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- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Touching Base</p>
<p>Sally Hoelscher, USA TODAYJune 27, 2025 at 7:00 AM</p>
<p>There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Touching Base</p>
<p>Constructor: Touching Base</p>
<p>Editor: Amanda Rafkin</p>
<p>June 27, 2025Comments from Today's Crossword Constructor</p>
<p>Jess: I worked in the corporate world for many years, so I'm mostly immune to the annoyance a lot of people feel at biz-speak phrases like TOUCHING BASE (we can circle back on that later if you like). But I like the idea of re-imagining it as a description for words whose bases are "touching" — emotionally, I guess. Amanda had the great idea of CHICKEN TENDER to round out the set. Hope you enjoyed it!</p>
<p>What I Learned from Today's Puzzle -</p>
<p>TINA (25A: "The Four Seasons" co-writer Fey) The Four Seasons is a Netflix TV series that premiered last month. It was created by TINA Fey, Lang Fisher & Tracey Wigfield. TINA Fey also stars in the show. The show is an adaptation of the 1981 movie of the same name. The movie was written and directed by Alan Alda, and he has a guest role on the TV series.</p>
<p>SONIA (2D: Brazilian actress Braga) SONIA Braga is one of those people whose name I didn't recognize, but who looked familiar when I saw her picture. SONIA Braga's numerous movie and TV credits include Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), The Burning Season (1994), and American Family (2002-2004).</p>
<p>Random Thoughts & Interesting Things -</p>
<p>IRL (4A: Offline, to someone online) IRL = in real life</p>
<p>SIPHON (20A: Tube that can be used to remove dirty water from a fish tank (after relocating the fish)) The parenthetical aside here – "after relocating the fish" – made me chuckle. Yes, that is a very important step before using a SIPHON to remove water from a fish tank.</p>
<p>NECKLINE (33A: Sweetheart or keyhole, e.g.) I enjoy this type of clue because at first glance the words "sweetheart" and "keyhole" appear unrelated. There's a nice "Aha!" moment upon realizing these words refer to types of NECKLINEs. A sweetheart NECKLINE is scalloped and sometimes described as resembling the top part of a heart. A keyhole NECKLINE features a hole (as the name suggests).</p>
<p>DOCK (40A: Lakeside spot for enjoying coffee and a crossword) This clue paints an enticing picture. I would like to be sitting on a DOCK solving a crossword, though I would be drinking tea instead of coffee.</p>
<p>RBI (56A: Slugger's stat) RBI stands for "runs batted in." RBIs are one of the many stats tracked in baseball.</p>
<p>THE ONE (57A: "You're Still ___" (Shania Twain)) "You're Still THE ONE" is a 1998 single from Shania Twain's album, Come on Over. "You're Still THE ONE that I love / THE only ONE I dream of / You're still THE ONE I kiss goodnight."</p>
<p>NO-HITTER (60A: Pitching feat that's considered bad luck to mention while in progress) As you might expect from its name, a NO-HITTER refers to a game in which a team records no hits. The pitcher who held the team to no hits is said to have pitched a NO-HITTER. If more than one pitcher is involved in the NO-HITTER, it is referred to as a "combined NO-HITTER." In Major League Baseball (MLB), NO-HITTERs are rare, occurring on average only twice a year. As the clue mentions, it is considered bad luck to mention a NO-HITTER while it is in progress. It is especially bad luck to mention it to the pitcher. Occasionally the opposing team will try to take advantage of this superstition and intentionally mention the NO-HITTER to try to bring the pitcher bad luck.</p>
<p>LIV (6D: "___ and Maddie" (Disney sitcom starring Dove Cameron))In the TV series, LIV and Maddie (2013-2017), Dove Cameron plays dual roles. She plays the role of LIV, an actress returning to her home after living in Hollywood for four years and starring in a popular TV series. She also plays the role of Maddie, LIV's identical twin sister who remained in their hometown.</p>
<p>HANOI (7D: Vietnam's capital) HANOI is the capital of Vietnam. HANOI has several nicknames: "City of Soaring Dragon," "Thousand-year-long capital of civilization," and "City for Peace."</p>
<p>ERIN (11D: "The Office" receptionist after Pam) The mockumentary TV series, The Office, ran for nine seasons that originally aired from 2005 to 2013. Toward the end of the fifth season of the TV series, The Office, ERIN Hannon (Ellie Kemper) was introduced as the receptionist, replacing Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer), who moved to a different position.</p>
<p>NILE (28A: Egyptian river) The NILE River flows through Egypt, and is the country's primary water source. Egypt is just one of the countries the NILE – the longest river in Africa – flows through. On the NILE'S over-4,100 mile route, it flows north into the Mediterranean Sea, passing through 11 countries: Egypt, Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi.</p>
<p>ORCA (31D: Ocean predator) ORCAs are apex predators, meaning they are at the top of the food chain and have no natural predators of their own. ORCAs hunt in groups, which has earned them the nickname "wolves of the sea."</p>
<p>ENERO (51D: Month before febrero) ENERO is Spanish for January, and febrero is Spanish for February.</p>
<p>THAI (57D: Phuket language) Phuket is a southern province of Thailand. The province includes the island of Phuket, which is Thailand's largest island. As in the rest of Thailand, THAI is the official language in Phuket.</p>
<p>A few other clues I especially enjoyed:</p>
<p>HISSES (7A: Sounds from leaking inflatables)</p>
<p>HOODIE (58A: Oversized sweatshirt in many teens' wardrobes)</p>
<p>NOTHING (44D: Uninformative response to "What'd you do at school today?")</p>
<p>Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis -</p>
<p>SHORT AND SWEET (9D: Pleasantly brief)</p>
<p>LET'S GET MOVING (15D: "We need to start pretty soon")</p>
<p>CHICKEN TENDER (18D: Fried piece of poultry)</p>
<p>TOUCHING BASE: The BASE (i.e. bottom) word of each vertical theme answer is a synonym of TOUCHING: SWEET, MOVING, TENDER.</p>
<p>I enjoy a synonym theme, and this is a great one. It's fun that in the title the word TOUCHING means "being in contact," whereas the synonyms refer to a different meaning of the word, TOUCHING as "affecting emotionally." Thank you, Jess, for this delightful puzzle.</p>
<p>For more on USA TODAY's Crossword Puzzles -</p>
<p>USA TODAY's Daily Crossword Puzzles</p>
<p>Sudoku & Crossword Puzzle Answers</p>
<p>This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Crossword Blog & Answers for June 27, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher</p>
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