30 авг. 2010 г. · The rule of thumb is to ignore punctuation other than '?' and '!', but there are clever setters out there to subvert such rules.

5 июн. 2023 г. · Cryptic devices: hidden answers; double definitions; cryptic definitions; soundalikes; initial letters; spoonerisms; containers; reversals; ...

DOUBLE DEFINITIONS. The simplest kind of wordplay hint in a clue is a second definition. For example, HOOD can mean “gangster” or “a cover for the head.” So ...

16 февр. 2015 г. · The short answer to the question “What should I make of the punctuation in a cryptic crossword clue?” is: ignore it. All of it.

The most common cryptic clueing technique is to form the answer by rearranging the letters in a word or group of words as they appear in the clue-making.

Often these are not intuitive and require an explanation to clarify how and why the clue and answer are linked, e.g. 'sailor' = 'able-bodied seaman' = AB. See ...

Cryptic crosswords often use abbreviations to clue individual letters or short fragments of the overall solution.

Sometimes called a pun, a cryptic definition is one that appears to mean one thing, but when read differently means something else. Homonyms are frequently used ...

Cryptic crossword clues conform to certain rules and patterns, and spotting the nature of the clue will give you the key to solving it.

23 февр. 2024 г. · These clues have their wordplay and definitions mixed up together, to form a misleading or humorous definition for a particular word or phrase.