Questions tagged [explanation]
The answer to a problem may be known but it is not understood. These questions explicitly request additional details on how a problem is solved or why the current solution is appropriate.
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Cryptic crossword phrase 'One left'
What does the term ‘one left’ mean in relation to cryptic crosswords?
I can see from some answers that it basically means to add a letter ‘L’ to the definition answer, but this clue has me stumped…
...
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answer
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Five figures are coded with symbols, find the code for Fig. 1
There are 5 figures shown on the top With their code written at the bottom of each figure, We need to find the code for fig.1
Source: UCEED 2016 question paper (entrance exam for design colleges in ...
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0
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You need to unfold the given figure
Unfold the given shape and find the answer
Source: UCEED (entrance exam for design colleges in India)
The given answer is B. I don't understand why this is the answer; how can I approach this kind of ...
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1
answer
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Crossword clue “Trouble follows loud bomb” [closed]
Please explain this clue:
Trouble follows loud bomb
The answer given is:
3
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1
answer
343
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Why do 1 and 1 complete 120, 10, 3, ?,?
This is a question from an IQ test (NSE test designed by Ivan Ivec and Theodosis Prousalis). The link for this test is https://free.ultimaiq.net/nse.htm
The sequence is:
120, 10, 3, ?, ?
The answer ...
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'Middle Row' crossword clue in today's Sunday Times concise crossword
In today’s Sunday Times concise crossword, there’s a clue
(Middle Row) ———- (7)
with brackets and a dash, as shown.
The answer appears to be Lebanon. I’m baffled. It’s not a cryptic clue.
Any ideas?
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Cryptic crossword clue: "Regularly clean and wet washing"
The answer to the clue is 'laundry', which is l-a-undry.
Where does the 'la' come from?
Source: The i's Five-Clue Cryptic, 12 April 2023
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Understanding solution for this puzzle where truth-tellers and liars describe game scores
Source (Page 26-28)
Frieda was fond of visiting exotic locations. On her visit to the island of Yippiekaiyay, she was surprised that the natives of the island could be classified into one of two ...
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Cryptic-clue explanation: What does “One in 10?” mean in the definition of ‘Ladle’
The clue in question is
Labour leader entering into deal upset one in 10? (5)
I have solved this via the wordplay but I don’t see how the definition applies.
The answer is 'ladle' (L in (DEAL)) but ...
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1
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Two masons laying bricks [closed]
I'm having trouble solving a puzzle in Swedish. I've translated it to English:
Two masons work on a project. One mason can complete the project alone in 8 hours, while the other can complete it alone ...
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Why is "Candy" the answer to "Last two of juicy sweets"? [closed]
The clue was "Last two of juicy sweets?" and the answer was 'Candy'. I don't understand why.
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3
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1
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Cryptic clue explanation: "Lock up devil is said to be in revolt"
I know the answer to the crossword clue ‘lock up devil is said to be in revolt’ is 'imprison' but I can’t explain the wordplay ‘devil is said to be in revolt’.
This clue was in The Sun's 2-speed ...
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How to make gifs showing a puzzle's solution process?
I've been repeatedly asked to turn this into a PSE question, so here goes.
Some people may have noticed that, when I answer a grid-deduction question, my answer often includes, as well as a step-by-...
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Why is “ELL” the solution to the crossword clue "Loss Leader?"?
I was doing a crossword from the NY Times (from Tuesday, October 25, 2022 By Ashleigh Silveira, Nick Shephard / Will Shortz) and I got the following clue.
29 DOWN - Loss leader?
The answer is "...
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Cryptic clue explanation: “I’m not as active for Vacation times.” [closed]
Explain why “anagram” is the answer to the clue
“I’m not as active for Vacation times.”
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2
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Policeman's large Elvish dagger (5)
The clue is:
Policeman's large Elvish dagger (5)
The answer is:
Sting
How is the answer derived?
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1
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Understand answer to "Herb ducks hugging ungrateful daughter (7)"
Found this cryptic clue in the #1 Times quick cryptic book. I got it for Xmas so I could graduate to some more complicated cryptic puzzles than the rubbish you see in the mass market ones though, if ...
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Explain answer to "Men in a state of agitation a very long time"
This crossword clue:
"Men in a state of agitation a very long time (7)"
has the answer
Please explain the "men" aspect.
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Why is "necropolis" the answer to "Weird arachnid with venomous tail in the French cemetery"?
This is a clue from the Irish Times cryptic crossword:
Weird arachnid with venomous tail in the French cemetery
Answer: "necropolis". How was this arrived at?
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US auditors confiscating a vague amount of pentane and neopentane, say
The cryptic clue is:
US auditors confiscating a vague amount of pentane and neopentane, say
The solution is
Can anyone explain why?
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What approach can I use to solve this wooden packing puzzle?
I am looking for an approach to solve a wooden packing puzzle which my three-year-old got as a present.
We enthusiastically unpacked and disassembled the puzzle when she got it. (It came put-together ...
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Standing upright? It's time to slice fish!
Standing upright? It's time to slice fish!
Why is the answer BRISTLING?
The clue is from The Independent Cryptic Crossword August 30, 2018.
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Explain this NY Times Mini Crossword clue from Sept 20, 2022
In The Mini Crossword in the New York Times for Tuesday, September 20, 2022, there is a clue:
What "taxes," "wonkery" and "I mean" are each anagrams of [5 letters]
And ...
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How one would solve the Cisternian cipher problem?
Premise
I was looking at a problem from the Panini Linguistics Olympiad called "Cistercian Numerals". It is, as the title suggests, about Cistercian numerals, a code used by monks in exile. ...
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Three airplanes with enough fuel for halfway around the world - how can one make it all the way?
Consider three identical airplanes starting at the same airport. Each plane has a fuel tank that holds just enough fuel to allow the plane to travel half the distance around the world. These airplanes ...
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Conclusively solving the extreme gerrymandering puzzle
This is the source of the following puzzle: CMU puzzle 20
When I look at the official solution though, I feel that the proof is not comprehensive. First the question (slightly rephrased to improve ...
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1
answer
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Generalization of twelve balls and scale problem
This problem is a generalization of Twelve balls and a scale problem. So I can solve and understand how things are going if we have 12 balls or 9 balls but how do I generalize? If say we have $3^n$ ...
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Why are all numbers from 1 to 2N covered by weights with powers of 3?
This is from What's the fewest weights you need to balance any weight from 1 to 40 pounds?
Suppose you want to create a set of weights so that any object with an integer weight from 1 to N pounds ...
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Word Arrangement Machine Problem
Input: All Indians Are My Brothers And Sisters
Step I: 23 32 12 38 65 17 81
Step II: 30 70 41 156 328 104 568
Step III: 568 328 156 ...
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Need Thorough Explanation of Coin Weighing Puzzle Solution
One of the coolest things I've seen on Puzzling is this puzzle, and especially the solution in 7 static weighings posted by Julian Rosen.
I have revisited that solution many times over the years, ...
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Explanations for three clues in a cryptic crossword
I've just solved a cryptic by LR that was originally published on 22 June 2020. My best effort at explaining the clues is below, spoilered in case you want to try the crossword yourself:
As indicated ...
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A duck for a well-known bowler (5): How to solve it?
The following is a cryptic clue1:
A duck for a well-known bowler (5)
I know that the answer is:
While I understand that:
How does it relate to the cryptic clue?
1 The source for this cryptic clue ...
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Why can R1c3 not be a 4?
Take the following Killer Sudoku (from the app "Killer Sudoku" by Studio Goya LLC) I have been struggling with for the last few hours. "Penciled" numbers are my notes about which ...
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How to solve this problem on overlapping? [closed]
In cases of problems involving order and ranking where there are two indices (namely left and right) there is a particular chance of overlapping. Let us take an example to justify this:
Ranjan is ...
user75346
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Two out of a dozen cartons have Easter eggs. Two people try to find one Easter egg carton, each using a different strategy. Who is expected to win?
I have found a counter intuitive puzzle. I have read the answer given at the source and understand it completely. But, what I am unable to understand is why my intuition turned out to be wrong. ...
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100 blue-eyed people riddle N=4
The solution of this riddle is usually given with explicit reasoning for two cases:
Case where there is only 1 blue-eyed person,
Case where there are 2 blue-eyed people.
That logic is clear, and I ...
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4
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Cyclic squaring
Find a complex number $a$, which satisfies the following conditions:
If you square $a$, you get a different complex number $b$.
If you square $b$, you get a complex number $c$, which is different ...
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Very modest contract: leading with a king makes good sense (5)
This is from a Times puzzle in an old book:
(DOWN) 4. Very modest contract: leading with a king makes good sense (5)
I know the answer is LOGIC but I can't see why - please can somebody explain it?
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3 hats with numbers, where 2 hats sum to the third
I have outlined a puzzle below, and provided two sources which provide answers. I am disputing that the answer provided in the sources is correct, and I am looking for others to validate or invalidate ...
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How is "OPPOSE" the answer to "Don't act like a pro (6)"?
Clue from the West Australian Cryptic Crossword 13/5/2021:
"Don't act like a pro (6)"
Answer: OPPOSE
I can see that "act" gives POSE", but how do you get to "OPPOSE&...
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Open dice Problem
The following figure is folded to form a box. Choose from the
alternatives (A), (B), (C) and (D) the boxes that is similar to the
box formed.
Source: YouTube
Video
How to answer these type of ...
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Why is "lion" the answer to "Take the first left turn at the zoo?"
From The Evening Standard's Cryptic Crossword - Apr 23 2021, the clue for 36-Across is:
Take the first left turn at the zoo (4)
And the answer is "lion".
I get that the first left is L. ...
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Coloring 5 largest numbers in each row and column yields at least 25 double-colored numbers
I have a question about the answer given to this problem. The problem is reproduced below:
This is a question from a very old American Mathematical Monthly, if I recall correctly. It has a very nice ...
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1
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9 people sitting at a round table
I am unable to figure out how to solve this question @Joffan has given an answer but he hasn't mentioned much regarding his approach. I requested him but he still didn't give a clear answer. This is ...
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Arrange candies without repeating pattern
The following puzzle had been posted before but I couldn't understand the only answer that was given there, which was by @neodne . So, I created this post asking someone to explain neodne's answer to ...
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Why is “AFTS” the solution to the crossword clue "Times before eves, in ads"?
I was doing a crossword from the NY Times (from Mon, Feb 11, 2019 by Portia Lundie / Will Shortz) and I got the following clue.
51 ACROSS - Times before eves, in ads
The answer is "AFTS". ...
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Why is 'logjam' the answer to 'function held up by traffic blockage'?
Why is 'logjam' the answer to 'function held up by traffic blockage'? I guess 'log' is function, and logjam is blockage but why 'jam/maj'? L,G & A are all correct.
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Why is “HADAT” the solution to the crossword clue "went after"?
I was doing crossword from NY Times, from Mon, Feb 11, 2019 by Howard Barkin + Will Shortz and I got the following clue.
Went after
The answer is "HADAT". However, I can not find ...
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Why is RYE the answer to "Grass over pretty Cambridge backs"?
The clue is:
Grass over pretty Cambridge backs
The answer is RYE. I get the grass part, but what is the connection in the rest of the clue? This is from the Saturday Telegraph Cryptic, clue no. ...
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Why is the answer to "Newspaper had a box for the sweetmeat" FUDGE?
This is a clue from a cryptic crossword published in the NZ Herald on January 1st 2021:
Newspaper had a box for the sweetmeat.
All I can see is that FUDGE is a sweet often kept in a box or tin, but ...
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