Crossword Solving Aids

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Sometimes, we take up the grid and pen, start solving and fill in the whole puzzle.

Sometimes, we don't. We get stuck on a word we don't know. We have a corner remaining and not enough crossings to take us along further.

What do you do when that happens?

Set aside the puzzle and move on?
Keep wondering what those missing answers are, wait for the solution to be published? Visit the solving communities to check?
Use aids to help you reach the end?

If you're the last kind, you are spoilt for choice. All kinds of crossword aids are at your disposal - the old-fashioned print dictionaries, knowledge resources on the internet, anagram solver, electronic encyclopedias, even Artificial Intelligence-equipped crossword solver software that claim they can complete a cryptic crossword without human intervention.

Is using aids cheating?

If aids are used in informal solving, I see no 'ethical' problems with it. Crossword solving is for fun. If a solver's choice is to use an automated clue solver to give answers, so be it. That choice doesn't make sense to me – it is equivalent to sending someone else to watch a great movie on your behalf - but it is surely not a deceitful activity to merit such a strong name!

I wish the Guardian crossword site would rename their "Cheat" button to a milder "Show" or "Reveal" :)

Which aids do you use?

Based on what I've grown accustomed to or what I've come to like, I use these:

Chambers Dictionary: This huge red hard-bound book is by my side whenever I attempt the tougher crosswords at home. Some crosswords like the Azed make special mention of the edition number: 2008 (11th edition) currently. Sadly this edition is not available in India, but for most purposes my 2000 edition works fine. If you can get hold of the latest edition, though, do that. (And if you can find it in India, please leave a comment to tell me where.)

An online Chambers dictionary/thesaurus exists but that is a 'lite' version of the real thing.

Dictionary.com: I use this for quick confirmation when I am solving online. A word of caution - this dictionary doesn't list obscure words or rare meanings of words, and what's more worrying, it might be listing words that are not legit according to standard dictionaries (I say this based on the incorrectly spelt FUSCHIA (sic)). I use it more out of habit than anything else, it's good for easy lookups but might not be dependable for difficult words.

Wikipedia: European wars, English counties, Western classical music – for information in such areas that I know little about, I go to Wikipedia. A fair clue's wordplay and checking give enough pointers to lead to the solution, from there it's just a matter of verifying it. e.g. A clue like "Seaman, beginning to search through charts, misconstrued Scottish area (9) – FT 13107 (Aardvark)" can be solved and confidently answered – backed by a look at Wikipedia - even if one hasn't heard of the Scottish area before. Not all clues are so generous though and one might have to trawl through Wikipedia some more, but one picks up a lot of trivia in the process which may come in handy in future puzzles.

With Wikipedia, one has to be careful about quality and accuracy. The comments on the header/footer of the article, plus the History/Discussion tabs, give a good idea of how recently edited or disputed the article is. Since the knowledge areas in crosswords that I search for are generally stable and non-controversial, and most knowledge is at the surface level (e.g. a fictional character's name, not an in-depth understanding of her role in the book) – Wikipedia has been pretty reliable for me.

Google: Unfamiliar idioms and phrases, colloquialism or slang – I simply put them into Google. Enclosing a long phrase within double-quotes and writing "meaning" next to it gives better search results.

Last but not least, as they say - I check with a Tamil friend when faced with clues of this kind from The Hindu Crossword: "Congratulation to workers for silk from south India (5)– THC 9471 (Gridman)" :P

That's about it. Also, I resort to aids only after I have finished as much as of the crossword as I possibly could on my own. If I'm blogging about a puzzle, I think it's important to mention the solutions obtained with external help.

I don't go for stronger aids like pattern match or anagram solver but if people want to, I think that's fine. To me the greater evil of such forms of crossword help is not the 'cheating' factor but that they hinder improvement in solving skills. The only way to attain the level where one glances at the anagram fodder and gets the answer, is the Do-It-Yourself way. The shortcut of anagram solver will not get one there.

Which aids do you use? And what do you think about using aids?

Related Links:

• Crossword Books: From my wish-list!

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Hindonyms

A hindonym is an English word that sounds the same as an unrelated Hindi word.

Take these for instance:

Word	English Meaning	Hindi Meaning
BUS	vehicle; computer circuit	enough, stop! (बस)
SAW	past tense of 'see'; tool for cutting; proverb; …	hundred (सॉ)

If you have never heard about hindonyms before, that's because it isn't a dictionary word.

My uncle had coined the term "hindonym" years ago. To keep us occupied on an idle day during school summer vacations, he set me and my cousins the task of preparing a list of such words. I wish I had preserved that list, it ran into pages.

These two clues from today's Financial Times 13119 (Bradman) reminded me of hindonyms:

Big cheese finally making fortune (4)
County chaps looking fashionable once? (5)

In Hindi, badi cheez (बड़ी चीज़) means the same as "big cheese". Cheese and चीज़ sound identical, but on their own they have different meanings. Apparently, the expression "big cheese" has originated from its Hindi equivalent.

The answer to the second clue is BUCKS. In English, BUCK can mean a male deer, a fashionable guy, to object strongly…and in Hindi, it can be a rude way to say: Speak!

Bilingual Double-Definitions

Readers who know Hindi – how about writing hindonym-based double definitions?

Sample Clue: Irritate God (3)
Answer: RUB / रब

The conditions are:

1. Of the two definitions, one should be for the English word, the other for the Hindi word. Any order is fine.
2. The word length should be according to the English word.
3. The PH sound should be accurate. Silly flower (4) will not do – FOOL is फ़ूल, flower is फूल. Notice the missing dot! [I have mentioned this specially as this common mispronunciation is a pet peeve :P]

Here's one from me to start with:

Servant, strike the door with this! (7)

Post answers and your own clues in the comments section.

Related Posts:

• The Cockney H
• Wordplay On Regional Dialects
• Rhyming Slang
• Decoding Double Definitions
• Tune In To Homophones

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Reversal Indicators

As regular readers might have noticed, I've been putting together a list of clue type indicators. Reversals this time. (Check out the other indicators by clicking on the Index button on the site's header.) 

To recap, reversal clues are those in which a word/phrase is turned around to give the solution.
e.g. (from NIE) Rising star, nonsense! (4) RATS <-

A specialty of reversal indicators: many indicators will work only for ACROSS clues and not for DOWN clues, and vice-versa.

1. ACROSS clue reversal indicators suggest a change of direction horizontally. e.g. going west, to the left.
2. DOWN clue reversal indicators suggest a change of direction vertically. e.g. going up, mounting, rising.
3. Generic reversal indicators such as around, back can be used for both ACROSS and DOWN clues.

[Given that, quick question: where in the puzzle can you expect to see the above clue "Rising star, nonsense! (4)" – the Across set, the Down set, or either of the two?]

Here's a compilation of frequently seen reversal indicators, grouped into those three categories – ACROSS only, DOWN only, and Generic.

Reversal Indicators – ACROSS only

FROM THE EAST FROM THE RIGHT

GOING WEST TO THE LEFT

WESTBOUND

Reversal Indicators – DOWN only

ASCENDING BROUGHT UP CAST UP CLIMBING COMING UP FROM THE BOTTOM FROM THE SOUTH

GOING NORTH GOING UP HAULED UP LIFTED LOOKING UP NORTHBOUND RAISED RAISING

SENT UP SHOWN UP TURNS UP UPSET UPRISING UPWARDLY MOBILE WRITTEN UP

Reversal Indicators – Generic

ABOUT AROUND BACK BACK-TO-FRONT BACKED BACKING BACKWARD BROUGHT ABOUT COMING BACK COUNTER

FLIPPED FLIPPING GOING BACK GOING ROUND LOOKING BACK OVER OVERTURNED RETIRING RETREAT RETREATING RETROGRADE

RETROSPECTIVE RETURN REVERSED REVERSING REVOLUTIONARY ROUND SENT BACK TURN TURNED TURNING

Thanks to Ganesh for his inputs in compiling this list.

Related Posts:

• Reversal Clue Type
• Other Indicators

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Surface Reading, Cryptic Reading

For new solvers, this is to clear up some terminology used on this site and elsewhere in discussions about cryptic clues.

Surface Reading

The surface reading (also called surface meaning, or simply surface) of a clue is its external meaning - what the clue conveys when you read it as a straight sentence/phrase.

Take the word CHAIR, and look at three different clues for it.

1. Piece of furniture one in daily (5)
2. Burn around one piece of furniture (5)
3. Cleaning-lady holds a position of authority (5)

All three break the word up as CHA{I}R.

The wordplay is identical, but what of the surfaces?

Forget for a moment that these are cryptic clues, just read them literally. You'll see that clue (1) is nonsensical, clue (2) has a grammatically correct surface but is semantically weak (what does it mean to "burn around one piece of furniture"?). Clue (3) is the most plausible of the lot.

A good surface will be meaningful, often intriguing or witty. The kind of phrase that you're likely to come across in conversation, writing or thought. A good surface will also try to direct your attention away from the cryptic meaning of the clue.

Cryptic Reading

The cryptic reading or cryptic meaning of a clue is its hidden meaning - the meaning that the solver must unravel to arrive at the solution.

Take clue (3) again: Cleaning-lady holds a position of authority (5)

While the surface is about a charwoman who holds a position of authority, the clue cryptically says:
cleaning-lady = CHAR, holds = containment indicator, a = I.

"position of authority" is the definition. The segment "cleaning-lady holds a" is together called the wordplay (or subsidiary indication, see comment#1).

Good cryptic reading will have a fair definition and wordplay. It will contain either no superfluous words or only those that do not interfere with the wordplay. It will give the solver a good chance to reach the solution. When the answer is revealed, the solver should go "Ah!" with appreciation than "Aargh!" with indignation.

---
In clue (3), a = I.
In clues (1) and (2), one = I.

Which is better?

one = I is more precise for the cryptic reading, but a = I makes for a smoother surface.

The best clues manage to do both: have great surfaces and equally great cryptic reading.

Related Posts:

• Tackling Cryptic Crosswords
• Clue Types At A Glance
• Puns: When They Work, When They Don't

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When Charge Is Not ION

Someone I admire greatly says this about rules of thumb - in another field, but it applies equally well to crosswords. For every "rule", there is a counter case that doesn't disprove the rule necessarily - just says "it doesn't always apply".

Regular solvers will be accustomed to replacing "way" with ST or "fifty" with L in their heads without second thought, but sometimes a clue comes along that upsets that convention.

So it is with charge = ION. That isn't even much of a "rule of thumb" – exceptions are abundant!

When is charge in the surface not equal to ION in the solution? Here are a few cases:

1. When "in charge" = IC
Guardian 24714 (Rufus): Commanding Officer in charge set about sergeant major – great! (6)
ET 3220: In charge of an animal, in charge of a country (9) 

2. When it means "accuse"
Times 24234: Reportedly, a means to control horse's charge (7)
THC 9548 (Sankalak): Charge that supporter is steeped in drink (6)

3. When it means "control" or "supervision"
New Indian Express 31-Dec-08: One in charge is possibly a German (7) 
THC 8898: People in charge of wardrobes and cupboards (8)

2. When it means "payment" or "price"
New Indian Express 07-Jan-09: Anticipate charge for concealing minerals (7)
New Indian Express 19-Nov-07: Soldiers hold deserter without charge (6)

4. When it means electric charge 
Guardian 24717 (Araucaria): Store charge here for top performer without one (9)
New Indian Express 9871: It's extremely small and free of charge (7)

Answers? More clues that use CHARGE in another sense not mentioned here? Share them in the comments section.

Related Posts:

• Free Of Charge
• About "About"
• Cryptic Abbreviations

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The Curious Case Of The Simple Segal

Two clues about Erich Segal's "Love Story" in The Hindu Crossword this month – and both straight clues!

Gridman, who has a flair for the cryptic definition, writes this in today's THC 9566:
"Love Story" author Erich (5) SEGAL

which isn't a cryptic definition by any yardstick.

…and Sankalak's THC 9522 (09-Jun-09) carried the next one, a straight clue again:
Erich Segal's romance (4,5) LOVE STORY

A coincidence, isn't it, that both setters chose to make this one the rare direct definition in a cryptic puzzle?

Related Posts:

• The Hindu Crossword 9564 (Gridman) 
• The Hindu Crossword 9456 (Sankalak)
• Killer Clue

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