Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Hint for Aug. 23 Is to Think Soundalikes [CNET]

Two pairs of words in the NYT Mini Crossword for Aug. 23 match up.

The Mini Crossword isn’t too tough today, but it does offer up two sets of homophones, words that are pronounced the same but have different meanings and spellings. If you’re stuck, we’ve got the answers.

The Mini Crossword is far from alone in the Times’ stable of games. Our home page also always has the answers for Wordle, Connections and Strands.

Let’s get at those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Good ___, bad ___ (classic routine).
Answer: COP

4A clue: Pick up on, as a sound.
Answer: HEAR

5A clue: Pick up on, as a vibe.
Answer: SENSE

6A clue: Actress Ana of “Ugly Betty.”
Answer: ORTIZ

7A clue: Not as much.
Answer: LESS

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Homophone of 5-Across.
Answer: CENTS

2D clue: Fertile area in a desert.
Answer: OASIS

3D clue: Biden’s title, informally
Answer: PREZ

4D clue: Homophone of 4-Across.
Answer: HERE

5D clue: Do, re, mi, fa, ___ …
Answer: SOL

How to play more Mini Crosswords

The New York Times Games section offers a large number of online games, but only some of them are free for all to play. You can play the current day’s Mini Crossword for free, but you’ll need a subscription to the Times Games section to play older puzzles from the archives.