Learn with Cordelia
Not your average solver
I used to think cryptic crosswords were for other people. Impenetrable. A secret club I'd never join. Then someone showed me the trick — and I realised I'd been overthinking it the whole time.
The Basics — It's Not What You Think
Here's the thing nobody tells you: a cryptic crossword is no harder than a regular one. In a regular crossword, you get one definition and you have to think of the answer. In a cryptic, you get two ways to find the answer. That's not harder — that's easier.
A regular crossword clue:
"Guess" (8)
You just have to think of an 8-letter word meaning "guess". Could be ESTIMATE, SPECULATE... not easy!
The same clue, cryptic style:
"Guess teatimes varied" (8)
You still have the definition — "Guess". But now you also have instructions: "teatimes varied" tells you to rearrange the letters of TEATIMES. That gives you ESTIMATE. Two routes to the same answer.
Every cryptic clue has the same structure:
A straight synonym, just like a regular crossword
Instructions to build the answer from pieces
Your job is simply to figure out where the definition ends and the wordplay begins. That's it. That's the whole game.
The Language — A Few Words You'll Pick Up
Cryptic solvers use a few terms. Don't worry about memorising them — you'll absorb them as you go.
A word that signals what type of wordplay is happening. "Broken" indicates an anagram. "Inside" indicates a container. You learn to spot these.
The raw material — the letters that get rearranged, reversed, or hidden. In "teatimes varied", TEATIMES is the fodder.
Setters love shorthand. "Quiet" = P (piano). "King" = R (Rex). "Old" = O. You'll build a mental dictionary of these.
One letter or word standing in for another. "Iron" = FE (chemistry). "Love" = O (tennis). The setter is playing with language.
When I started, I found our word lookup tool invaluable — click any word in a clue and instantly see if it's a known indicator, abbreviation, or synonym. No memorisation needed.
Your Toolkit — Cordelia's Favourite Helpers
I don't solve cryptics from memory. I use tools — and so should you. There's no shame in it. These are built right into every puzzle page:
Click a word in the clue to see if it's an indicator, synonym, or abbreviation. Click adjacent words to look up phrases.
Know some letters from crossing answers? Type S?O?E and find all matching words. Add "must include" letters to narrow it down.
Click the fodder words in the clue and the anagram solver fills with their letters. Delete or add letters for substitutions. Only real words returned.
Click the clue number and we'll search 500,000 clues for ones with similar wording. See how other setters used the same words.
The Wordplay Types — Learn Each One
There are about ten types of wordplay. Most clues use just a handful. Start with Hidden Words — they're the easiest to spot — then work through the rest at your own pace.
Hidden Word
30 examplesAnswer hiding inside the clue
Anagram
25 examplesLetters rearranged to spell the answer
Charade
30 examplesPieces joined end to end
Container
30 examplesOne word placed inside another
Reversal
28 examplesA word spelled backwards
Deletion
30 examplesLetters removed from a word
Double Definition
22 examplesTwo meanings, one answer
Homophone
12 examplesAnswer sounds like another word
Acrostic
3 examplesFirst letters of words spell the answer
Cryptic Definition
26 examplesThe whole clue is a tricky definition
I won't pretend I crack every clue. Nobody does — not even the experts. But every puzzle I try, I get a few more. And that feeling when you finally see how a clue works? That's what keeps you coming back.
— Cordelia