What are your tips for solving crossword puzzles?
Crosswords are by nature a solitary activity. Do you have any special tricks or tools you use to solve them? For example, I helped create a New York Times crossword puzzle feature that incorporates search tools to conquer crossword puzzles (http://games.yahoo.com/search/nyt ). How do you approach solving a crossword puzzle?
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Lots of tips:
Going back to other crosswords.
1) I go for the first letter of a word up and then down – if I can get one of the two words, then having the first letter of the other sometimes jogs my memory.
2) Sometimes, it doesn’t have to be the first letter.
3) Paying attention to the theme of the crossword, if any, is helpful.
4) Go for the easier ones first, then more difficult.
5) Reference: computer, dictionary, thesaurus, atlas, etc…
6) Having someone help you.
7) Going away and coming back to it later can sometimes clear the mind and help one focus better.
9) Enjoy what you are doing.
10) Use a pencil on ones you’re not sure of.
11) Place a checkmark next to the number of the hints you’ve gotten – it can help you focus more on the ones you haven’t gotten yet.
12) If it’s in a book or newspaper, sometimes the answers can be found in the publication that the crossword is in.
13) etc…
14) sometimes the answers just come out of no where – be patient.
15) sometimes working on a section of the puzzle (upper left, right or lower left or right.
16) thinking about the hint or hints with a different perspective.
I call my crossword buddies. Then I display the crossword on a big sheet on the wall with a 100 inch projector. Then all 30 of us solve it while drinking kool-aid and eating cheesy puffs.
i have a Huge dictionary, that has like every word in the english language in it. i refer to it as needed.
Yo Will. Good to see you here.
Crossword puzzles aren’t necessarily a solitary activity. More times than not, I’ll do the Sunday New York Times puzzle with a lady friend, usually at a coffeehouse. I used to do every Sunday’s NYT puzzle with my father at his home while he was alive.
The solving method is usually the same for everyone, I’d think. First, you find the "bunnies" – the easy answers – and fill them in, no matter where they appear in the puzzle. The letter clues that you get from the bunnies usually create more bunnies, and then theme answers appear. You work your way around until only two or three blanks appear and you cross your fingers and make best guesses on those. For me, you either win, or lose. Close doesn’t count.
With two people solving, the Sunday puzzle takes about an hour to solve. With only one person solving, a little less.
I never use a reference, so Friday and Saturday puzzles take me quite a while.
On Monday or Tuesday, an easy puzzle can be made more challenging by filling in only the top row, the bottom row, the left column and the right column. Then I skip the rows and columns adjacent to these and fill in the two rows and two columns parallel to the outside ones. I continue this until I reach the eight squares that surround the center one. By then, I know all the words, even though many of the squares are still deliberately blank.
I grew up with Double Crostics, where any clue that has a two-word answer so indicates. If the puzzle-maker doesn’t have the skill to find a one-word answer, he or she needs to confess it in the clue! I prefer puzzles without two-word answers, even if the prohibition makes them less clever.
Since I don’t use references, I intensely dislike clues from popular culture that "cross" each other, because I have no idea who these ‘celebrities’ are and do not want to know the names of their mindless ‘dramas’ (prejudice showing here).
If I ever stop doing crossword puzzles, it will be because I can no longer stomach the ever-increasing amount of popular culture. I’m too old, obviously!
I am the creator of the website http://www.crosswordsforfun.com.au. I often talk to puzzlers who say they can’t use a dictionary because they believe that they are cheating. I try to encourage them that this is not the case. Some clues you just don’t know the answer to. There is nothing wrong with using a dictionary, the Internet, or any other form of reference tool, if it helps you learn something you didn’t know before.
I also encourage people to do crosswords in groups – you can treat it like a quiz and pool everyone’s knowledge which makes it a mentally stimulating exercise for everyone.
I go down the list one by one. I never write an answer unless I’m 100% sure of it, and I use a Sharpie. That way, I know for sure which letters I’m working with. Then I just use my brain to fill in the blanks. I never ask other people or cheat with Google.
Nice to have you join us, Will
Solo activity? Snort. Starting when they were in middle school, our kids helped me solve the NY Times puzzles many times a week. (They have astonishingly good vocabularies now.)
We had a rule that we could not look anything up until the Friday and Saturday puzzles. On those, if we weren’t getting much closer with the hive mind, a little reference book look-up was allowed. Sometimes all it takes is getting that one word, right?
My lone tip, besides enlisting the aid of other minds, is learning the clues that seem to crop up so very often simply because their letters fit puzzles so well. Cookie is *always* oreo, architect is alway Eero or Pei, actor Stephen is always Rea, and so on. Get those down and you’ll go further toward complete solution.
Special request? We love the ones with a gimmick, like the inclusion of symbols, numbers, two letters in a box, etc.
I use a pen and answer all the easy ones first then try to fill in the remainders, if all else fells after all day I will refer to my crossword puzzle dictionary (although it doesn’t always work) and if its a sports question that I don’t know I ask my husband, but sometimes I must wait until the next days paper to see the answer.
I have found that the "down" clues are often easier than the "across" so I do them first.
Answer the easy ones first. And see the back answers of the booklet, I used those "Dell" booklets you get in grocery stores, to solve the difficult ones. No embarrassment. And able to fill out several difficults ones later.
do the ones you know 1 and then do the rest because they would have letters in it
Practice, practice, practice !
World Almanac, Guinness Book of World Records, and Google are helpful aids.
It also helps to try to understand the psychology of the puzzle constructor, who practices an art that leaves our heads scratching. How the ___ do you MAKE these thing?!?
Understand the CLUE. Look at all possible meanings or implications.
I remember a gross generalization, which is that the answer words are common, only the clues keep changing.
First off, thank God for erasers. That’s probably my most important tool. I always use a pencil and use a thesaurus.
Knowing what the word means is one thing, but finding the appropriate word is another.
Crosswords often ask for a synonym and using different reference books help me tremendously.
My favority pen and the time to do them…I usually work from the corners out or I will solve the easier clues first and work from there. I love the theme puzzles.
look at the answers
1.Use a pencil so you can erase any mistakes.
2.Use a dictionary or the Internet.
3.Save the really hard ones for last or do them first.
4.Have Fun!
i absolutely love doing crossword puzzles and have found that the more you do them, the easier they get. while there are some that i am completely blank on, many puzzles have similar clues which all point to one answer, even if the puzzles were created by different authors (great minds think alike?). i have found that if i go for say, a month without doing any puzzles (gasp! that such a time would come to pass!!!) when i go back to them i somehow don’t have the "mindset" for doing them. conversely, when i am doing 3 or 4 puzzles a day, i find a sort of rhythm that makes them seem easier. i also find that for some reason the ‘down’ clues are much easier for me to answer than the ‘across’ ones.. haven’t figured out why.. and i love any crossword with a great theme, makes the other clues easier when you know what you’re looking for! and i’ve just recently gotten the hang of puzzles where one square is home to a string of letters or an entire word as opposed to just a single letter – these used to frustrate me to no end! but once you solve one, it’s a great feeling!
well for me i always use a pencil in case i make a mistake. I just grab a few of my friends or who ever is in the house at the time ans we just work on it together, I have this big dictionary with what i believe to have almost every word in the English language, i use it to help me out when I’m not so certain of a word. I also use a thesaurus so that if i think the answer is a certain word and it doesn’t fit i just use my thesaurus to check for any words that are similar to that. =)
look at the answers, then eat the puzzle because they taste good…
well if you think about it you can really achieve anything (corny huh)
…. "easies" first, use a pen (with judicious over-writing)
"theme-guess" second
"reading author’s mind" third
if I have plenty of time, sometiems learn neat things and ways of thinkning
someteims use team-activity …
if you can’t get the puzzle without "look-up" sources, it somehow feels preferable to "not win" than to "cheat" (sic)
I’m just happy to finish a Monday or Tuesday. I never look anything up … which is probably why I’ve never finished anything harder than a Wednesday! I will definitely check out your tips … and start using a pencil!
Cheers,
Tony
I keep the ones I am stuck on and have no one around to bug to ask and have used up all my reference books etc. and I come back to them later, I have a clip board ongoing and often the answer will be in a previous puzzle that "filled in" or is in the next one down the road with a cross clue that gives me at least another couple of letters. I keep the answers ‘sacred separate’ and never look until I have officially cried uncle……once I look the puzzle is officially over and I score my self on a % or right answers. I have been doing puzzles off and on for for all my life and still have never completed a NYT 100%. I don’t let that stop me from enjoying what I can do.
I just finished that exact one today.If I knew it,I would type it in.If I didn’t I’d either ask someone,look it up,or try every letter on the keyboard.I hope I helped amd I hope I make best answer.
I just give up!
I do two or three every day.
I start upper left and see how many connections I can make in the first grid, then move on, filling in words that have letters already in them.
The other technique is just to do every across clue, every down clue, then start filling in words.
Also, if I get stuck, I find that walking away for just a few minutes clears my mind; I come back and see things I didn’t before.
Oh, and I always use pen.
I like crossword puzzles too and it’s always nice sharing one with someone. I keep a dictionary handy sometimes though in case I run into a snag.
i usually do the across first and then the down next . then i go back and fill in the empty spaces i couldn’t do without the help of letters . i always do the puzzles in pencil and i challenge myself with a timer .
I can’t stand crossword puzzles. They are too hard and full of obscure words and people and movies I’ve never heard of. Nothing like making you feel stupid. Give me a word search or a Jumble any day over a crossword puzzle.
You can search the words online sometimes if you want to
I Think That You Use PENCIL, SKIP THE ONES YOU DON’T GET, SEARCH THE ONES YOU DONT GET.
Here’s what makes you a better crossword puzzle solver….
When you have gotten all the words you can in a puzzle, check the answers in the next day’s paper. I see the same clues over and over, so if I make sure I look to see what the answers are of the ones that stump me, I have a better chance of solving future puzzles.
Unfortunately, I’ve yet to get a complete crossword puzzle. Well, a REAL one. Maybe with a little more life experience I’ll get more than four clues.
PS– I loved your movie! You’re so cool!
First, read all of the clues, and find the words you are certain of. Fill those in. Then find the words you are less sure of. Fill them in. As you get more words filled in, letters will fall into place for other words.
study the topics on the internet…
internet (yahoo! search or google)
i start with what i know, then look for vowels, consonant patterns, etc, and try to figure out the words based on language more than definition…but i prefer numbers. kakuro is the way to go!
my tool is i think of my fav song and it just comes to me and i just fill the answers in i end up getting them all right.
good luck,but this isnt what your really looking for….sorry
i need a best answer bad so i ansering alot of questions as best as i can
never take too much time thinking about any one answer, that will distract you. I usually go down the list answering the one I’m sure/I know when I’m done with the list vertical/horizontal I start again taking my time.
a good eraser!
Mr. Shortz, it is really great to see you here and find this question from you.
I have been a big fan of yours for many years–including but not limited to your excellent work in/on ‘Games’ magazine– so when it comes to puzzles you edit and/or write, I feel a slight advantage and a kind of comfort zone with your puzzles.
This is not to say your puzzles are not challenging and interesting but it’s like hearing from an old friend whose language I’ve come to understand.
Generally speaking, I give a puzzle a quick glance and then let answers jump out at me and that’s where I start and follow. It’s sort of a stream of consciousness approach to crosswords.
Once in a while, I will make myself follow the ‘rules’ and answer all the across clues first, as the down clues are generally easier.
I always work alone and in pen as it makes more of a challenge and, for me, that’s half the fun of doing word puzzles.
If there is an answer I simply cannot get, I prefer to avoid looking up the answer in any reference material, letting it percolate until the answers are published. Again, more of the fun for me and sometimes the answer comes to me later ‘out of nowhere’ between the time I put down the puzzle and when the answers come out in print.
If I’m working in a puzzle book, I try to wait a while before checking the answers in case, as above, I get lucky and the answer pops into my head later on.
After all is said and done for each puzzle, I look up all the words whose meanings I didn’t know and strive to increase my vocabulary.
I have a feeling we will be seeing even more challenging crossword puzzles from you now that we are all giving away out little secrets, though I imagine you already know them and practice many yourself.
In any case, it’s a pleasure to hear from you. Please keep those puzzles coming!
oneacross.com is a good place if you get stuck.
I only do the top third, when that is done I do the second and puzzle, puzzle , puzzle then when that is done I do the third.
I seem to jump start my brain with the ones I know in each section and then it goes so much better.
try crystal meth
I love crossword puzzles. I do both that are printed in my local paper everyday. My trick is to fill in the answers I know for sure first, then I have plenty of letter clues for the harder ones.
If something is plural, I know it end in s, which helps me with the start of the next word. I know that a newt is a lizard, and that ecru is a shade of tan…No really special tips, just love the hunt, the thinking, trying to figure. Sometimes I ask a guy if it’s about sports. Never use dictionaries, just thinking…Everyday at work, I do the FYI crossword, read all the funnies, then do the NY Times puzzle. Of course, Monday is my best day on that one cuz it gets progressively harder as the week wears on, as does the Sudoku puzzle. Thanks for your tips!
My dear friend, ours life s are in crossword puzzles.
nature is shows nature’s power.
Tricks create from knows lord
No Buddy can solve any once can any
just gives will-power,ca rage to good life.
you think me positive side I AM GOOD
you think me negative side I AM BAD
this is crossword puzzle.
Ok, I usually just start at 1 across and go wild,
but what I wanted to point out is that image of a crossword
in the banner that I noticed this querry in if you put the black areas together it forms a swastica.
If I do it alone, I knock out the ones I know first, but if I have help I will go straight down then across and then ask any of my buddies.