Guardian Quiptic

I haven’t blogged a Quiptic before – I’m a stand-in today – and I was particularly pleased to see Matilda’s name, because I always enjoy her puzzles, Quiptic or Cryptic. As required for … Read more >>

Thank you to Beale. Definitions are underlined in the clues. Across 1. Lean the wrong way, drop a catch (7) PITFALL : Reversal of(… the wrong way) TIP(to lean/to put into a sloping … Read more >>

Anto has the Quiptic for us this morning. A very generous, solver-friendly, grid made up for some tricky clueing, I thought. You? Abbreviations cd cryptic definition dd double definition cad clue as definition … Read more >>

A delightful Quiptic from Hectence, with nothing to frighten the horses, as it should be. I have given full explanations for those in the ‘beginner’ category, but please ask if there is something … Read more >>

Thank you to Carpathian. Definitions are underlined in the clues. Across 1. Difficult prisoner loudly taking drugs (9) CONFUSING : CON(short for “convict”/prisoner) + F(abbrev. for “forte”, musical instruction to play loudly) + … Read more >>

This offering from Anto did not appear on the Grauniad website till mid morning, so I am afraid because of work commitments I have not been able to write and post a blog … Read more >>

Thanks to Pan for our entertainment today. The Quiptic’s brief is “for beginners and those in a hurry”. This one perhaps stretches the definition a little, with a few less familiar words and … Read more >>

Matilda has produced a pleasing Quiptic this morning, which I think meets the brief – ‘for beginners, and those in a hurry’ – pretty well. For those in the former category, additional explanation … Read more >>

Thank you to Hectence for this tricky Quiptic. Definitions are underlined in the clues. Across 1. Luxury extension can perhaps ruin housing (12) EXTRAVAGANCE : EXT(abbrev. for “extension”) + [anagram of(… perhaps) CAN … Read more >>

A carefully and concisely clued Quiptic from Carpathian, with nothing to frighten the reindeers. As it should be. It only remains for me to send my best wishes for 2021 to fellow Quiptic … Read more >>

As usual, Anto operates towards the trickier end of the Quiptic range, but there are some straightforward clues that should (I hope) get beginners started here. We have some classic crossword tricks (sign, … Read more >>

Beale was one of the original setters way back in the day when the Quiptic launched over twenty years ago before disappearing from the scene, but has reappeared recently. Whether he or she … Read more >>

Thank you to Pasquale. Definitions are underlined in the clues. Across 4. Fellow one met at church in tight garment (6) BODICE : BOD(informal term for a “fellow”/person) + I(Roman numeral for “one”) … Read more >>

Hectence has given us a lot of bra-stretching this morning.       An interesting Quiptic, probably on the hardish side (at least from the parsing point of view), and a pangram to … Read more >>