A Beginner's Guide to Cryptic Crosswords

The first cryptic crossword I attempted was in a newspaper, but at the time I didn't even know what the word meant in relation to a crossword. But, I delved straight in regardless, confident that I'd at least be able to pen in some answers. How wrong I was.

It wasn't just that I didn't understand any of the clues; the clues themselves were complete gibberish. I read one, then another, and there were no coherent statements in either of them, just sentences interrupted by apparently random words. I immediately gave up on the cryptic clues, and set about filling in the answers from the quick clues side of the grid (there were two sets of clues, and readers could use either on the same grid). This was more up my street, if somewhat less taxing:

Capital of France (5)

Many months after that, my younger brother, for what reason I know not, took to compiling cryptic crosswords, and I looked at one of his efforts to see if I could gain a better understanding of this phenomenon that was beyond my grasp. The first clue read:

Observed, the cake was unfinished (7)

When I saw the answer, which was noticed, I got it. It was an epiphany; the penny had dropped, and I set off on a journey that would develop into a passion for devilishly tricky crosswords that have the answers hidden in a variety of ways within unusual clues.

Before I move on, I shall explain my brother's clue above. Put simply, something which is observed is noticed, and an unfinished cake might be not iced. The answer lay in what was common to both parts of the clue.

When Covid 19 struck, and the country went into lockdown, those of us who live alone were faced with the challenge of enforced solitude. I can state quite definitely that the books in the photo above were instrumental in getting me through that difficult period. I could easily become absorbed for an hour or more tackling fiendish clues, during which time I was relaxed and completely detached from my situation. So, what's it all about?

To get started, I'll demonstrate two of the most common forms of cryptic clues, the anagram and what I call hidden in plain sight. I made the following clues up myself, with assistance from an anagram generator, so they are perhaps not the most professional examples, but here goes.

The Anagram

It is common to find an anagram hidden within a clue. Here's a very short example,

Olaf shuffled staff (4)

To solve this clue, we shuffle the letters of the name Olaf, and we get loaf. They say that bread is the staff of life, so everything fits and that's that one done. Here's a longer one.

Two flee fire another way for something big in France (6–5)

To break this clue down, two flee fire written another way can give us something big in France. So, we check out anagrams of two flee fire, and we get Eiffel Tower, which is in France, and pretty darn big.

Sometimes the anagrams can be quite long, and this can make the clue seem like gobbledygook, as in this example.

Whiskered Athens phantom moved about for a look at captive life on screen (3–9–10)

If we move about the letters of whiskered Athens phantom, we can make the name of something that appeared on screen, which was about captive life. i.e., The Shawshank Redemption.

Hidden in plain sight

Sometimes, I've pondered over a clue for ages, only to realise the answer had been staring me in the face all along. Here are a couple of examples.

Praise from a part of Middlesex to London (5)

To solve this clue, we need to find a word that means praise, from a part of Middlesex to London. I'll put the relevant letters into bold text, so you can see the answer.

Praise from a part of Middlesex to London.

Here's another in that vein.

Strip club and agents, dressing (7)

This clue throws up several possibilities, in that it could refer to the act of getting dressed, or perhaps a salad dressing, but it is neither of those. Nor has it anything to do with a strip club, but rather we strip the words club and agents of their first and last three letters. Again, I'll put the answer in bold.

Strip club and agents, dressing

A bandage is, of course, a dressing.

And, finally:

Some outrage is manifest, for discrimination against the elderly (6)

The word some indicates that the answer may be made up of a part of the clue, and a scan of the possibilities reveals all. Omeout? No. Meoutr? No. Then, it falls into place.

Some outrage is manifest, for discrimination against the elderly

So, that's a brief introduction to two of the most common types of cryptic crossword clues (three if you count my brother's common denominator example), but there are many more cunning methods setters use as they try to stump solvers.

If you feel you might like to take on a cryptic crossword, then the tabloid press is a good place to start, as they are relatively gentle. If you go on to develop a liking for this type of puzzle, then a world of challenge awaits. On the back cover of one of those books in the photo, there is a list of three words that sum up its contents:

ADDICTIVE

TAXING

EXTREME

I'd go along with that.