This puzzle is part of the Monthly Topic Challenge #4: Cross-*non*-words
May 4
be in 6
.
May the 46
be in 6
.
This is a cryptic crossword with a bit of a twist.
You may see that some clues do not match their position in the crossword in terms of word length. Therefore, for each clue (Clues 1 through 47 except clue 43):
- Find a short word related to the solution to the clue. (The solution to clues with question mark in parentheses are to be treated as cryptic-style wordplay, while the solution to the other clues usually "defines" the short word.)
- Append the first letter of the word that you entered into the crossword grid for clue 26.
- Finally, append the first letter of the "short word" related to the solution of the current clue. You will enter the word you now obtain (it thus starts and ends with the same letter) into the crossword grid.
The unclued words can be inferred from the words you entered. All words in the crossword are related to a certain theme that is then related to Clue 1, which is hidden. Try to find the solution to Clue 1.
Twelve of the clues each have an extra word or phrase, which is also related to Clue 1 and the title.
Crossword Grid
The image version of the grid is believed to have been uploaded online several times. The plaintext version is also available below with numbers added (we assume that all the visible characters in the grid are full width characters, and we suggest that you fill the grid with full-width characters as well).
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■㉜■■⑬
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■㉒,,,,
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■,■■,
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■,■■,
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■⑤㉛,,,■,
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■,■,■■■
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■⑨■,■■■■■
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■⑰,,,,■■■■
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■,■,■■■■④
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■,■■■⊚■■,
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■⑫,,㉖,■,■■,
■■■■■■■■■㉕■■■■■■■■■■■,■■⚇,,,
■■■■■■⑮■■,■■■■■■■■㉗■㉘,,,,■■,
■■■■■⓪,,,,,■■■■■■■,■■,■■,■■,
■■■■■■,■■,■■■■■■■■㊲,,,,■,■■■
■■■⑩㉚,,,■■■■■■■■■■,■■■■■■■■■
■■■■,■,■■■■■■■■㊺㊶,,,■■■■■■■■
⑧,,,,■■■■■■■■■■■,■,■■■■■■■■■
■■■■,■⑱■■⑥■■㉔■■■,■■■■■■■■■■■
■■②,,,,■㉞,,,,■■■,■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■,■■,■■,■■㊴,㉙,,■■■■■■■■
■■■■■㊷,,,,,■,■■■■,■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■,■■,■⑦,㊳,,,,■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■,■■■③■■,■■■,■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■■■■㉟,,,,■㉑,,,,■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■■■■■,■■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■⑳■■⑪■㊵■,■■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■㊼,,,,■①,,,,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■,■■,■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
㉓,,,,■,■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■,■⑲,⑭,,,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■■㊻,,,,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■■㊸,,㊱,,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■■■■■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■㊹㉝,,,,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■,■■■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■,■■■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■■⑯,,,,■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
Clues
- Rebuild more European
7
(4) - Our
46
put online paper with holes which looks like a35
(8) - Judge a container for dark varnish (5)
- An amount of money for part of insulin ran before engineer (9)
- Silence to come out on top after exercise (5)
- Money smell what some
35
can be (7) - Color bird of quiet lover (6)
- Computer company's program of large edges will pass today (5)
- Station of swamp of planet hard to the left ? (5,4)
- One who tries to keep things inside safe in warehouses - it terminated (11)
- RI's
7
without editor's14
to a very old place, perhaps (8?) - Non-ending punctuation with point from fern (7)
- Trade former small amount of money (8)
- I led dog of new place to play baseball? (4,5)
- Thin stick makes it get care (9)
- Shallow flower bend in spaces (5)
- A beautiful ancient calculating utensil - Strange at first (6)
- Spooner's train court is for long lived creatures (5,8)
- Second use of computer hardware (5)
- Not so cruel supporter accepts most of Last Workday End (6,8?)
- Artist Semi-Diodes of
23
device (5) - Some computer parts with removable leather top double - not drunk at ship (8)
- Plateau up each fine non-initial product (5,5)
- You and I will be healthy (4)
- Ordinary field / deep mountain (5)
- It's hard to climb, Let O Grapes run wild (5,5)
- Eternal sports group Three Leaf Clover (4)
- Ancient country never beginning hold of
4
(3,5) - Changing red-headed wood for cushion medal (5)
- Dreaming not shorter than act of railway landscape (7)
- Tops of Future Jive , place with great
31
(4) - King papers' joke (3)
- A language with
35
s and space; good and partly foolish (7) - One of the
1
is a person who rents things to people? (6) - RI's home golf with a member of Phoenix's Red Circle (6,3)
- Car's Back In Car Blossom (6)
- What to put on a
35
? Put a foot on it who (5) - Arms salute and take hats off
47
(3,3,5) - If all corpse with two branches breaks up - speak out clearly (7,6?)
- More than two job?
14
that here (5,3) - New health
28
for place for scatter information (9) - Will I tell him about holiday outing first? Sure, it's the way we catch fish (4,1,4)
- Flight from RI (a return) sounded
26
(8) - Main starter with cored
9
from tree (5) - Women and men first lived and died, in this place (5)
- Hopping creature in feldspar rows (7)
Note: Some clues, especially Clue 12 (I don't seem to be able to find a suitable word for the clue) may need revising.
Task 1: Try to solve this crossword and find out what Clue 1 decodes to.
You may need a dictionary to help you.
Task 2: (optional) Try to make another crossword grid using these fifty words you wrote in my grid, so that if a blank version of your grid (without clue numbers) and a list of the fifty words are given, one can find a unique method to locate each word in your grid, similar to this.
My grid would be a bit hard, as it would be far harder to locate clue 23 if the clue numbers in the grid were removed. Also, it would be better if your grid still remains connected even after removing the clues ⊚, ⚇, and ⓪ (the three unclued ones in my grid apart from Clue 1).
Hint 1:
The title refers to another crossword on this website.