| BASEBALL | With 49-Across, a hint to the circled letters |
| CABIN | Room on a ship containing one or more of the beds described in 49 Across; a hut; or, a signal box (5) |
| WHYISNTTHEWORD | With 36-Across and 49-Across, a reasonable question |
| BROKEN | With 49- Across, it keeps repeating itself ... and, based on the first and last letters, an apt description of each answer to a starred clue |
| TRADITIONAL | With 49- and 69-Across, a hint to the meanings of the bracketed clues |
| BELTTIGHTENING | Response to a ballooning budget, and a hint to the circled letters |
| NATGEOWILD | Channel with "The Incredible Dr. Pol," and a hint to the circled letters |
| FAULTINOURSTARS | 2012 John Green novel with "The," and a hint to the circled letters |
| WOOD | With 68-Across, a hint to the ends of 21-, 25-, 45- and 52-Across |
| INSIDEBASEBALL | Sports metaphor used to describe esoteric knowledge ... with a hint to the circled letters |
| INSIDEVOICES | Teacher's remark to a noisy classroom, and a hint to the circled letters |
| DOGLEGS | Some links holes ... with a hint to the circled letters |
| RAISETHEBAR | Set a new standard, and a hint to the circled letters |
| HOMESTRETCH | Last leg of a race ... or a hint to the circled letters |
| AHOUSEDIVIDED | Start of a Lincoln line, and a hint to the circled letters |
| SPLITWOOD | Do a campground chore, and a hint to the circled letters |
| OFFTOAFASTSTART | Quick out of the blocks, and a hint to the circled letters |
| LANESPLITTING | Riding a motorcycle between cars, and a hint to the circled letters |
| FRINGEELEMENTS | Radical members of a group, and a hint to the circled letters |
| BACKROADS | They're off the beaten path, and a hint to the circled letters |
