Yahoo Lifestyle Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Split Level
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Split Level
Constructor: Stella Zawistowski
Editor: Anna Gundlach
What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle
WAVY (38A: Like 2A hair) The Andre Walker Hair Typing System, sometimes referred to as "The Hair Chart," was developed in the 1990s by Andre Walker to market his hair care products. (Andre Walker is Oprah Winfrey's hair stylist, and Oprah often credits him for keeping her hair healthy.) The system uses numbers and letters to classify hair from 1 (straight) to 4 (coiled). WAVY hair is classified as Type 2, with 2A being loose waves, 2B being defined waves, and 2C being wide waves. Although I've heard of this classification system before, it just wasn't clicking when I read the clue.
Random Thoughts & Interesting Things
NCIS (21A: CBS show since 2003) In addition to the original series that is on its 22nd season, NCIS has resulted in five spin-offs: NCIS: Los Angeles (2009), NCIS: New Orleans (2014), NCIS: Hawai'i (2021), NCIS: Sydney (2023), and NCIS: Origins (2024).
GEODES (22A: Rocks that sparkle inside) GEODES are hollow rocks in which crystals are secluded. The crystals are only visible when the rock is broken open. Although fascinating, the explanation of how GEODES form is too complex for me to explain here. If you're interested, here's a short video describing the process. GEODES are found in parts of the midwestern United States (including Iowa), Brazil, Namibia, Mexico, and an area of Somerset, England. GEODES are the ultimate "you can't judge a book by its cover" object lesson.
SKIS (52A: Winter Olympics equipment) and LUGE (55D: Winter Olympics sled) It seems appropriate to celebrate the Winter Olympics with a couple of clues since we're in the middle of winter. Where I live, the weather has been quite wintry lately, which also makes SHOVEL (24D: Snowy day tool) appropriate.
MLS (54A: The L.A. Galaxy's league) The L.A. Galaxy, a professional soccer club that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), has been in the crossword spotlight recently. The last time we saw MLS in the grid, which was four days ago, it was clued as [L.A. Galaxy's org.].
OLDIE (60A: Any '80s song) and MODE (54D: '80s band Depeche ___) By definition then, Depeche MODE's early songs are now OLDIEs. Depeche MODE is a British band formed in 1980. Depeche MODE is still making music, but the band consists of only two of its original members, Dave Gahan and Martin Gore. I know that '80s songs are now OLDIEs, but seeing clues like this make it harder for me to be in denial and believe that the '80s were only 20 years ago.
HAM (4D: Croque monsieur layer) Croque monsieur is a fancy name for a hot HAM and cheese sandwich.
PET (8D: Furry household member) In addition to being cuddly and loving and cute, PETs can also be a great source of entertainment. One of the things my cat, Willow, likes to do is bring me presents and leave them in the hallway in front of my office door. She used to bring socks, but we've learned to not leave socks lying around. Her current favorite gifts are various stuffed crocheted figures I have made. We've turned it into a game and move them around to different locations for her to find. She'll often haul them all the way up the stairs. When she leaves a present, we always know, because she gives a quite distinctive "meow" (almost a yowl), as if to say, "Look here! I've brought you a gift." The funniest thing is that only once has my husband seen her carrying one of these, and I have never caught her in the act. She's quite stealthy. This photo shows Willow with a couple of her presents she left for me.
ISLE (23D: Archipelago part) An archipelago is a group of ISLEs or islands. There's no clear consensus on what makes a piece of land surrounded by water an ISLE as opposed to an island, so the two words are treated as synonyms.
FROG (25D: Violin bow part also called the heel) This is an interesting and unique way to clue the word FROG.
LOBO (26D: Rebecca of basketball) Rebecca LOBO is a former WNBA player. During her career she played for the New York Liberty (1997-2003), Houston Comets (2002), and Connecticut Sun (2003). She was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010. Rebecca LOBO is now a sports reporter for ESPN.
IOWANS (28D: Des Moines denizens) Hello from Iowa!
HEART (32D: "Barracuda" band) "Barracuda" is a 1977 single by HEART, so here's another OLDIE.
LENTIL (44D: Dal makhani morsel) Dal makhani is a dish in Indian and Pakistani cuisine. It consists of LENTILs, beans, butter, and cream, along with spices. Dal makhani is a vegetarian dish similar to butter chicken. The word "dal" refers to LENTILs, so the dish's name was a good hint to the answer.
KALE (53D: Leafy green that's sometimes massaged) Our crossword friend KALE is making back-to-back appearances in the grid. I think I said plenty about KALE yesterday when we saw it clued as [Vegetable that may be massaged]. By the way, when I mention that words or clues are repeating, it's never meant as a bad thing. That happens all the time; I simply like to notice these things.
FDA (58D: Org. that approves meds) The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is a Federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. One of the FDA's responsibilities is to assure that medications are safe and effective.
Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis
FLAMIN' HOT (17A: Extra-spicy Cheetos flavor)
FLASHLIGHT (25A: Helpful item in a power outage)
FLANNEL SHIRT (43A: Top that might be plaid)
FLAKED OUT (58A: Bailed on a date, say)
SPLIT LEVEL: The word FLAT – a synonym of LEVEL – is SPLIT by each theme answer: FLAMIN' HOT, FLASHLIGHT, FLANNEL SHIRT, and FLAKED OUT.
It's a fun extra layer to today's theme that, in addition to being a synonym of LEVEL, FLAT is also a word used to mean apartment, and the title – SPLIT LEVEL – is a style of home. That may be a coincidence, but I noticed it and thought it was neat. Thank you, Stella, for this enjoyable puzzle.
For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Crossword Blog & Answers for February 19, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher
