October 1, 2003
Peculiar robotics effort today
(5,2,7)
Cryptic crossword puzzles and
how to solve them
Daniel Stewart
Recognizing cryptic crosswords
Typical standard
crossword grid
Typical cryptic
crossword grid
Barred cryptic (or
Torquemeda) grid
However, cryptic crosswords are
mainly distinguished by their clues
A cryptic crossword clue (almost
always) consists of:
A surface reading which includes:
A definition + some kind of
wordplay (or wordplay +
definition) along with the number
of letters in the answer
For example:
Resilient pig’s home filled with vomit (8)
surface reading
Resilient pig’s home filled with vomit (8)
definition
wordplay
Resilient pig’s home filled with vomit (8)
definition
wordplay
“filled with” = container indicator (i.e. specifies
the type of wordplay)
“pig’s home” = STY
“vomit” = RETCH
That is: sty filled with retch
ST … RETCH … Y
STRETCHY , one meaning of
which is “resilient”
(the definition portion of the clue)
Types of clues
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
containers
charades
anagrams
double definitions
hidden words
homonyms
reversals
•subtractions
•British-style cryptic
clues
•There are other,
less common, types
and more than one
type can be
combined in a single
clue
Charade Clues
definition
Politically divided island tolerated
nothing (6)
wordplay
• Politically divided island tolerated
nothing (6)
“Politically divided island” = definition
“tolerated” = BORNE
“nothing” = O
(“nothing” or “love” often indicates the
letter “O”)
BORNE + O = BORNEO
Charade clues thus require “construction” of the answer
from parts supplied in the clue
Anagram clues
definition
Peculiar robotics effort today (5,2,7)
wordplay
Peculiar robotics effort today (5,2,7)
“Peculiar” = anagram indicator
(anagram indicators can be words
like “mixed”, “unusual”, and so on)
“robotics effort” = anagram fodder
“today” = definition
The letters in “robotics effort” can be
rearranged to form:
FIRST OF OCTOBER
Double definition clues
definition
Make tea expensive (5)
definition
Make tea expensive (5)
“make tea”
“expensive”
=
=
STEEP
STEEP
The answer to the clue, STEEP, is a
single word that satisfies the two, very
different, definitions
Hidden word clues
definition
Scots snack found in disco nearby (5)
wordplay
Scots snack found in disco nearby (5)
“found in” = hidden word indicator
(others might be “holds”, “carries”, or just
“in”)
“disco nearby” = words containing
hidden answer
SCONE is contained in “disco nearby”
Homonym clues
definition
Feudal drudge waves to the audience (4)
wordplay
Feudal drudge waves to the audience (4)
“to the audience” = homonym indicator
(others can be “to the ear”, “heard”, “for the
auditor”, … )
“waves” = surf, which is a homonym of:
SERF, which satisfies the definition: “feudal
drudge”
In this case the homonym indicator is at the end of the
wordplay indicating that a word for “waves” is a
homonym of a word for “feudal drudge” and not the other
way around (they both have four letters). Compare to:
Actor Tom heard stage hands (5)
The answer here is CREWS, which
has 5 letters; not CRUISE (if the clue
had indicated 6 letters, the answer
would be CRUISE). When the two
homonyms have a different number of
letters, the homonym indicator can be
in the middle of the clue with the
correct answer of the two possible
indicated by the number of letters.
Reversal clues
definition
Touch horn backing up (4)
wordplay
Touch horn backing up (4)
“touch” = definition
“horn” = TUBA
“backing up” = reversal indicator
(others can be “from the south”—in
a down clue, “from the East”—in an
across clue, or just “reversed”)
TUBA backwards is ABUT
Subtraction clues
definition
Montana town spread endlessly (5)
wordplay
Montana town spread endlessly (5)
“spread” = BUTTER
“endlessly” = subtraction indicator
BUTTER with the “R” removed = BUTTE
Note that either end of the word can be
removed and more than one letter can be
removed. Consider:
Backside spread endlessly (4)
Clues using a combination of these
principles:
Any of these can be combined. For example:
Brat at Ontario museum put out without
warning (9)
wordplay
Brat at Ontario museum put out
without warning (9)
definition
This is a combination of a charade clue and an
anagram:
“Brat” = IMP
“Ontario museum” = ROM
“put out”
•“put” = anagram fodder
•“out” = anagram indicator
IMP + ROM + PTU =
IMPROMPTU
Which satisfies the definition, without warning
British-style cryptic clues
In American and Canadian cryptic crosswords there
is great emphasis placed on the form of the clue—
there must be a definition, wordplay, and an indicator,
if one is required. No other words should appear in
the clue.
The British-style cryptic clue is often much looser:
•non-cryptic clues are occasionally included in
puzzles; e.g. Mideastern city (5) -- Cairo
•clues can be cryptic without the strict American
structure; e.g. Kosher diet (7) -- Knesset
•extra words are often found in the clues “linking” the
definition and the wordplay; e.g.
Town in Montana is spread endlessly (5)
“is” does not form part of the definition or the
wordplay; it just links the two (occasionally seen in
American puzzles also)
The most difficult cryptic crossword clue ever:
“E” (13)
The answer is SENSELESSNESS
This is a kind of a reversed
subtraction clue.
SENSELESSNESS, that is:
the letters in SENSE
LESS (i.e. take away)
the letters in NESS
which leaves the letter “E”.
The solver here is
being required to find
the cryptic clue –
“SENSELESSNESS”
that produces the
answer “E” as an
answer to “E”
presented as a cryptic
clue.
Where to find cryptic crosswords:
• Toronto Globe and Mail
– Weekday: anonymous British (on line)
– Weekend: Fraser Simpson
• National Post
• Virtually any British newspaper (particularly the
Guardian, the Times, and the Telegraph—usually
signed with a pseudonym)
• A large number of web sites