These pages are a free wiki: lists of different types of wordplay you can use to construct your own cryptic clues.
SINGLE-LETTER INDICATORS — Common phrases that to clue single letters, A through Z.
ANAGRAM INDICATORS — Nearly 500 words you can use to construct anagram clues.
PARTS OF WORDS INDICATORS — How to select or eliminate letters from words in your cryptic clues.
OTHER INDICATORS — Indicators for all non-anagram cryptic clue types.
EXTRAS — Other useful lists for cryptic clue construction.
And finally, a list of free online resources I’ve found useful when constructing cryptic crosswords.
These pages are an ongoing work in progress. Check back often for updates (and by all means send me your own contributions).
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THE RULES
For new constructors, here are some pointers on the basics of cryptic cluing.
For experienced constructors trying to hone their craft, here is a discussion of some of the finer points of cryptic cluing.
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KEY TO CLUE SOLUTIONS
Throughout this portion of the site, I’m going to give examples of cryptic clues. I will then demonstrate how to derive the answer using the following symbols:
- ANAGRAM: change things = NIGHTS*
- CHARADE: has to hurt = MUST + ACHE
- DELETION: didn’t start crying = [T] EARS
- INSERTION: someone else in bed = B (OTHER) ED
- LETTER BANK: crumble ingredients to make = crème brulee (LB)
- HOMOPHONE: announcer’s calm = “PIECE”
- REVERSAL: coming back angry = DAM (R)
- DOUBLE DEFINITION: carries animals = BEARS (2)
- HIDDEN WORD: in North America = HAM (H)
You can also combine these symbols. Here’s an example of a replacement, which is really just a simultaneous deletion and insertion:
Sail left for a start (4) = BO [A] (L) T
Finally (as in the example above) I will identify the straight half of the clue by underlining it.
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DISCLAIMER: Note that I was introduced to cryptic crosswords through American-style puzzles. In England, cryptic crosswords are similar but there are fewer limits on what is considered to be an acceptable clue. I can only catalogue what I know; as such, I will be sticking to the American-style cryptic crossword’s more rigid parameters here.
In the end, the Toolkit is just a list. Take from it what is useful to you and feel free to ignore the rest. As I say elsewhere on the site: in the end, it’s all up to you and your editor.
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ABOUT THESE PAGES
The genesis of the material in this section of the web site was a list of single-letter clues that had been bouncing around the National Puzzler’s League for a long time. I don’t know who the original author was, but I owe him/her a big debt.
I fine-tuned this list, and also gathered other free lists from across the Internet, so I could have them all in one place. I’ve been using them for my own puzzle construction for several years now, and thought I’d clean everything up and put it out there to aid and encourage other constructors.
I am always glad to expand on these — new categories, new entries in current categories. I’d like to turn this into a group-memory repository to help spread the joy of cryptic crosswords everywhere. So if you have anything you’d like me to add here, any questions, or even just worshipful praise, you can email me here.
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NOTE: The Cryptic Toolkit represents a labor of love and hundreds of hours of work. I offer it as a free resource on the Internet to encourage more people to adopt cryptic crosswords and to generally give back to the hobby that has given me so much. Please spread word about this resource and even download your own copies of the lists. Beyond that, the Toolkit remains my intellectual property; not meant for publication or resale without permission
© Copyright 2022 by Alex Kolker. Copying and distribution for personal use is permitted. All other rights reserved. Not for publication or resale.