# Crossword Clue Game **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [October 25, 2020, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818 "2020-10-25T07:00:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2020, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/181 "2020-11-22T02:07:34Z")
Thanks! That helps make up for my feelings of inferiority over the realization that I’ll never be able to do a cryptic. (Although I believe that Tactile dactyl is a valid clue, as dactyl also means finger or toe, and it rhymes!) New word: **TABLE** ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2020, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/182 "2020-11-22T02:20:48Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Where to wear an iron ring? **Elementary**. I don’t see what _Elementary_ signifies. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2020, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/183 "2020-11-22T02:31:29Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > _Elementary_ signifies. Iron is an element? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2020, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/184 "2020-11-22T04:01:11Z")
Elementary is an additional clue (probably wouldn’t be given) to look for abbreviations. Dactyl is the scientific word for finger. Medical terms also include things like syndactyly, as when fingers are fused. A dactyl is also a poetry meter - a stress on the first of three syllables. The following poems are written in _double dactyl_ (DA da da DA da da): Higgeldy Piggeldy Benjamin Harrison Twenty-third President Was and as such Served between Clevelands And save for this trivial Idiosyncrasy Didn’t do much. Higgeldy Piggeldy Marcus Antonious What do you think of the African Queen? Gubernatorial Duties require My presence in Egypt Ya know what I mean? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2020, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/185 "2020-11-22T04:37:41Z")
Congrats to @needscoffee. I’m going to continue to give five conventional clues and five cryptic ones, since it seems a decent way to teach the conventions. You kind of have to see enough of them. My clues: 1. — d’hôte 2. Four legged lectern 3. Platform to put one’s cards on 4. Ping-pong pulpit 5. Mendelev’s pigeonholes, periodically ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2020, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/186 "2020-11-22T05:22:43Z")
I don’t understand cryptics at all. My grandmother could do them, and do them fairly quickly, but no matter how much she tried to teach me, I just couldn’t get them. However, I can do a NYT Sunday puzzle in two to three hours, so there’s that. Anyway, clues for **TABLE** : 1. Do this to a motion 2. Four-legged furniture item 3. Diner need 4. Mountain in Cape Town 5. Place to crap in Vegas? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2020, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/187 "2020-11-22T06:16:01Z")
Cryptic clues: 1. With pill, taking tea causes motion delay 2. Desk top is unbalanced, without the sun 3. Sounds like Dante builds furniture 4. Story about knights round first of Britain 5. Data blends well with statistics diagram 6. Bleat about buffet Spoilers (1-6): 1. Table: to delay a motion, also TABLET (pill) with T (tea) taken away. 2. Unbalanced=UNSTABLE. UNSTABLE - SUN = TABLE = desk top 3. “Sounds like” is a cue to read the clue aloud. TE + BUILD sounds kind of like TABLE. Not the best example of this type of clue. 4. TALE + B (first of Britain) = TABLE = Knights of the Round — . 5. DaTA BLEnds well; statistics table 6. BLEAT anagram, TABLE = buffet ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2020, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/188 "2020-11-22T13:12:01Z")
1. Losers of drinking contests tend to go under here 2. One of the objects turned in a dramatic reversal 3. Participants can meet around here for knights 4. Where actors read before they’re blocked 5. Postpone something for future consideration ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2020, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/189 "2020-11-23T02:33:55Z")
Wow, the quality of the clues has gotten so good that it’s nearly impossible to pick just one anymore. Winner is @Dr_Paprika for > [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Mendelev’s pigeonholes, periodically [Mendeleev, I presume] But close behind are @Spoons > [@Spoons](#): > > Place to crap in Vegas? and @Knowed_Out with > [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Losers of drinking contests tend to go under here > One of the objects turned in a dramatic reversal > Participants can meet around here for knights Congratulations, @Dr_Paprika! Your turn. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2020, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/190 "2020-11-23T02:35:12Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Cryptic clues: > > 1. With pill, taking tea causes motion delay > 2. Desk top is unbalanced, without the sun > 3. Sounds like Dante builds furniture > 4. Story about knights round first of Britain > 5. Data blends well with statistics diagram > 6. Bleat about buffet Let’s just say I’m not ready for prime time yet. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2020, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/191 "2020-11-23T05:15:45Z")
Okay. The next word is SPIRIT. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2020, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/192 "2020-11-23T07:26:20Z")
1. Lindy’s St. Louis liquor 2. This will get you into Christmas 3. Norman Greenbaum’s sky specter 4. Kurt’s teen odor comes from this 5. Seance respondent ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2020, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/193 "2020-11-23T07:58:43Z")
1. Liquor store offering 2. With “The,” comics character 3. Stallion of the Cimarron 4. Holy one, at church 5. American Motors model ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2020, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/194 "2020-11-23T09:00:13Z")
1. To lure away in secret. 2. Make-up artist’s gum. 3. “\_\_\_\_\_ of the time” (zeitgeist) 4. “House of \_\_\_\_\_\_s” (Allende) 5. Puck is a mischievous one. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2020, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/195 "2020-11-23T16:10:51Z")
1. Ghost soulmate? 2. One of a material world, according to Police 3. This adolescent has a particular odor to Nirvana 4. Type of gum used for attaching prosthetics 5. Along with “away,” to covertly abduct ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/196 "2020-11-24T00:43:54Z")
I’d never heard of the movie Spirit. Had to look that one up. Some good clues, but my favourite one was zeitgeist. So, the next round will be led by @RivkahChaya I’m not sure how many comic characters start with “The”. That’s kind of outside my interests. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/197 "2020-11-24T00:45:48Z")
And the thing about cryptic crosswords is that they are difficult. I can usually finish them, but it might take me all day or longer. I can usually read through the clues and get maybe half a dozen right away. I can do the NYT or Globe weekend crosswords at a decent pace. The goal of the cryptic clues is simply to help you understand a few conventions. At this stage, you don’t need to get the answer. You just need to understand the answer - how it was formed. If you see enough of these, I think you might improve. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/198 "2020-11-24T01:02:28Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > The goal of the cryptic clues is simply to help you understand a few conventions. At this stage, you don’t need to get the answer. You just need to understand the answer - how it was formed. “1. Bleat about buffet” - was there a tipoff that _bleat_ was an anagram? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/199 "2020-11-24T01:06:15Z")
No, anagrams are used often and rarely signalled. A good puzzle is such that you can usually know when you’ve got it because it is kind of in there twice. Just getting a few clues, and knowing a single letter, is helpful since this often rules out anagrams. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818/200 "2020-11-24T01:09:52Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > I’m not sure how many comic characters start with “The”. That’s kind of outside my interests. I’m not sure either, but The Spirit, created by Will Eisner, is a classic: > **[Spirit (comics character)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_(comics_character))** > > Later, non-Eisner stories only: > Film adaptation only: > The Spirit is a fictional masked crimefighter appearing in American comic books. Created by cartoonist Will Eisner, he first appeared as the main feature of a tabloid-sized comic book insert distributed in the Sunday edition of Register and Tribune Syndicate newspapers. Popularly referred to as "The Spirit Section", the insert ran from June 2, 1940 to October 5, 1952. Of course, comics and their characters aren’t to everybody’s taste, but in every crossword, there are clues and solutions that will reflect something the solver is unfamiliar with or doesn’t care for–Eugene Maleska, who edited the NYT puzzles for some years, seemed to delight in including obscure operas as solutions. Even opera lovers would have trouble at times; those of us who didn’t care for operas were totally lost. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crossword-clue-game/923818.md?page=11)