Questions tagged [cryptic-clues]
A puzzle that involves cryptic clues of the type found in cryptic crosswords, but is not a cryptic crossword. DO NOT use this tag for puzzles that are stated cryptically; use [enigmatic-puzzle] instead. Use [cryptic-crosswords] for whole crosswords; [crossword-clues] for crossword clues not obeying the conventions of cryptic crosswords (even if they are stated cryptically).
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Cryptic Clue Guide
This post is not a puzzle. There is nothing puzzly hidden inside it or the self-answer, posted at the same time.
What exactly is a cryptic crossword clue, and how do I write one?
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The first Density™ Puzzle!
Welcome to the very first puzzle in a new series! It's all about (hopefully) exploring new ways of creating puzzles, as densely as possible.
If you'd like to create your own Density™ puzzle, the ...
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Piece de Resistance - Six-six-six. An Ultimate Wall of Cryptics
Six - six-six. An Ultimate Wall of Cryptics
This puzzle is part of the "Piece de Resistance" series. Go back to Part 1 (Ace) for the story.Ace Two Three Four Five Six ...
Aha! This one is of ...
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1
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Simply Cryptic #1
No back story, no setting, no theme, simply a cryptic clue to solve:
One large cake performance
Since cryptic clues traditionally indicate the number of letters in the solution, I'll provide that ...
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7
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2
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Simply Cryptic #2
No back story, no setting, no theme, simply a cryptic clue to solve:
Mark hidden in plain sight and it's close. Listen!
Since cryptic clues traditionally indicate the number of letters in the ...
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3
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1
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Simply Cryptic #3
No back story, no setting, no theme, simply a cryptic clue to solve:
Leading to effect, endless pause in large town with LA reversal
Since cryptic clues traditionally indicate the number of ...
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2
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1
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Simply Cryptic #4
No back story, no setting, no theme, simply a cryptic clue to solve:
Easy, he finishes walking strange, strangely.
Since cryptic clues traditionally indicate the number of letters in the solution, ...
- 4,573
27
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1
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Cryptic Poem: a study in what?
One day, while you work through one of your countless puzzle books, you notice that a sheet of paper has been slipped inside with a curious little poem written on it.
A Study
An ancient man ...
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3
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Traversing Africa: A Cryptic Journey
Each answer is a place, landmark or attraction in Africa, one per country. The answers first traverse all countries on the mainland by crossing land borders, and then the remaining ones go around the ...
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1
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Ingrid Deduction pops by with a puzzle
The other night I was sat at home in Providence when the doorbell rang. To my surprise, my very good friend Ingrid Deduction stood on the step, a huge grin on her face and a piece of paper held out ...
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PSE Advent Calendar 2021 (Day 8): Reindeer Family Reunion
This puzzle is part of the Puzzling StackExchange Advent Calendar 2021. The accepted answer to this question will be awarded a bounty worth 50 reputation.< Previous Door Next Door >
In the style ...
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Cryptic Rebuses
A cryptic rebus, so says I, is a rebus that has the form of a cryptic clue. That is to say, there are two parts to a cryptic rebus:
a definition of the answer
a subsidiary indicator of the answer.
A ...
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gegs? (9, 4) - a british cryptic crossword clue
gegs? (9, 4)
I hope this is a suitable forum for this British crossword clue, as it's my first post and I'm trying something new. This is a cryptic crossword clue, so (9, 4) tells you about the ...
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The Word Web of horror - Clue Twenty Two
<<---First clue
<---Previous clue
As you say the word, the floor starts rising. You are now able to reach the trapdoor.
You push it open and climb out. You blink in surprise. You appear to ...
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4
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Discover the meaning of life!
You've trekked through jungle and tundra, across mountaintops and deserts, into giant caverns and beneath the ocean to find the person known as The Oracle. Finally, after all your hard work, you find ...
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2
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Help! I am infected with the puzzling bug!
Argh...I can't get this bug of puzzling off my head! It's really weird, and so annoying, you know...I can't help thinking about puzzles all the time. It's like... when I see a word, I think of ...
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Japanese Fusion Alphabet Soup
The Dish...
...is an intriguing blend, with a base of classic Western flavours, and a twist of the Orient at its heart.
The Ingredients...
...are diverse and are combined in such an unexpected - dare ...
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Chess Fortnight is finally over!
(Note: the backstory here may or may not be entirely fictitious.)
The fortnightly chess theme is finally over! I couldn't stand it. It was chaos! Pieces moving around in all the wrong ways... I was ...
- 145k
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3
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The Video Gamers' Double-Duty Crossword
"OK, so I know that you two are always arguing about what type of crosswords to do- 'Normal crosswords are too boring!' 'Cryptics are too esoteric!!' Trivia vs wordplay, yeah, I've heard both ...
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Cryptic quote from a press conference
(Buzz, expressions of hesitance) "The United Nations, together with a European nation", repeated USA's leader, "discovered Papuan area for exotic fish" (21)
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2
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Race to the Past: A Historical Scavenger Hunt
This was intended to be for History Fortnight, but I didn't quite get it finished up in time. (I now have a history of just missing these cutoffs.) Here's the puzzle, though you'll definitely need ...
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Cryptic Rebuses Hit the Books
In order to learn more about Emily Dickinson and T. S. Eliot, who made cameos here and here, cryptic rebuses are going to the library.
If you're unsure how cryptic rebuses work, you may want to check ...
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A Metacryptic Puzzle
Solve the 5 cryptic clues to reveal a final cryptic clue. Solve that one, too.
Stiff butt inside capital punishment, initially (5)
Blinded tin turned ton with ocean sound (6, 3)
Drink for Eastern ...
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Portraits and quotes - Clue Twenty Four
<<---First clue
<--Previous clue
A note from @Mithrandir: I have given explicit permission for @Randal'Thor to post this, and gave him the answer to encode. If you want to post one, ping @...
- 116k
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A Cryptic Clue Nineteen
<<---First clue
<---Previous clue
You close the computer and stand up. You now have 18 clues. Only [redacted] more to go!, you think.
You head to the door and try to open it. It didn't open....
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PSE Advent Calendar 2021 (Day 14): An international reunion
This puzzle is part of the Puzzling StackExchange Advent Calendar 2021. The accepted answer to this question will be awarded a bounty worth 50 reputation.< Previous Door Next Door >
This is a &...
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What do these things have in common? (Albert Iteration)
Following is a list of lines; each line contains two riddles written by my pal Albert Iteration. Each riddle describes a single word. Your task is to identify the words being described and find what ...
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Recondite key locked another puzzle... - Clue Twenty Nine!
<<---First clue
<---Previous clue
A note from @Mithrandir: I have given explicit permission for @Techidiot to post this, and gave him the answer to encode. If you want to post one, ping @...
- 18.9k
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3
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Traversing Oceania: A Cryptic Journey
Each answer is a place, landmark or attraction in Oceania, one per country. The answers traverse all countries by crossing maritime borders (or close enough). Each clue is missing a country name from ...
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The etched words - Clue Twenty Six
<<---First clue
<---Previous clue
A note from @Mithrandir: I have given explicit permission for @Khale_Kitha to post this, and gave him the answer to encode. If you want to post one, ping @...
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4
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Revenge [cryptic] rebus puzzles
Enjoyed these did you? Felt they were a bit too easy? The rebuses are feeling bitter about their loss, and they will only concede defeat if you break their puzzle:
Wait a second... they've sent a ...
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A strange sight in London
While travelling in London, I noticed something strange.
I saw some numbers which appeared to be counting up but which then switched to counting down. Later on, I saw the same thing, but the numbers ...
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PSE Advent Calendar 2022 (Day 13): Sweden’s Sankta Lucia
This puzzle is part of the Puzzling Stack Exchange Advent Calendar 2022. The accepted answer to this question will be awarded a bounty worth 50 reputation.< Previous Door Next Door >
Ahhh, that ...
user79541
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Traversing the US and Canada: A Cryptic Journey
Each answer is a place, landmark or attraction in the United States or Canada. The answers traverse all Canadian provinces, Canadian territories, U.S. states and the District of Columbia. This is done ...
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The Puzzling Times
$$\bbox[orange]{\begin{array}{rcl}\\\hline\huge\ \ \star\ \ \star\ \ The&\huge{Puzzling}&\huge{Times\ \ \star\ \ \star\ \ }\\\hline\\\end{array}}$$
Vol. 4, No. 1 $\raise 2pt \tt{\large{\...
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re-re-reCAPTCHA
Last Friday, I was feeling a bit sad because I hadn't earned much rep recently, so I decided to try this awesome sock puppet thing everyone's been raving about. I logged out of my normal Puzzling ...
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literally no idea
Clues
What a conductor gives to an out-of-tune player?
You perform this in Spring
Sung by musical miners?
Those behind bars keeps tabs on this
Sounds something like a big colourful Spanish bird
...
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The Cryptic Writing On The Wall
The goal is simple: solve the cryptic clues to get a Only-Connect wall, consisting of 16 words, which then must be grouped into 4 groups of 4 words each sharing a common property.
Investigate the ...
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Chain Puzzle: Tabletop Games #10 – Risky Finale
This is the tenth and final Chain Puzzle in the Tabletop Games series, in which all puzzles are themed around board games, card games, tile games, and the like. Once this puzzle is solved, this Chain ...
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Gladys unchained
This puzzle is part 2 of Gladys' journey across the globe. If you're new to the series, feel free to start at the beginning: Introducing Gladys.
Dear Puzzling,
Today I spent the ...
- 76.2k
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PSE Assessment Exam
An entry in Fortnightly Topic Challenge #27: Treasure-Hunt...
Welcome to the PSE Assessment Exam!
This exam is designed to assess your aptitude, knowledge and experience as a high profile member of ...
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Chain Puzzle: Tabletop Games #09 - “The” Cryptic Movies
This is the ninth Chain Puzzle in the Tabletop Games series, in which all puzzles are themed around board games, card games, tile games, and the like. The answer to this puzzle is a thematic word or ...
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Moons and messages
This puzzle is part 15 of Gladys' journey across the globe. Each part can be solved independently. Nevertheless, if you are new to the series, feel free to start at the beginning: Introducing Gladys.
...
- 76.2k
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Neo-Futurist Poetry
This puzzle is part of the Monthly Topic Challenge #4: Cross-*non*-words
Skyline's better half
mirrored – a perfect pangram
and yet a poem. (5)
The answer to this crossword is the unclued 1-Down, a ...
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Shipwreck hunting
An entry in Fortnightly Topic Challenge #46: "Tales From the Cryptic"
My Uncle Redbeard, the great sailor and shipwreck-hunter, is in trouble and needs my help! This morning a mysterious ...
- 134k
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Twisted Connections
This is an entry into the Fortnightly Topic Challenge #36
The following is an Only-Connect wall seen in the BBC TV series. You have to divide the 16 words into groups of 4 each satisfying a specific ...
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The English Department
After walking through the computer science department, the tour entered the English department. The interior was very spartan, and the only thing I could see was a pinboard with the following items:
...
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Horribly broken and just plain wrong
This puzzle is part 6 of Gladys' journey across the globe. Each part can be solved independently. Nevertheless, if you are new to the series, feel free to start at the beginning: Introducing Gladys.
...
- 76.2k
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Cryptic Rebuses Go Meta
At the library, cryptic rebuses read a book on self-reference.
If you're unsure how cryptic rebuses work, you may want to check out this primer.
*I don't own any of the images from which I drew in ...
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Cryptic Chain #1
Each cryptic clue yields the keyword to the next, terminating in a message to you, gentle puzzler. With the exception of the first, which requires a little lateral thinking, all the clues are standard ...
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