Crossword Clue: Billboard's song ranking, ___ 100
Here's the answer to the Billboard's song ranking, ___ 100 crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: HOT
"Billboard's song ranking, ___ 100" points to HOT, a 3-letter entry that starts with H and finishes on T and carries 1 vowel. Because every square it occupies also belongs to a down or across answer crossing it, you can often back into HOT from the letters around it rather than the clue alone.
Origin & meaning
The Hot 100 is Billboard's main singles chart, ranking the most popular songs in the United States each week. It has been the industry standard since 1958.
Common usage
Compact, single-vowel answers such as HOT are a constructor's staple: they slot into a 3-square space and play nicely in both directions. Solvers who recognize it on sight save real time on the daily puzzle.
Crossword trivia
Hot belongs to the small vocabulary of words that appear constantly in grids. Because it's only 3 letters, editors can drop it almost anywhere, which is why regular solvers know it on sight.
Stuck on this clue?
Stuck on "Billboard's song ranking, ___ 100"? Don't force it — solve the clues crossing this slot instead. One or two intersecting letters usually make HOT obvious. Working from the crossings is the single most useful habit for getting faster.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue HOT — sometimes with a straight dictionary definition, sometimes with wordplay, a pun, or a fill-in-the-blank — but the answer itself stays the same. Learning to spot the answer behind the disguise is a core crossword skill.
Example sentences
- "A 3-letter slot and a clue like 'Billboard's song ranking, ___ 100'? That's HOT nine times out of ten."
- "I second-guessed it, but the crossing answers confirmed HOT was right."
- "I had the crossing letters, so writing HOT into the grid took no time at all."