USA Today Crossword Answers Today: Musical Composition (February 16, 2026)

USA Today Crossword Answers Today: February 16, 2026

Theme: “Musical Composition”

USA Today crossword answers today 2026-02-16

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Today’s Puzzle Details & Analysis

Before looking at the USA crossword puzzle answers, let’s take a look at the data behind today’s game. This grid was constructed by Adrian Johnson and edited by Amanda Rafkin.

Puzzle Date February 16, 2026 (Monday)
Theme / Title Musical Composition
Grid Size 15×15 Squares
Difficulty Level Easy
Across Clues 39 clues
Down Clues 38 clues
Total Clues 77 words

🕵️‍♂️ Theme Breakdown: “Musical Composition”

The title of the USA Today newspaper crossword puzzle is always the biggest hint. The longest answers in the grid usually follow the rule or pun suggested by the title. Here are the main anchor words for today:

    📝 Common Crosswordese in Today’s Grid

    Crossword puzzles often repeat short 3 and 4-letter words to connect the longer theme words. Memorizing these will make solving the USA crossword daily much easier. Here are a few from today’s puzzle:

    • Seldom seenRARE
    • NBC sketch show since 1975SNL
    • In the thick ofAMID

    Interactive USA Today Crossword Solver

    Use our interactive grid below to find the answers to USA Today crossword puzzle. Click the “Show” button next to any clue to reveal the word. The grid will highlight the answer so you can easily fill it in on your screen or paper.

    USA Today Crossword: Musical Composition
    1A
    2M
    3I
    4D
    5F
    6L
    7O
    8P
    9G
    10A
    11L
    12S
    13T
    O
    G
    O
    14M
    O
    A
    N
    A
    15A
    L
    O
    E
    16B
    O
    O
    T
    17A
    L
    V
    I
    N
    18P
    A
    I
    N
    19A
    C
    T
    20S
    N
    L
    21O
    K
    22A
    Y
    A
    N
    D
    23T
    H
    A
    24N
    K
    Y
    O
    25U
    N
    O
    T
    E
    26T
    O
    Y
    27W
    R
    Y
    28M
    A
    29C
    30A
    31W
    32P
    33H
    E
    W
    34H
    U
    G
    35R
    A
    R
    E
    36S
    E
    X
    37T
    A
    P
    E
    38M
    39E
    40A
    S
    U
    R
    E
    41A
    N
    T
    42M
    A
    N
    43S
    E
    L
    F
    44S
    O
    D
    45I
    B
    I
    46S
    47E
    S
    C
    48H
    E
    W
    S
    49T
    50U
    51R
    N
    O
    F
    P
    52H
    R
    A
    S
    E
    53A
    S
    A
    D
    O
    54A
    O
    K
    55O
    R
    56A
    57T
    58E
    59R
    U
    S
    S
    60A
    R
    I
    A
    61U
    D
    D
    E
    R
    62P
    A
    T
    E
    63P
    S
    S
    T
    64T
    E
    A
    R
    S
    65S
    L
    A
    T
    66P
    E
    T
    S
    67H
    D
    M
    I
    1In the thick of
    AMID
    5Box office failure
    FLOP
    9Ladies
    GALS
    13Like takeout orders
    TOGO
    14Polynesian Disney heroine
    MOANA
    15Soothing lotion additive
    ALOE
    16Italy’s shape
    BOOT
    17Bandmate of Simon and Theodore
    ALVIN
    18“Royal” nuisance
    PAIN
    19Perform like Yasmin Finney
    ACT
    20NBC sketch show since 1975
    SNL
    21“I’m supposed to care because . . .?”
    OKAYAND
    23Written gratitude from a gift recipient
    THANKYOUNOTE
    26Elf’s creation
    TOY
    27Humorously ironic
    WRY
    28Colorful, long-tailed parrot
    MACAW
    32“That was a close one!”
    PHEW
    34Friendly squeeze
    HUG
    35Seldom seen
    RARE
    36Reason for some R ratings
    SEX
    37Flexible ruler that can retract
    TAPEMEASURE
    41Shrinking superhero
    ANTMAN
    43___-care day
    SELF
    44Turf
    SOD
    45Sacred bird
    IBIS
    47Deliberately avoids
    ESCHEWS
    49Specific way to express oneself
    TURNOFPHRASE
    53South American barbecue
    ASADO
    54Perfectly fine
    AOK
    55Speak formally
    ORATE
    59NBA star Westbrook, for short
    RUSS
    60Opera star’s solo
    ARIA
    61Cow’s milk source
    UDDER
    62Meaty spread
    PATE
    63“Hey, you! Yes, you!”
    PSST
    64Signs of joy at medal ceremonies
    TEARS
    65Shutter strip
    SLAT
    66Tarantulas or rats, maybe
    PETS
    67PS5-TV connection cable
    HDMI
    1Opportunity for Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
    ATBAT
    2Human sponge
    MOOCH
    3Suspenseful “Love Island” exclamation
    IGOTATEXT
    450% of an umlaut
    DOT
    5Post-op appointment
    FOLLOWUP
    6Loo
    LAV
    7Like dopiaza and musakhan
    ONIONY
    8Japanese breadcrumbs
    PANKO
    9Academic hiatuses
    GAPYEARS
    10Egyptian novelist ___ Al Aswany
    ALAA
    11“Tender” cut of beef
    LOIN
    12Drop in the mail
    SEND
    14Lots of
    MANY
    20Chicago WNBA team
    SKY
    22Convenience at a cash bar
    ATM
    24“ASAP!”
    NOW
    25Strong desires
    URGES
    29Protester’s passion
    CAUSE
    30Projectile that’s nocked
    ARROW
    31Undesirable plants
    WEEDS
    32“The More You Know” installment
    PSA
    33Female lobster or chicken
    HEN
    34“The Crown Ain’t Worth Much” poet Abdurraqib
    HANIF
    37Social no-no
    TABOO
    38Small mongooses
    MEERKATS
    39“Frozen” princess
    ELSA
    40Only NFL division with multiple teams that have never been to the Super Bowl
    AFCSOUTH
    42Way of thinking
    MINDSET
    46Thinly distributed
    SPARSE
    48Brought together, like livestock
    HERDED
    49Baseball diamond coverings
    TARPS
    50Regular
    USUAL
    51Follower of Jah
    RASTA
    52Raise
    HOIST
    56Bobsledder Ammour
    ADAM
    57“Spy Kids” actress Hatcher
    TERI
    58Surgical sites, for short
    ERS
    60Shazam or 5 Calls, e.g.
    APP

    Tips to Solve the Daily Crossword USA Today

    If you want to get better at solving the crosswords USA Today publishes without using cheats, try these easy tips:

    • Read the Theme: Today’s title is “Musical Composition”. This is a big hint. The longest words in the puzzle will match this theme.
    • Find the Blanks: Look for clues that have a blank space (like “Rock and ___”). These are usually the easiest to guess.
    • Check Plurals: If the clue is plural (like “Cats and Dogs”), the answer will almost always end with an ‘S’. Write the ‘S’ in your grid right away.
    • Look for Common Words: The USA Today crossword puzzles use short filler words like ERA, ORE, and ANT a lot. Keep an eye out for them!

    Frequently Asked Questions

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    The difficulty changes every day. The USA Today easy crossword is usually on Monday and Tuesday. It becomes a USA medium crossword by Wednesday, and a USA hard crossword by Friday and Saturday.

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