It can be hard to understand a crossword clue because crossword-writers are absolutely notorious for being cryptic. A good crossword player is typically a master riddle-solver, as one has to really think outside of the box to figure out some of these more difficult hints. Here are a few crossword-solving tips: Do your second pass, now with more letters to help you figure out new crossword answers. It’s a good idea to start from the top left and fill in words with some letters already filled in. This in-crossword help will give you more clues. If you’re still struggling, consider trying our anagram solver to help you find words with the letters you have. Containers imply that you’ll need to insert a word inside of another word, usually indicated in the clue by words like “within” or “surrounding.” Word Search Crosswords: Word search crosswords are a combination of a traditional crossword puzzle and a word search. The puzzle features a grid of letters, and the solver must find words in the grid and then fill in the answers in a separate crossword puzzle. With their intersecting words and horizontal and vertical orientation, crossword puzzles offer a unique and engaging form of wordplay. Whether you're a seasoned pro or a beginner, you're sure to find crossword puzzles to be both enjoyable and educational. So why not give it a try today and discover the joy of crossword puzzles for yourself

Washington Post Crossword: Their daily crosswords are free and fun to play. They also have a “Monthly Meta Crossword” that’s themed. These are just a few of the many different types of crossword puzzles available. No matter what type of crossword puzzle you choose, they are all a fun and challenging way to exercise your brain and improve your vocabulary. Question marks often imply wordplay or puns. Usually, crossword clues are written with no punctuation at all, so if you see a question mark, it implies that the answer won’t be as straightforward as you’d think. Think of puns, wordplay, homonyms, and less-obvious answers. If you really want to get fancy with your crosswords, you can also create a crossword puzzle with a program like Crossword Compiler for Windows or CrossFire by Beekeeper Labs. Playing our free online crossword puzzles is very easy. Start by choosing your favorite puzzle (or puzzles, for some crossword-heads). Then, choose which crossword you would like to play.Playing crossword games is a relaxing way to spend time and expand your vocabulary. These word puzzles can offer countless hours of fun, and the fact that you learn at the same time makes them time very well spent. Wordgames.com has a wide selection of crossword games, each with their own unique rules and words to discover and rediscover. Matt Gaffney likes to start with the theme and then use a divide-and-conquer approach to create his crosswords.

The most important tip is to practice. Max Deutsch took a month to master the Saturday New York Times crossword, and it required consistent practice, about 46 hours in total. He used a lot of memorization with letter training, memorizing crossword answers and clue pairings and completing a sizable number of puzzles. Practice is a huge piece of the puzzle but not the only piece, as harder puzzles like cryptic crosswords require divergent and flexible thinking.Read the clue carefully: Crossword clues can be written in a way that is meant to be misleading, so it's important to read the clue carefully and think about what it is really asking for. USA Today Crossword: Besides free crosswords, USA Today also offers other games, like sudoku and mahjong. Repeat these steps, taking breaks occasionally to look at the crossword quiz answers in a new way. Do this until you’re done. Keep considering the theme, look out for anagrams, and consider consulting a synonym and antonym finder to find new words that are similar to the clues. Remember to think outside of the box when trying to fill in those boxes! Deletions involve deleting one or two letters to get a different answer. For instance, “mend” minus a letter could be “end” or “men.” Despite the many changes and innovations in the world of crossword puzzles, the basic concept remains the same: to fill in a grid of blank squares with words based on clues given for each word. Crossword puzzles continue to be a popular and beloved form of entertainment and mental exercise.

WSJ Crossword: The Wall Street Journal’s puzzles are, in their words, “America’s most elegant, adventurous, and addictive crosswords.” They’re frequently themed and can be quite difficult to figure out crossword solutions for. Whether you’re trying a newspaper poster in print, solving a printable crossword puzzle, or testing yourself against a free online crossword puzzle, each of these word games works in the same basic way - you answer questions to make words. Try different word forms: Crossword clues often ask for different forms of words, such as singular and plural, so it's a good idea to try different word forms when you're not sure what the answer is. Start with an easier puzzle, then work your way up. If you’re looking up Monday and Tuesday NYT crosswords’ cheats, don’t discourage yourself by trying a Thursday grid. Easy puzzles are a great place to start, with crosswords later in the week getting progressively harder. Don’t expect to be a wiz at a difficult crossword right off the bat!If you want, you can go to the menu and customize your preferences. For example, you can choose to skip boxes that are already full when typing in new answers. Use context clues: Sometimes, the surrounding clues can provide additional information that can help you interpret the clue and find the answer. Crossword puzzles are the perfect way to put your vocabulary skills and logical thinking to the test. They ask you to reach into your word bank, decipher clues, and build connections between letters. An important thing to note is that the squares and the queries are numbered. This is so you can match them up on your crossword puzzles. What Clues Are Used In Crossword Puzzles? Experiment with word associations: If you're having trouble with a clue, try to think of words that are associated with the clue and see if any of them fit.

When solving a crossword puzzle, it's often helpful to start with the clues that are easiest to answer. Here are a few types of clues that you might want to consider starting with: Merriam-Webster Dictionary Crossword: The dictionary has a ton of word games, and this is just one of them. Somewhat ironically, The New York Times complains that crosswords are a “sinful waste” in which solvers “get nothing out of it except a primitive form of mental exercise, and success or failure in any given attempt is equally irrelevant to mental development.” ( The New York Times will later become famous for its top-notch crosswords.) The researchers stated that their findings reveal a link between word puzzles, like crosswords, and memory and thinking skills, but we can’t say definitively that regular puzzling improves these skills. Who Invented Crossword Puzzles?Anagrams: Crossword clues can sometimes ask for anagrams, which are words formed by rearranging the letters of another word. Anagrams can be difficult to solve, especially if the word is not a common one. There are a huge number of crossword puzzles you can choose from, ranging from introductory challenges all the way up to expert-level tests. That includes crisscross puzzles and specialized puzzle types and custom formats that are only available via a subscription.