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Word Position |
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| The position of a word relative to the other words or the box it’s self is often a clue. For example the word “moon” is placed over the word “Miami” and thus the answerer would be “Moon Over Miami” | 
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| Another common position clue is to place one word inside of another. In this example the word “singing” is place inside the word “rain” to give “singing in the rain” the position strategy can be used to denote over, under, around, by, out, through, beside, right and left to name a few. | 
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| Color | ||||
| If the word or part of the word is printed is some color other than black the color is probably relevant to the puzzle. In this one the word “mellow” is printed in yellow so the answer is “Mellow Yellow” | 
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| Size | ||||
| Words that are written unusually large or unusually small are probably tied to the puzzle answer. In this example a very little fount is used to write the word “sister” and the puzzle answer would be “little sister” this can also be used to denote big, large, small wide, long and others. | 
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| Direction | ||||
| The direction that a word is oriented can provide clues as well. In this one the word “creek” is written going upwards and the word “paddle” is crossed out. The puzzle answer would be “up the creek without a paddle” direction can also be used to denote down, backward, back, behind, hind, and turn to name a few. | 
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| Quantity and Numbers | ||||
| there are many puzzles that depend on the number of times a certain word appears in the puzzle. This can denote the use of that number or simply that the word should be plural. In this example the letter “a” appears four times and the answer would be “Queen for a Day” | 
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| Accentuated | ||||
| Some of the time when a word appears in a different text, italicized, or other wise made to appear different, special attention should be paid to that word in relation to the other words. This example uses the numbers hint out lined above and accentuates the eight appearance of the word “Henry” so this puzzle is “Henry the Eight” | 
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| Missing Letters | ||||
| Letters will intentionally be left out of some puzzles. In this example the word “mice” is repeated three times but the letter “i” is missing from each of them. This would denote “Three Blind Mice” | 
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| Graphical | ||||
| Many puzzles have graphics added to the words to imply clues. There is a wide variety of graphics that can be added. In this example the word “gravy” has been modified to resemble a train. The answer to this puzzle is “Gravy Train” | 
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| Most
of the time a variety of these tactics will be employ within a single
puzzle. There are also variations on these clues which have not been
outlined here. Also creative members of our community are sure to come
up with other ways cryptic ways to express a puzzle. Many these puzzles are difficult. Some of the clues require knowledge that is not widely known in many sections of society. There are a couple of things that can help. First each and every puzzle has at lest one hint. Second there is a Google tool at the bottom of the page. Do not be shy about undertaking a web search to help you solve the puzzle. Here are some additional web sites that may prove useful. |
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