This clue appeared in the NYT Crossword on Saturday, June 27, 2026 (57 Down). The answer is hidden below until you want it. Saturday puzzles are the hardest of the week and themeless, so clues are often deliberately misleading.
How to read this clue
The question mark warns of wordplay. Expect a pun or a second meaning rather than a straight definition.
Answer length: 4 squares
First letter
O _ _ _
First and last letters
O _ _ E
Show the answer
About the answer
OBOE as a word: (music) A soprano and melody wind instrument in the modern orchestra and wind ensemble. It is a smaller instrument and generally made of grenadilla wood. It ...; (World War II era, joint US/RAF) radiotelephony clear-code word for the letter O.
OBOE has been an answer 13 times in the NYT Crossword and Mini since December 7, 2025.
Other clues with the same answer
- Instrument to which an orchestra tunes
- Instrument also called the "sprightly companion"
- Instrument usually pitched in C
- Thin woodwind
- Orchestral woodwind
- Musical instrument whose second syllable sounds like a part of other musical instruments
- Woodwind related to the cor anglais
- Yamaha product
- Orchestra-tuning instrument
- The duck in "Peter and the Wolf"
- Most common instrument in New York Times crosswords, with over 800 appearances
More clues from this puzzle
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- Diamond edges? (59 Down)
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