Quick Answer
The New York Times Mini crossword clue “Like some wine and Christmas presents” is answered with “BOXED”, a 5-letter entry.
Clue: “Like some wine and Christmas presents”
Answer: BOXED
Answer length: 5 letters
Clue number and direction: 1-Down
The New York Times crossword clue “Like some wine and Christmas presents” is answered with BOXED.
Why BOXED Is the Right NYT Answer
- The clue points to a description that can apply both to wine and to Christmas presents, and “boxed wine” and “boxed presents” are both familiar phrases. That shared adjective is BOXED, which neatly ties the two halves of the clue together.
- Down-answer lists for the February 10, 2026 NYT Mini explicitly confirm 1D: Like some wine and Christmas presents BOXED.
- It also matches the required 5-letter pattern, which rules out shorter ideas like “GIFTED” or “WRAPT.”
What BOXED Means in Plain English
- BOXED simply means put into a box or sold in a box. For wine, it refers to wine packaged in a cardboard box with an internal bag commonly called boxed wine.
- For Christmas presents, many gifts are literally boxed before being wrapped, so “boxed” describes their state before or under the wrapping paper.
- The clue uses that shared description as its wordplay hook.
Crossword-Specific Help for 1-Down
- On the Feb 10, 2026 NYT Mini, 1-Down is clued “Like some wine and Christmas presents” and has five squares, matching BOXED. Hint pages even say 1-Down starts with B, further pointing to BOXED.
- As you solve, crossings from Across clues confirm the letters:
- 1-Across “Gift wrapping flourish” → BOW gives the B at the top of 1-Down.
- 4-Across “The ‘M’ of D.M.V.” → MOTOR intersects, helping confirm the internal letters OXE.
- The final pattern B O X E D lines up perfectly with both the crossings and the clue.
Solving Tips for Similar NYT Clues
When a clue compares two different nouns with “like some … and …”, it often points to a shared modifier such as:
- “boxed,” “wrapped,” “glazed,” or “iced.”
- If the answer length is 5 and one of the items is wine, BOXED should jump to mind because “boxed wine” is a very common phrase. Crossings will quickly tell you if B_O_E_ or BOXED is right.
- Editors also enjoy using seasonal imagery like Christmas presents to make the wordplay more vivid, so keep an eye out for clues that pair a food/drink with a holiday item under one descriptive word.
