Guidebook (Exercises in Style #37)
A "shows how" show!
This one is so far into my wheelhouse that it almost feels like cheating, but I saw it as an opportunity to articulate my own philosophy of solving—a philosophy that’s a few steps away from the competitive ethos you see in the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, though that tournament does at least allow for solving pairs. Next up will be another “Year in Crosswords,” and we’ll get back to the “H” exercises next week.
How to Solve Crosswords
One: Read the Clues Carefully
In early crosswords, an answer like ETHENE might have had a generalized clue like “A gas” or “A certain compound.” Such a clue would have many possible answers.
Today, the clue is likely to be more specific, like “Compound that ripens bananas.” Sometimes even a more precise clue can have more than one answer, however. “Limbs that lengthen as we grow” could be ARMS or LEGS.
Tip: Don’t jump to conclusions. Move right on from any clues you’re not sure about. It’s better to leave an answer blank than to fill in the wrong one like HEXANE. Not everyone is lucky enough to have relevant professional experience with chemicals like some admen we know.
Two: Let Crosses Help
A crossword grid is a system of mutual constraints. Every letter you fill in constrains the answers that cross it. Don’t grind through all the Acrosses before touching the Downs; weave between them. A single confirmed letter in crossing position can unlock an answer that seemed impossible to guess or remember a moment before.
Tip: Some extra-tough clues might need you to cross multiple letters to be sure of your answer. Is “Swear” AVOW or AVER? Is “Compound that ripens bananas” ETHENE or ETHANE? You may not know, but at least you’ll know there’s an A or E in the word that crosses its fourth letter.
Three: Mind the Grid
ETHENE also has a longer name, ETHYLENE, but in the crossword, it is easy to identify which answer was intended. The answer has six squares, and ETHYLENE is eight letters. It doesn’t fit.
Tip: Notice the letter-count before you start thinking about the answer.
Four: Use Initialisms, Acronyms, and Abbreviations
Crosswords can be flexible about what they include as answers. Some are multiple words. Others are abbreviations, though these are usually identified by a clue that also contains an abbreviation (or a note like “abbreviated”). Some would claim initialisms are not words, but they are often used as such. “Quickly, quickly!” can clue ASAP or STAT. (ASAP can be initialism or acronym, depending on who pronounces it.)
Tip: Some clues might indicate the answer is an initialism or acronym, like “Letters called out in embarrassment” for TMI. This isn’t required, though. “‘I didn’t need to know that!’” would be another acceptable clue. Abbreviations, however, are always noted as such.
Five: Be Easygoing About Help
Some solvers are strict about testing their own wits and only their wits against the puzzle. Others feel free to Google whenever they come up against anything they don’t know, making it not a test of knowledge but a test of the ability to find knowledge.
There is a middle path, however, that offers a rewarding social dimension. You can make solving a shared activity among friends or family. As you read the clues aloud for all to hear, you open yourself up to a moment when someone in the kitchen, someone who has only been half-listening, calls out the answer.
“Letters called out in embarrassment.”
“That’s ‘TMI,’ isn’t it?”
A non-solo solve shouldn’t be seen as cheating, because a puzzle’s true purpose isn’t to be solved, it’s to provide enjoyment. And often, enjoyment multiplies when it’s shared: the person who guesses “TMI” feels pride, but so does the person who invites others in, reads out the clues, and lets the moment happen.
Tip: When you’ve been staring at a clue for more than a minute, say it out loud even if no one else is in the room. The change in register often shakes something loose.
Six: Let Your Mind Drift a Bit
It’s not always about just knowing the answer, but where the answer might lead your mind. When ETHENE appears, you don’t need to give its chemical formula. But you might think about a story that relates to it and discuss it with other solvers if they’re there.
These associations are not distractions; they are part of the pleasure. The crossword rewards people who have noticed things, who have accumulated, over the years, a vast and unruly collection of half-remembered facts, conversations, and Sunday mornings. All of it is fair game.
Tip: If you are the sort who enjoys timing your solves, you can still look back over the answers after completing them as an extra cognitive reward.
Bonus Tip: If a clue triggers a story or a memory, follow that too. It might lead you to the answer.
Seven: Be Regular
The rewards of the crossword go beyond a simple intelligence test: they can add a stable presence to an otherwise chaotic week. Whether shared or done alone, whether relaxing or timed, the best way to get good at crosswords is to do them consistently.
Tip: Pick a time and protect it. Sunday mornings work well because the pace of that day is often easiest to control. But any consistent slot will do. The grid will be there.
Eight: Let Your World Drift a Bit
That ETHENE story may go on for a bit. Unexpected guests may arrive. A two-year-old in the room may pick up a cane. The moment you were about to explain something may pass, quietly, and be gone.
This is fine. Crosswords are not always solved in clean, unbroken stretches of concentration. Occasionally, they are set down, returned to, or sat on by a cat.
Tip: If you get really stuck, walk away and come back in ten minutes. The answer will sometimes arrive on its own, delivered by the part of your mind that kept working while you weren’t looking. Don’t seek to be the perfect solver, and you’ll become your best solving self.