Okay, so today I was messing around with the New York Times crossword puzzle, and I stumbled upon this clue: “corrupting influence.” It got me thinking, man, these crosswords can be tricky sometimes!
First, I started looking around online to see what others were saying. I saw some people talking about it, mentioning that this clue showed up in the January 21, 2024 puzzle. There was a bunch of chatter, some folks were saying there were tons of possible answers, like 30 or 40 even.

Trying to Figure It Out
So, I started to brainstorm. I knew it had something to do with something that makes things bad or ruins them, you know? I saw some suggestions that the answer could be 5 or 6 letters long.
- I went through a bunch of words in my head, trying to see what fit.
- Nothing seemed quite right at first. It was a real head-scratcher!
Then I decided to just search for “corrupting influence crossword clue” to see what I could dig up. I saw a lot of different websites dedicated to crossword answers. Seemed like a lot of people were looking for help with this one!
Finally Getting Somewhere
After sifting through a bunch of stuff, I found some sites that were listing the answer for the January 21st puzzle specifically.
- It felt like a real “aha!” moment.
- One of those sites helped me crack it.
Finally, I got the answer! It was one word, and it made perfect sense once I saw it. It was a five-letter word that fit the clue “corrupting influence” perfectly. But I’m not gonna spoil the fun for anyone else. They should experience the satisfaction of discovering it just like I did. Go to the websites to find the answer yourself!
Man, solving that clue felt good. It’s amazing how these little puzzles can be so challenging and rewarding at the same time. Anyway, that was my little adventure with the crossword today. I’m sharing this because, well, why not? Maybe it’ll help someone else out there who’s stuck on the same clue. Or maybe it’ll just be a fun little story to read. Either way, I’m happy I finally cracked it!