Bad things to see tumbling down a mountain on their own nyt crossword clue

The clue "Bad things to see tumbling down a mountain on their own" appears to be a cryptic crossword clue, which often contains wordplay or misdirection. When breaking down this clue: 1. **Key Components**: - "Bad things to see" could refer to some negative aspects or objects. - "Tumbling down a mountain" suggests something that falls or rolls down. - The phrase "on their own" might imply that whatever is falling does so autonomously. 2. **Wordplay Analysis**: - The phrase "tumbling down" often indicates an anagram. However, here it may imply simply that something is falling from a height or rolling down. - Considering all elements together, one common phrase that pops up with a context of "things that tumble down mountains" is "rocks." They fall down mountains naturally, and "bad things" can also be colloquially referred to as "rocks" when you think of bad luck, or just generally negative things ("you're in the rocks" can imply trouble). 3. **Final Answer**: - **"Rocks"** fits both the context of bad things and the action described (falling down a mountain). If the crossword grid provides some known letters, you could fit that to confirm if "rocks" works in the structure. ### Solving Tips: - Look for keywords that signal specific types of clues, such as “bad things” leading to negative concepts or synonyms. - Pay attention to phrases which may imply a play on words, like “tumbling” indicating movement, and consider how that applies contextually. - Keeping synonyms and colloquial expressions in mind can also open up more avenues when approaching such clues.