT | 7 | Many chairs to the top and back |
| 45% | HYDROGEN | 8 | Most abundant and lightest element in the universe |
| 45% | DOYENS | 6 | Most respected and experienced members in the field |
| 45% | NUCLEUS | 7 | The central and most important part of something |
| 45% | MADRID | 6 | The capital and most popular city in Spain |
| 45% | MOTHERSMOTHER | 13 | The biggest and most loving of hugs, say |
| 45% | OSLO | 4 | The capital and most populous city of Norway |
| 45% | TIS | 3 | "___ the wind and nothing more!" ("The Raven") |
| 45% | BEATLES | 7 | Johnny and the Moondogs, more familiarly |
| 45% | BESTINPRAYERS | 13 | Like the most devout churchgoers … and another anagram of 20-Across |
| 45% | BOBMARLEY | 9 | The king of reggae and most famous Jamaican singer |
| 45% | SPRIESTSPRITES | 14 | Most flexible and limber of all the fairy kin? |
| 45% | CARGOSHIPS | 10 | Most vessels passing through the Suez and Panama Canals |
| 45% | PLUMPEST | 8 | Like the most juicy and well-rounded Thanksgiving turkey |
| 45% | OLDBOOTS | 8 | As tough as __; very strong and resilient |
| 45% | MATTRESS | 8 | The Princess and the Pea needed more than one |
| 44% | SALTY | 5 | Like the ocean and most potato chips |