Introduction to Cryptic Crossword Clues

Wei-Hwa HuangJanuary 2010

Link to this Presentation on my Blog:onigame.livejournal.com

What is a Cryptic Crossword?

• Crossword puzzle with “cryptic” clues that use wordplay heavily

• Found in most major UK newspapers and a few major Canadian and US publications

• Uses a “sparse” grid where only half the letters in each word cross

Where to Find Easy Cryptics

• Easiest: Lovatts Cryptic Crossword Magazine– http://www.lovatts.com.au/– Australian (has slightly different style

than American or British cryptics)– Excellent tutorial on their website

• Easy: “101 Cryptic Crosswords” edited by Fraser Simpson– Originally appeared in The New Yorker

from 1997-1999– American

Types of Cryptic Clues (“Tricks”)

• Cryptic Definition Clues• Double Definition Clues• Hidden Word Clues• Reversal Clues• Reversal Hidden Word Clues• Charade Clues• Container Clues• Homophone Clues• Anagram Clues• Deletion Clues• Initialism Clues• “& lit.” (And Literally So) Clues

Cryptic Definition Clues

Cryptic Definition Clues

• Earliest type of clue• Evolved from normal crosswords• Clue has a misleading “surface reading” but

gives the correct answer when interpreted the right way

• Rarely seen in American cryptic crosswords, but still common outside the US

• Often is signified by ending with a question mark

Soldiers often get them cut short (6)

LEAVES

• There may often be a more natural answer that won’t fit in the grid

• The (6) is called an “enumeration”; it tells you how many letters the answer has• SHORE LEAVES would get the enumeration (5,6)• Harder crosswords may omit the enumeration

Double Definition Clues

Double Definition Clues

• Clue can be split into two parts

• Each part is a definition of the answer

• Style: the two meanings of the word are unrelated or, better yet, have different etymologies

Evil structure in St. Louis (4)

Evil = ARCH

structure in St. Louis = ARCH

ARCH

• “Surface reading” might not be a valid definition

Having a ball (7)

Having = BEARING (verb)

a ball = BEARING (noun)

BEARING

• Trick: Different parts of speech

River blossom (6)

River = FLOWER (something that flows)

blossom = FLOWER

FLOWER

• Trick: Different pronunciations

Holder for writing implement (3)

Holder = PEN

for = (connector)

writing implement = PEN

PEN

• Connector words

(Digression) Connector Words

• Connector words (or link words) separate the two “halves” of the clue

• Generally mean “is”• Examples

– (definition) is (definition)– (definition) – it’s (definition)– (definition) as (definition)– (definition) for (definition)– (definition) becomes (definition)– (definition) or (definition)– (definition)’s (definition)

Hidden Word Clues

Hidden Word Clues

• Clue can be split into two parts

• One part is a “straight definition” (may be cryptic)

• Other part has the answer “hidden” inside it, with an indicator that there is hiding going on

• Uncommon in British crosswords

Callous engineer has bug (5)

CalLOUS Engineer = fodder

has = hidden word indicator

bug = LOUSE (definition)

LOUSE

• Tip: Easiest type of clue to find

Car in immense danger (5)

Car = SEDAN (definition)

in = hidden word indicator

immenSE DANger = fodder

SEDAN

• Two parts can come in either order

Salesman: “I sell hides, spice” (5)

SalesmAN I SEll = fodder

hides = hidden word indicator

spice = ANISE (definition)

ANISE

• Tip: Ignore capitalization, punctuation, spaces

Salesman: “I sell hides or spice” (5)

• Style: Cryptic and surface readings have to make sense!

Bad style: ANISE is not “or spice”

Something hidden by “salesman I sell” or spice (5)

Bad style: Surface reading makes no sense

Some Hidden Word Indicators• (fodder) characters

• (fodder) content

• (fodder) extract

• (fodder) letters

• (fodder) in part

• (fodder) partly

• (fodder) selection

• (fodder) somewhat

• partial (fodder)• some (fodder)

• (definition) in (fodder)

• (definition) from (fodder)

• (definition) within (fodder)

• (definition) inside (fodder)

• (definition) of (fodder)

• (fodder) has (definition)• (fodder) hides (definition)• (fodder) hiding (definition)• (fodder) hid (definition)• (fodder) conceal(s/ing/ed) (definition)• (fodder) display(s/ing/ed) (definition)• (fodder) exhibit(s/ing/ed) (definition)• (fodder) display(s/ing/ed) (definition)• (fodder) featur(es/ing/ed) (definition)• (fodder) provid(es/ing/ed) (definition)• (fodder) smuggl(es/ing/ed) (definition)• (fodder) veil(s/ing/ed) (definition)• (fodder) secreting (definition)• (fodder) helping to make (definition)• (fodder) has hidden (definition)• (fodder) has internal (definition)

Reversal Clues

Reversal Clues

• Clue can be split into two parts

• One part is a “straight definition” (may be cryptic)

• Other part has “fodder” and an indicator to “reverse” the fodder

• Fodder may be direct (literal) or indirect (defined)

Brag about clothing (4)

Brag = fodder

about = reversal indicator

clothing = GARB (definition)

GARB

Bundle up components (5)

Bundle = STRAP

up = reversal indicator

components = PARTS (definition)

PARTS

• Down clues may use “up” as indicators; Across clues might use “left”

High-powered vehicle upended garbage truck (7)

High-powered vehicle = TRACTOR (def.)

upended = reversal indicator

garbage = ROT (noun)

truck (verb) = CART

TRACTOR

• The fodder might be multiple words

Some Reversal Indicators• about, around, round, brought

about, coming around, going round

• back, backed, backing, backward, back-to-front, coming back, going back, looking back, sent back

• retreat, retreating, retrograde

• counter, revolutionary, turn, turns, turning, turned

• flipped, flipping, in reverse, reversed

• from the east, going west, westbound

• from the right

• over, overturned

(Down clues only)• ascending, raised, raising, rising,

lifted

• up, upended, upset

• brought up, coming up, looking up, sent up, shown up, written up

• from the bottom

• from the south, going north, northbound

Reversal Hidden Word Clues

Reversal Hidden Word Clues

• Clue can be split into two parts

• One part is a “straight definition” (may be cryptic)

• Other part has the answer “hidden backwards” inside it, with an indicator that there is hiding and reversal going on

Priestess always holds back blessings (6)

PriesteSTESS Always = (fodder)

holds = hidden word indicator

back = reversal indicator

blessings = ASSETS (definition)

ASSETS

(Digression) See a Pattern?

• Clue can be split into two parts• One part is a “straight definition” (may be cryptic)• Other part is a “cryptic half”, with indicators that

there is some sort of wordplay going on• Wordplay is often some sort of action (“indicator

word”) being done to some text (“fodder”)• Fodder can be direct (“use these letters”) or

indirect (“find your own letters”)– Good Style: Hidden words must be direct!

• Surface reading should make sense!

Charade Clues

Charade Clues

• Most common type of Clue

• Named after the game of Charades

• Pieces of the answer are clued

• Unlike the game, it is the letters that are clued, not the sounds

Declare delay can be avoided (9)

Declare = AVER

delay = TABLE (verb)

can be avoided = (definition)

AVERTABLE

• Good Style: The charade “parts” and the actual word should be unrelated

Around start of lunchtime, love soft sound of horse’s hoof (4)

Around = C (“circa”) start of “Lunchtime” = Llove = O (tennis score)

soft = P (music, “piano”)sound of horse’s hoof = (definition)

CLOP

• Abbreviations are common, as well as grabbing parts of words

Morning in Oregon is key (1,5)

Morning = A.M. in = IN

Oregon = ORis = (connector)key = (definition)

A MINOR

• Some fodder may be literal

Some Abbreviations• Chemistry: “sodium” = NA; “temperature” = T• Geography: “Idaho” = ID; “Switzerland” = CH (Confoederatio

Helvetica); “Australia” = OZ• Money: “bob” = S (shilling); “coin” = D (denarius); “debt” = IOUS• Games: “knight” = N (chess); “duck” = O (cricket)• Jobs: “doctor” = MD ; “copper” = PC (police constable)• Roman numerals: “six” = VI; “grand” = M• Measurements: “pound” = LB; “inch” = IN• Slang: “car” = T (Model T); “sweat” = BO (Body odor)• Music: “key” = B; “note” = MI; “loudly” = F• Latin: “about” = C (circa); “this month” = INST (instante mense);

“right eye” = OD (oculus dexter)• British abbreviations: “gunners” = RA (Royal Artillery); “jolly” = RM

(Royal Marine); “king” = GR (King George, Rex); “medal” = OBE (Order of the British Empire); “posh” = U (Upperclass); “Ulster” = NI (Northern Ireland)

Plaster the French fortress (6)

Plaster = CAST (noun)

“the” French = LE

fortress = (definition)

CASTLE

• Knowledge of foreign language may be helpful

Happy boy follows gram (4)

Happy = (definition)

boy = LAD

gram = G (unit of weight)

LAD follows G = GLAD

GLAD

• The charade need not be in order as long as the clue indicates it

Container Clues

Container Clues

• Fodder is put inside other fodder

• Indicator suggests some sort of containment

• Good Style: both fodders should be unrelated to the answer

Russian money in tome is inconvenient (11)

Russian money = ROUBLEStome = (fodder)

ROUBLES in TOME = T(ROUBLES)OME is = (connector)

inconvenient = (definition)

TROUBLESOME

• Could have used “book” instead of “tome” to make the clue even harder

• ROUBLES is plural, but cryptic reading requires singular; fortunately, “money” is usefully ambiguous

Head of pig found in excellent meal (6)

Head of “pig” = P

excellent = SUPER

P found in SUPER = SUP(P)ER

excellent meal = (definition)

SUPPER

• Fodder may often be single letters

“Two From Virginia Holding Back Attack,” editor confirmed (8)

Two From VIrginia = VI Attack = FIRE

Back FIRE = ERIF VI Holding ERIF = V(ERIF)I

editor = ED confirmed = V(ERIF)I+ED (definition)

VERIFIED

• Charades, containers, and reversals are often combined

Some Container Indicators(“container” side)• admit, allow, contain, take in,

introduce

• about, around, box, circle, encircle, frame, ring, round

• besiege, capture, catch, flank, surround

• clutch, embrace, enfold, envelop, grasp, hold, swallow, wrap

• bridge, harbor, house, shelter

• cover, external, outside, without

• passive form of “contents” verbs (“entered by,” “splitted by,” etc.)

(“contents” side)• aboard, boards, enters

• penetrates, pierces

• breaks, divides, interrupts, parts, separates, splits

• content, contents, fills, lines, occupies, packs, stuffs

• amidst, inside, internal, within

• “ing” form of verbs (“stuffing,” “piercing,” etc.)

• passive form of “container” verbs (“admitted,” “beseiged,” etc.)

Homophone Clues

Homophone Clues

• Fodder sounds like the answer word

• Indicator suggest some sort of sounding out

• (Strictly speaking, these should be called “heterographic homophone” clues, as the fodder and the answer should have different spellings)

Sounds like oil country (6)

Sounds like = homophone indicator

oil = GREASE

country = (definition)

GREECE

My lizard is said to be small (6)

My lizard = MY NEWT

is said = homophone indicator

to be = (connector)

small = (definition)

MINUTE

• Fodder might be multiple words

Vocally communicate moment of force to the audience (4)

Vocally communicate = (definition)

moment of force = TORQUE

to the audience = homophone indicator

TALK

• Watch out for regional accents

Some Homophone Indicators• said, say

• announced, pronounced, reported(ly), sounded

• audible, aurally, vocal, voiced

• as we hear, overheard

• audience’s, auditor’s, hearer’s, listener’s, speaker’s

• for the audience/etc., to the audience/etc.

• in audition, in conversation, in speaking, in recital

• on the radio

• according to hearsay, by the sound of it, so it’s said, so to speak, so we hear

Anagram Clues

Anagram Clues

• Fodder has its letters rearranged

• Indicator suggests some sort of rearrangement or mixing or chaos

• Second-most common type of clue (most common in poor constructions)

• Good Style: fodder should be literally in the clue. “Indirect” anagrams are considered very bad construction!

Alas, I’m crazy for Italian sausage (6)

ALAS IM = (fodder)

crazy = anagram indicator

for = (connector)

Italian sausage = (definition)

SALAMI

• Fodder often is multiple words

After faculty holds out insane aunt, we go back for a soft drink (8,3)

faculty = MIND out = O (baseball)

insane AUNT = UNTA (anagram)MIND holds O+UNTA = M(OUNTA)IND

WE go back = EW (reversal)After MOUNTAIND, EW = MOUNTAINDEW

for = (connector)a soft drink = (definition)

MOUNTAIN DEW

• May be mixed with containers, reversals, or charades

Some Anagram Indicators• abnormal, about, absurd, adapt, adapted, addled, adjust, adjusted, adjustment, adrift, afresh, after a fashion, agitated, all over, alter,

alteration, altered, altering, amiss, anew, another way, anyhow, around, arrange, arranged, arrangement, arranging, askew, assemble, assembled, assembling, assembly, assorted, assortment, astray, at odds, at sea, at sixes and sevens, awful, awfully, awkward, awkwardly, awry, bad, badly, bananas, bastard, bats, battered, batty, beaten, beaten up, become, becomes, becoming, bend, bent, bizarre, blend, blended, boil, boiled, boiling, break, breaking, brew, brewed, brewing, broadcast, broken, build, building, built, by arrangement, by mistake, can be, careless, carelessly, cast, cavort, cavorting, change, changed, changes, changing, chaos, chaotic, characters, chop, chopped, circulate, circulated, cocktail, complicate, complicated, components, compose, composed, composing, composition, compound, comprise, concealed, concealing, conceals, confuse, confused, confusing, constituents, construct, conversion, convert, converted, convertible, cook, cooked, correct, corrected, corrupt, corrupted, corruption, could be, crack, cracked, crackers, cracking, crazed, crazy, criminal, cuckoo, cunningly, curious, curiously, damage, damaged, dance, dancing, dealt, deform, deformed, demolished, deploy, deployed, derived from, design, designed, develop, developed, deviation, devious, dicky, different, differently, disarray, disfigure, disfigured, disguise, disguised, dishevelled, dislocation, dismantled, disorder, disordered, disorderly, dispersed, disposed, disruption, disseminated, distressed, disturbance, disturbed, disturbing, diversified, dizzy, doctor, doctored, dodgy, dotty, dreadful, dreadfully, dressed, drunk, dud, duff, eccentric, edit, edited, engendering, engineered, ensemble, entangle, entangled, erratic, erupting, essentials, excited, exotic, explode, exploded, exploding, extraordinary, fabricate, fabricated, false, fanciful, fancy, fantastic, fashion, fashioned, fashioning, faulty, fermented, fiddle, fiddled, find, fluid, flurried, foolish, foolishly, for a change, forced, forge, forged, form, fractured, fragmented, fragments, free, freely, fresh, freshly, frolicking, fudge, funny, garbled, generating, gets, gives, giving, grotesque, ground, haphazard, hash, havoc, haywire, hide, hiding, higgledy-piggledy, ill, ill-disposed, ill-formed, ill-treated, improper, improperly, in a ferment, in a jumble, in a mess, in a whirl, incorrect, incorrectly, in disarray, in disguise, in error, ingredients, in ruins, interfered with, involve, involved, irregular, irregularity, jittery, juggled, jumbled, jumping, kind of, kinky, knotted, lawless, letters, liquid, loose, loosely, lunatic, mad, made, made up, madly, make-up, malformed, malfunction, maltreated, managed, mangled, manoeuvre, mash, massaged, maybe, may be, meandering, medley, mess, messy, minced, mishandle, misplaced, misshapen, mistake, mistaken, misuse, mix, mixed, mixture, mobile, modelled, modified, moving, muddle, muddled, mutilated, mutinous, naughty, new, newly, not in order, not properly, not right, not straight, novel, nuts, nutty, odd, off, order, ordered, orderly, organise, organised, original, originally, otherwise, out, out of joint, out of sorts, peculiar, perhaps, perverse, perversely, pervert, perverted>, phoney, pie, pitching, plastic, playing, poor, poorly, possible, possibly, potential, potentially, prepare, prepared, problem, processing, produce, production, pseudo, put out, put right, put straight, queer, queerly, questionable, quirky, ragged, rambling, random, randomly, recollected, rectified, reeling, reels, reform, reformed, regulated, repair, repaired, replaced, resort, reveal, revealed, review, reviewed, revolting, revolutionary, rigged, riot, rioting, riotous, rock, rocking, rocky, rotten, rough, roughly, round, ruin, ruined, ruinous, rum, run, running, runs, rupture, ruptured, sad, sadly, scatter, scattered, set off, set out, shake, shaken, shaking, shaky, shambles, shift, shifted, shifting, shot, silly, sloppy, smash, smashed, smashing, snarled, somehow, spill, spilled, spin, spinning, spoil, spoilt, spread, spun, stagger, staggered, staggering, stew, strange, strangely, stray, substitute, substituted, surprising, surprisingly, suspect, swimming, swirl, swirling, switch, switched, tangled, tattered, tidied, tipsy, tortuous, train, trained, training, transform, transformed, transformer, translate, translated, treat, treated, treatment, tricky, trim, trouble, troubled, tumbling, turn, turned, turning, turns, twist, twisted, twister, undone, unnatural, unrestrained, unruly, unsettle, unsettled, unsteady, untidy, unusual, unusually, upheaval, upset, used, vague, vaguely, variation, varied, variety, version, volatile, wander, wandering, warp, warped, wayward, weave, weaving, weird, wild, wilder, wildly, worked, working, worried, wound, woven, wrecked, writhing, wrong, wrongly

Anagram Indicator Classes

• Chaotic/Disarray• Crazy/Foolish• Bad/Evil• Mistake/Problem• Break/Bend• Strange/Weird• Mix/Blend• Confuse/Tangle• Hidden/Fake

• New/Original• Different/Change• Fix/Modify• Assort/Arrange• Compose/Generate• Move/Circulate• Fluid/Free• Could be/Perhaps• Pieces/Ingredients

Deletion Clues

Deletion Clues

• Fodder loses some letters• Indicator suggests some sort of deletion• The deleted letters are NOT clued (otherwise it would be

a charade); only their position in the fodder is• Several varieties, the first two being common enough to

get their own name:– Beheadment: First letter deleted– Curtailment: Last letter deleted– First and Last letter deleted– Central letter (or letters) deleted– Indicated letters deleted

Actual kingdom is detailed (4)

Actual = (definition)

kingdom = REALM

is detailed = curtailment indicator

REAL

• Good Style: words should be unrelated

After commencement, waste time for stew (6)

After commencement = beheadment indicator

waste time = DRAG OUT

for = connector

stew = (definition)

RAGOUT

• Watch out for multiple words

Deletion Indicators

Beheadment• after start, after commencement

• beheaded, decapitated, headless, leaderless

• first off, head off, start off

• losing opener, missing the first, not beginning, not starting, unstarted

• beginning to go, start to go

• needing no introduction

• scratch the head

• initially lacking

• uninitiated

Curtailment• before the end• curtailed, tailless, endless• back off, end off, finish off• missing the last, unending,

unfinished, without end• almost, incomplete, most, mostly, not

completely, not quite, not fully• lacking finish• abridged, clipped, fall short• for the most part• fall short• Interminable• detailed

Bemoans heartless commandments (4)

Bemoans = (definition)

heartless = “without the middle letter”

commandments = RULES

RUES

• Other letters can be missing as well

Take in penalty every second (3)

Take in = (definition)

pEnAlTy = (fodder)

every second = indicator

EAT

• “Every other letter” can be seen occasionally; the fodder should be literal

Initialism Clues

Artistic lithography involving Van Eyck starts to be active (5)

Artistic Lithography Involving Van Eyck = (fodder)

starts = initialism indicator

to be = (connector)

active = (definition)

ALIVE

Punctuation

Punctuation

• Almost all punctuation can (should) be ignored; they’re for the surface reading

• A trailing “?” is an exception; it indicates that the wordplay or definition is questionable or involves a bad joke

• A trailing “!” is the other exception; it indicates an “& lit.” clue

• Not all constructors follow these rules, so be careful

Traitor’s chief purpose! (7)

Traitor’s chief = T

purpose = REASON

TREASON

• In an “& lit.” (“and literally so”) clue, the clue is both the “wordplay” half and the “straight definition” half

Questions?