Crossword Basics
📋 What it is
Crosswords match a clue to a word that fits a set number of letters, crossing others.
🗣️ Coach says
A crossword is a word puzzle: read the clue, count the boxes, and find a word that fits AND crosses the others correctly. Crossing letters give free hints. It's vocabulary meets logic.
🧠 Memory hook
Clue + letter count + crossing letters. Use the crossings as free hints.
😂 Giggle
Why did the suffix stay behind?
Because its whole job is to bring up the end!
😲 Whoa!
The first crossword puzzle was published in 1913 — and people thought it was just a passing fad.
✅ Quick check: In a crossword, how do the crossing letters help you?
Say your answer out loud first — then reveal.
They give you some letters of an unknown word for free, narrowing the options.
Shared letters from crossing answers constrain and hint the word.
🧪 Try it! (2 minutes)
Solve one clue in any crossword using a crossing letter you already have.