The New York Times Crossword · 17-Across · 15 letters
Mentally pooped The New York Times Crossword clue
Editorially reviewed September 21, 2026
Answer · 15 letters
TOO TIRED TO THINK
In the grid: TOOTIREDTOTHINK · no spaces
TOO TIRED TO THINK restates mentally pooped in ordinary language. In the grid it becomes TOOTIREDTOTHINK, and its four letter T's also participate in the puzzle's homophonic “forties” theme: four T's.
Different crossing letters? Check another fit →Translate the informal clue into a natural phrase
Pooped informally means exhausted. Adding mentally narrows the result to cognitive fatigue rather than sore muscles, so TOO TIRED TO THINK is a natural sentence-length answer rather than a short synonym such as weary.
Count the T's to see the theme layer
Crossword entries drop spaces, producing TOOTIREDTOTHINK in fifteen cells. The entry contains four T's. The puzzle's revealer points to the “forties,” which can be heard as four T's; recognizing that second layer explains why this longer wording was chosen.
References behind this explanation
- September 21 NYT clue, answer and theme grid
- Independent September 21 clue-and-answer reference
- Merriam-Webster: pooped
These references support the meaning or background; they are not publisher endorsements.
Where this clue appeared
17-Across in The New York Times Crossword puzzle for September 21, 2026.
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