Cryptic Crosswords. Jack Dunwoody
first word of the phrase. Where it is the last word, you will get no help from a dictionary or a conventional phrases book.
For this reason I have developed a phrases book which has two sections: phrases from 8 to 15 letters in alphabetical order of the first word or words, and the same phrases in alphabetical order based on the last word, that is, a Reverse Phrases section.
The need for a Reverse Phrases section comes from my own experience of solving and compiling cryptic crossword puzzles. The compiler, more often than not, places his target phrase in the crossword grid so as to deny the solver access to the first letter of the phrase. Meanwhile, by solving other connected clues, the solver already knows the first letter or even the whole of the last word.
Now you will have two books in one – over 60,000 phrases in standard format and the same 60,000 phrases in reverse format – and you can find the solution from either end. This ability in one reference work to tumble turn from Standard Phrases to Reverse Phrases means that the solver can easily move from one approach to the other. This is unique in reference works available to cryptic crossword solvers.
OneLook Dictionary Search
I mentioned earlier that I sometimes have to resort to the Internet in search of some obscure word which I have failed to find in my own reference books. On such occasions I go to HYPERLINK www.onelook.com where I can get access to most dictionaries and thesauruses. You need to be fairly specific or you may well end up with more answers than questions.
You also need to take care that you don’t over-use the computer assistance that is available and lose the enjoyment, stimulus and educational benefit you derive as a crossword puzzler. Put another way, Google doesn’t help prevent memory loss!
In THE TECHNIQUES section I cover twelve approaches used by compilers of cryptic crossword puzzles. Each compiler is different, but I have tried to cover the basic techniques you will come across. There are plenty of examples of each and you should work through and understand them. This understanding has always been very important to me — I hate to have what is obviously the answer without knowing how it is arrived at from the given clue!
I have always felt the need for somebody to try to explain cryptic crossword compilation and resolution, if only to introduce others to a pastime that costs so little but gives so much pleasure and satisfaction.
“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.”
My goal is the same: to place you as the solver on more equal terms with me as the compiler by giving you an insight into how a compiler thinks.
An understanding of THE TECHNIQUES will indeed reduce the time and effort required to complete a puzzle, as well as enhance the prospect and enjoyment of doing so.
JACK DUNWOODY
Cape Town, South Africa
The Techniques
THE TECHNIQUES
Introduction
INTRODUCTION
I have to admit upfront that my task as a compiler and yours as a solver are diametrically opposed. I’m there to thwart you but having said that my clues should still get you to the answers. It’s a competition you should win and I should lose gracefully!
When you first look at a cryptic crossword puzzle the overwhelming reaction is to move on to a concise crossword or a Sudoku, and even when you see the answers the next day in the newspaper or at the back of the book, you’re often no wiser as to how the clues relate to the answers.
There are however aspects to the clues that should help you.
Firstly, the compiler gives you the make-up of the answer in the number or numbers appended to the clue. This indicates the number of letters in each word of the solution, for example: (9) means the answer is a single word of nine letters, while (4-5) means the answer is a hyphenated word of nine letters, and (2,4,3) means the answer is a phrase of nine letters. The apostrophe ‘ is not counted or shown in the number at the end of a clue, i.e. Murphy’s law in an answer will show as (7,3) letters.
Secondly, a clue contains a word or a number of words that means the same as the answer. This word or number of words will invariably be at the front of the clue or at the end of the clue. It is the rest of the clue, i.e. the middle words, that defines the answer. This definition needs to be read logically and not literally. The compiler is “building” an answer using other words and you have to think of them merely as component parts, not as a sentence. Grammar falls away and nouns, verbs and adjectives are just words. The clue word may be a noun, but the synonym, or target word, may well be a verb or an adjective!
As a solver you should therefore focus on the beginning and the end of clues and try and decide is the answer going to come from the first word/s of the clue or the last word/s of the clue. The logic of the clue should help you find the clue type that fits the definition . Some solvers find the component parts first while others, generally more experienced, find the answers first and then work out why they fit the component parts.
Cryptic crossword puzzles should contain a spread of types of clues and what you need to get out of THE TECHNIQUES section is to be able to recognise the indicators that point to the different clues. When reading a clue you should ask the questions: Is it an ANAGRAM? Is it a DOUBLE MEANING clue? Is it a SOUNDS LIKE clue?, etc..
If you are a new cryptic solver don’t be too hard on yourself. It will come, but you will certainly not be self-sufficient having just worked through THE TECHNIQUES. I suggest at the end of this book you rather take your first five actual puzzles and just copy across the answers from the newspaper or the back of the book. Then look at each answer and work it back to its clue, like you were doing throughout THE TECHNIQUES. Even if you don’t know a word you should still be able to work out how the clue brings you logically to that answer. You can the check the word in a good dictionary.
Finally what helps the solver is the fact that clues are unambiguous and there can be only one possible answer in the context of the entire puzzle.
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».
Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.
Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.