Crosswords are a more than just a popular word puzzle. Depending on who you ask, they can be a hobby, a morning ritual, a way to kill time, a bonding activity, an intense competition, and an addiction.
The New York Times crossword is
Many puzzles even have a 'theme' that requires solvers to
In this guide, The New York Times gives a straightforward explanation of how a solver should approach the puzzle. Most importantly, it breaks down the following types of clues:
- Must Match: The answer to a given clue generally must be in grammatical agreement with its clue, for example:
- Tense
- Part of Speech
- Plurality
- Language
- Cross Reference:
- Partner:
- Abbreviations:
- Abbr., as in “Lawyer: Abbr.” for the answer
ATTY - Abbreviating a word in the clue itself, as in “Trial fig.,” short for “Trial figure,” also for ATTY, or “Elephant grp.” for
GOP - For short, as in “Free TV spot, for short” for
PSA - In brief, as in “Individual rights defender, in brief” for
ACLU - sss
- ** Puns: **
- Abbr., as in “Lawyer: Abbr.” for the answer
As mentioned above, puzzles have thematic elements. These thematic elements appear across numerous clues throughout a puzzle. And like the clues, the themes tend to follow certain thematic elements, which are described in detail on Cruciverb.
It is not going to be possible to reckon with every type of theme. Some of them, such as those involving rebus squares, are beyond the scope of this project.