The first thing to know about cryptic crosswords …
… is that there’s no such thing as cheating. Use the dictionary. Look up a solvers’ blog. Phone a friend. It’s your puzzle. In any event, most of our online puzzles offer a “reveal this” option.
Absolute beginners …
… are directed to our quick cryptic. Here our setters work in a gentler mode in smaller grids – and, crucially, they tell you which tricks they are using each time. Here’s the archive.
What next?
The best way is to solve with a friend or family member, in person or on the other end of a messaging thread. And the best puzzles for beginners are our three kindest series:
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the quiptic is “for beginners and those in a hurry”, online-only, every Sunday – archive here
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the Everyman has been the Observer’s friendlier offering since 1945: I am its sixth setter – archive here
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and on Mondays, the Guardian’s setters are asked to take a little less of your time while still making sure to amuse – scroll through these.
The more puzzles you solve, the more you start to regard the names attached like those of authors – or friends. To get to know the people who create these things, we have an interview series, Meet the Setter.
How do I crack these codes?
Really, there are only about 10 basic tricks in this game, plus a bunch of abbreviations that you probably already know from the real world.
Happily, we have explained these with what solvers have called “perfect clarity”. Dip in and out:
Cryptic devices: hidden answers; double definitions; defining by example; cryptic definitions; homophones and puns; spoonerisms; stammering and stuttering; containers; backwards clues; initial letters; alternate letters; cycling clues; replacing one thing with another; one thing on top of another; taking most of a word; percentages of a word; naked words; first and last letters; middle letters; removing middle letters.
Bits and bobs: Roman numerals; Nato alphabet; Greek letters; simple chemistry; abbreviations for countries; foreign words; points of the compass; more points of the compass; playing cards; capital letters; boys and girls; items of clothing; ambiguous apostrophes; cricketing lingo; alcohol and drinking; the church; politics; Latin abbreviations; royal abbreviations; newspapers and journalism; doctors and physicians; drug slang; hospitals; trains and railways; music; animals; car brands; money; jobs and professions; cities; rivers; boats and sailing; when the setter’s name appears; when the solver appears; “cheating”.
Individual letters: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O …
… and that’s it
Soon, you’ll be entering our weekend prize puzzles on Saturdays, and our monthly Genius, which is admittedly quite nasty. (If you can see an answer but you can’t see why it’s the answer, the solvers’ blog Fifteensquared will edify you on the same day.)
In all these puzzles, though, the setter is aiming to lose gracefully to you after a brief struggle. They are there to bring you joy.