Old switchboard pro crossword clue
43 Down · WSJ Crossword, August 16, 2026 · 8 letters
Explanation
The answer to “Old switchboard pro” is OPERATOR. It appears as 43 Down in the Wall Street Journal crossword of August 16, 2026, a Sunday puzzle titled “Corrode Test” by Zhouqin Burnikel, and it fills 8 squares running top to bottom from row 8, column 12 of the 15×15 grid.
The clue is a straightforward definition, so the answer is a direct synonym or a factual match for the words as written. The entry begins with O and ends with R, and contains 4 vowels and 4 consonants. If you are working from the crossings, two or three confirmed letters from the Across entries should be enough to lock it in. Weekend puzzles follow the same conventions as the weekday grids, pitched a notch above midweek, so expect the rest of this grid to be pitched at the same level.
Past appearances
OPERATOR has not appeared as an answer in any other WSJ puzzle in our index, which runs from May 2026 onward. It will be listed here the next time it turns up.