The Clue Clinic

all about cryptic crossword clues

The Clue Clinic

Welcome to The Clue Clinic – where people interested in solving or setting cryptic crosswords come to learn, sharpen their skills, and get expert guidance from experienced setters.

If this is your first visit, we would recommend visiting the About This Site page to get some ideas about the areas of the site which may be of particular interest to you and the ways in which you can interact with Clinic staff and other readers.

What’s New

The PDF of the latest Gemelo puzzle is available at this link: Gemelo 51.
The PDF of the latest Azed puzzle is available at this link: Azed 2,784
The September Digest is now published, with views, news…and a chance to give your opinion on the health of the cryptic
The Forum is now available for discussion of all things crossword-related

Latest Posts

Latest Comments

Latest Forum Topics/Posts

  1. Stuck with 17a I have EIS for the last 3 letters  but a trawl through Chambers hasn’t netted anything for…

  2. Yes, I think that’s fair to say. I am going to put it on the ‘review’ list – I note…

  3. It’s what Fowler would call a ‘sturdy indefensible’ then – crops up ever so often.

  4. Hi It’s one for which I can see no justification. Chambers gives ‘reject’ (vt) as: “to throw away; to discard;…

  5. Hi, I see you don’t have ‘rejected’ as a reversal indicator. Do you object?

  7. Thanks, RK I remember adding ‘part way through’ to the list specifically as an alternative to ‘during’, which I think…

  9. Hi Doc, I see that “part way through” is listed as an insertion indicator. Why not “go through”, “pass through”…