How to read a crossword clue

Most clues in a daily crossword are definitions: a few words that describe the answer without using it. Start by deciding what kind of word the answer must be. If the clue is a verb phrase, the answer is a verb; if it is a plural noun, the answer is plural. The grammar of the clue almost always matches the grammar of the answer.

Then count. The number of letters in the grid is part of the clue, and so is every crossing letter you already have. A clue with several possible answers becomes a single answer once the length and two crossing letters are fixed, which is why a pattern search is the most efficient way to use a vague clue.

Short clues are usually synonyms: the answer can stand in for the clue in a sentence. Longer clues describe the answer from several sides, and the key noun is normally the one that tells you what family of word you need. Clues that name a category ("type of bird") tell you the answer belongs to a list, and lists are easy to test against crossing letters.

Two small conventions are worth knowing. A clue that mentions an abbreviation ("for short") expects a shortened form as the answer, and a clue with a question mark expects a playful or non-literal reading, so check both before you commit. The register of the clue also carries over: an informal clue usually has an informal answer, an old-fashioned clue an old-fashioned one.

Finally, trust the crossings over the clue. If a letter from a crossing answer contradicts your first idea, the idea is wrong, not the grid. Tense and number are the fastest consistency check: a past-tense clue gives a past-tense answer and a plural clue a plural answer.

One-word clues: the answer is a synonym

Short definitions

Longer descriptions

Category clues

Try these ideas on a real puzzle: open today’s Mini, or use pattern search with the letters you already know.

Mini · Pattern search