The March 2026 issue of Funny Times featured a crossword puzzle designed to explore “code-switching,” a linguistic phenomenon where individuals alternate between two or more languages or dialects in conversation. The puzzle’s solutions, published February 2, 2026, offer a glimpse into the cultural references and wordplay employed by the publication.
The crossword’s “Word Roundup” section presented categories requiring multiple answers. The first category, cities, included Venice, Naples, Milan, and Rome. A second category focused on South American countries, listing Brazil, Chile, and Peru. Mountain ranges were represented by the Rockies, Andes, and Alps. Finally, the category of large cats featured the lion, puma, and lynx. A fruit category included peach, plum, and pear.
The “Amaze” section of the puzzle solutions promoted a subscription to Funny Times, offering an ad-free and uncensored experience, along with weekly free cartoons. Subscribers are asked to confirm they are over the age of 16 and agree to receive promotional offers, with an option to unsubscribe at any time.
Discussion of New York Times crosswords, including a Sunday puzzle from March 2, 2025, appeared on the Reddit forum r/crossword twelve days prior to the publication of the Funny Times solutions. A user noted difficulty distinguishing between “ASUS” and “Acer,” suggesting a common challenge in crossword solving. The New York Times Mini Crossword, featured in a CNET article from March 25, 2025, too presented challenges for solvers, with one clue – 4-Across – proving particularly difficult. The article detailed the solution to the March 26, 2025 Mini Crossword, including clues and answers.
The CNET article highlighted the increasing popularity of the New York Times’ games collection, which includes Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition, and Strands, alongside the Mini Crossword. While the daily Mini Crossword is free to play, access to the puzzle archives requires a subscription to the Times Games section.
The Funny Times crossword solutions were released as the New York Times continued to explore linguistic challenges in its own puzzles, as evidenced by the discussion of “code-switching” in a 2019 crossword column by Deb Amlen, Caitlin Lovinger and Sam Corbin.
