Elle Decrypted #3 (Anagram)
■ · By Elle · Published 2023-10-17T23:23:31.948Z
Constructor's Note
Cryptic with ONLY anagrams. Definition and indicators are marked.
Welcome to my third in the Decrypted series! These are for beginner cryptic crossword solvers to get used to the tricks and deceptions that come with cryptic clues.
In this installment, we take a look at the Anagram device. This device prompts you to unscramble letters to form the solution.
Formatting and punctuation (for the most part) should be ignored in a cryptic clue. They're often there to mislead. Here, however I've used formatting to show which word or words are the definition and which word or words are the anagram indicator. As before, the definition comes at the start or the end of the clue except in some notable cases. Have fun!
Example 1
Clue
- Harvests of mashed pears
Solution
REAPS
Explanation
- Harvests is the simple clue, which hints at "reaps".
- mashed is the anagram indicator, meaning you have to "mash" the letters of
pearsto get the answer. - n.b. The letters to anagram can come before or after the indicator, and may span multiple words in the clue, or even across sentences.
Example 2
Clue
- Serpents in ruins are gifts.
Solution
PRESENTS
Explanation
- Gifts is the simple clue, which hints at "presents".
- in ruins is the anagram indicator, meaning that "serpents" is broken down (and rearranged.)
Indicator examples
Anything that suggests that something has been mixed up, made messy, broken, rearranged, transmuted, shuffled, gone crazy, remade, confused, made up... etc., can be an anagram indicator. There are so many of them, you may need to be on the lookout for phrases in the clue that have the same number of letters as the solution to see that it's possibly an anagram.
Final note
The text you anagram (called the fodder) is meant to be literal (i.e. those are the letters you have to use.) There should not be a synonym used for the fodder, or anything else that isn't literal, because this is known as an "indirect anagram" and is not considered fair. For example as above if I wrote "snakes" instead of "serpents" that wouldn't be considered fair. You might also come across definitions that mean one thing when you read the clue, but mean something else when read in isolation, as a decoy. Words with multiple meanings (and even different parts of speech) and homonyms are great for this. Good luck!
Checking for previous play data...
Number 4 I'll do without printing it out and see what happens. These are GREAT! Thank you.1A
I tend, perhaps, to break up (3, 2)
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Across
- 1AI tend, perhaps, to break up (3, 2)
- 4ASwallows kinky plugs (5)
- 6AMixed ay's were put forth (3)
- 7ACleave veers wildly (4)
- 9AA cherry kind of sport (7)
- 10A"von Treacherous" month (3)
- 11AAvo scrambled eggs (3)
- 12AErr... plow reformed thief (7)
- 14AShow pleasure for free miles (5)
- 15APitch a funny rat (3)
- 16AMysterious stone colors (5)
- 17AChinese surname given by reborn GC hen (5)
Down
- 1DOdd toad cures teachers! (9)
- 2DCreate/do sin? Terrible blasphemy. (11)
- 3DMe? Try? Ludicrous. I dare you! (3, 2)
- 4DGutsy is carelessly breezy (5)
- 5DNew village ring? Wallowing in luxury (6, 5)
- 8DUnrestrained reserving is going backwards (9)
- 12DSneaks a look in renovated keeps (5)
- 13DEye-related topic in other words (5)