CROSSWORDS: Acquire Vocabulary, Knowledge

Summary | Quotes | Muses, Patron Saints and Superheroes |
References: General | Animals | Characters / Names | Dictionaries | Geography |
What/Who the Heck.../Stumper | Languages | OREO | Crosswordese

Summary

• There are many meanings and contexts of words, e.g.,
  Why 'Run' Is The Most Complex Word in the English Language MF; 5/17/2019
• More than one word (of same length) might satisfy the definition,
  especially if ambiguous -- use crossing entries to eliminate possibilities.
• The pattern/features of a clue usually mirror the answer entry,
  e.g., noun: singular/plural; verb tense: present, past, infinitive, gerund
• If the answer entry is a phrase, rather than a single word,
  the mirroring can occur before the last word
• Language of the clue, e.g., French, Latin, Spanish, almost always indicates language of answer.
• We'll see many examples of 'clue-answer mirroring' later in Decode Clues.
• Letter sequences are common: abbrev., acronyms, 'alphabetic trio', compass dir.,
  initials of author/president, phone keypad, prefix, Roman numerals, suffix,
  tictactoe (O,X), time zones, TV/cable networks, etc.
• "[var.]" usually indicates a variant spelling; theme phrases may be misspelled for the sake of puns.
• The language of clues and answers will often reflect the decade of the puzzle,
  and style/preferences of the author & editor.
• Answer words should not appear in clues, in the title (if any) or in other answers.
• portmanteau: A word formed by merging the sounds and meanings of two different words,
  e.g., affluenza, alphanumeric, Bollywood, brainiac, Brexit, bromance, brunch
• eponym: one for whom or which something is or is believed to be named
  e.g., America, Caesar salad, zipper, cardigan, kleenex, xerox, bandaid
• Also know what you (usually) will not find: profanity, sad or disturbing topics,
  or overly explicit answers -- the so-called "breakfast test".
• Read a lot; learn vocabulary, (vowel-heavy) 'repeaters' (e.g., area, aria, oreo),
  and 'crosswordese' ("words frequently found in crossword puzzles but seldom found
  in everyday conversation" but usually rarer in 'better' puzzles) -- by osmosis from puzzles or from lists.
• Try quizzes / flashcards, e.g., XWord Info Bar Game: Try to guess the answer as quickly as possible.
  Clues and answers are selected at random (from NYT). Some are easy, some are hard, some are fair, some are not.
• Being good at Scrabble helps for 'official' words, but crosswords can includes phrases,
  made-up words/spellings (often puns), words from other languages, and letter sequences.

Quotes

• "Just like peanut butter, puzzles can be smooth or crunchy! Crunchy puzzles are chock-full
  of tough vocabulary, full names, and fresh phrases that have never been seen in crosswords." ~Christina Iverson in NYT Wordplay newsletter.
• "And there's word-choice rules... You can't use -- usually -- bodily functions in puzzles,
  you know. 'Urine' would bail me out of a corner, I mean, a million times a year.
  Same with 'enema.' 'Enema' -- talk about great letters." ~Merl Reagle
• "crosswordese:... the jargon of crossword puzzle answers, classically consisting of rare,
  archaic, or dialectal words" ~Wiktionary
• OREO is sometimes called the pseudo-official cookie of the crossword puzzle...
  because its vowels help the constructor with ease of crossing words;
  also because it's black and white -- and from the same decade
• clue: "Mountain: Prefix or Comb. form";
  ans:...OREO; common clue in "pre-Shortz era", i.e., before 1993
• Nobody should ever let me have three wishes... because I'd blow at least one on
  "always knowing whether the answer to the four-letter crossword clue ‘swear' is ‘aver' or ‘avow'."

• 
  

  "AOC is maybe the first politician since LBJ... with an iconic three-initial nickname,
  which is good news for her career but especially for crossword editors." ~Ken Jennings

• Apparently, everybody's mad at Qatar now,... except crossword puzzle enthusiasts.
• "Brand names -- you can credit me for that innovation." ~Will Shortz
• "The most common word in New York Times crosswords is... 'era'
  -- which appears in about 7% of all puzzles." ~Will Shortz
• "Words fascinate me... They always have.
  For me, browsing in a dictionary is like being turned loose in a bank." ~Eddie Cantor
• "I don't use simple words...I make games and puzzles with my songs." ~Lisa Loeb
• "Crossword Fan: I've been trying to think of a word for two weeks!...
  Friend: How about a fortnight?"
• "In hosts of minds, today, are impressions that the word 'eerie'...
  means nothing except convenience to makers of crossword puzzles.
  There are gulfs of the unaccountable, but they are bridged by terminology." ~Charles Fort
• "Leo (President's Chief of Staff): Margaret. Please call the editor of the New York Times crossword... and
  tell him that Khaddafi is spelled with an h, and two d's, and isn't a seven letter word for anything.
  Leo [on phone]: 17 across. Yes, 17 across is wrong... You're spelling his name wrong...
  What's my name? My name doesn't matter. I am just an ordinary citizen who relies on the Times crossword
  for stimulation. And I'm telling you that I met the man twice. And I recommended a pre-emptive
  Exocet missile strike against his air force, so I think I know how.
  Leo: [looking at the phone, then hanging up] They hang up on me every time." ~West Wing (Pilot)
• "A guy doing a crossword in a pub... turns to his pal and says 'how do you spell paint'?
  His mate thinks for a second and replies 'what colour'?"
• "'Speak English!' said the Eaglet. 'I don't know the meaning of half those long words,
  and I don't believe you do either!'" ~Alice (in Wonderland)

Muses, Patron Saints and Superheroes

• You may encounter entries or clues in crosswords that mention Greek muses (Wikipedia) (goddesses)
  for arts or sciences, e.g., Erato (love poetry), Clio (history), Urania (astronomy); Greek Mythology
• You may also find entries/clues that involve patron saints (Wikipedia) for traditional/academic
  occupations and activities; also: Catholic Saints A-Z
• You may also see entries/clues involving Superheroes (Wikipedia) and their powers,
  which seem mostly physical/sensory rather than mental; also: powers; powers and abilities
• Inquiring minds might wonder who might be the muse, patron saint and/or superhero (if any)
  for crossword solvers and/or constructors -- or perhaps puzzles, games, words or problem solving in general?
  (there are no official ones that I'm aware of)
• Some possible Muses for crosswords:
• Erato: "poetry" -- crosswords might be considered an unusual form of poetry (word patterns)
• Melete: "practice" -- crosswords require a lot of practice
• Thalia: "comedy and pastoral poetry" -- wordplay and words
• Mnemosyne: "memory"; also parent w/ Zeus of all the muses? -- crosswords certainly require memory
• My choices: Mnemosyne or Thalia
• Some possible Patron Saints for crosswords:
• Teresa of Avila: "lace workers, chess" -- patterns, games?
• Thomas Aquinas: "students, teachers, academics"
• Lawrence: "librarians, archivists, students, comedians" -- organizing; word play?
• Albertus Magnus: "philosophers, scientists, students"
• Catherine of Alexandria: "librarians, students, philosophers"
• Isidore of Seville: "computer scientists/programmers/users, students" -- and proposed for "Internet"
• Margaret Farrar Simon&Schcuster, rules, 1st NYT crossword editor
• My choices: Teresa, Lawrence, Isidore or Margaret (if she were to be canonized)
• Some possible Superheroes/villains for crosswords:
• The Riddler
• (lesser known) superheroes with enhanced intelligence / intuition?
• My choice: Riddler
• Your nominations?

References

• also see Refs: Animals; Characters / Names; Dictionaries; Geography;
  What/Who the Heck is That?; Languages; OREO; Crosswordese
• some topics/categories: acronyms, American universities, animals,
  baseball, Bible, birds, 'Breakfast test', Chinese dynasties,
  collective nouns, counties, dogs, European rivers, college exams,
  Greek letters, Greek mythology, monograms, opera, sports names,
  Spanish, Star Wars, US govt. orgs, Yiddish
• How a 15-Year-Old Gamer Became the Patron Saint of the Internet Carlo Acutis; Wired; 9/30/2024
• Spectacular Vernacular
  podcast that explores language...and plays with it; some related to puzzles and crosswords; Slate
• CrosswordSolver.com: word lists
  words starting with..., words ending with..., words with infrequent letters, different word lengths
• 20 Old Words for Ignorant People
  Boxhead; Muppet; Horse's Patoot; Muffin-head; Moonling; Nana;
  Wantwit; Dough-cake; Dorkmunder; Stupex; Jobbernowl; Niddy-noddy;
  Stookie; Puzzle-head; Merry-andrew; Dizzard; Dunderwhelp;
  Clod-pate; Sumph; Ninnyhammer; MF; 8/16/2024
• Who are the Most Mentioned Authors in Crosswords?
  overall, by genre, by newspaper, in clues, by decade; 7/2024
• How Gen Z Made the Crossword Their Own
  a younger generation of constructors is using an old form to reflect
  their identities, language and world; NYT; 4/13/2024
• The Gen Z Crossword Era
  solving a crossword puzzle today feels more like a spirited
  conversation with modern culture; NYT; 4/13/2024
• Why does Idris Elba always turn up in crossword clues? One veteran puzzle editor provides the answer and many more 11/2/2023
• Crosswords as a Dynamic Tool for Vocabulary Building and Language Acquisition 10/3/2023
• Why You Like the Sound of 'Barbenheimer' what makes a good portmanteau? NYT; 8/7/2023
• The Unspoken Language of Crosswords Atl; 8/6/2023
• Linguistic Siblings: 9 Pairs of Words With Surprisingly Shared Etymologies MF; 6/28/2023
• Leg Booty? Panoramic? Seggs? How TikTok Is Changing Language NYT; 11/21/2022
• Why crossword puzzles have become my safe space as a Black man 3/26/2022
• Words Full of Sound and Fury
  grandiloquent colloquialisms, fanciful words; NYT; 2/14/2022
• What Makes a Word 'Proper English'?
  the internet and social media have sped up the ways slang terms
  are popularized among mainstream audiences; NYT; 11/16/2021
• Smurf, Nerf, Buff, and More Old Words With New Meanings You Should Know LH; 10/21/2021
• Crosswords as Pop Culture Shorthand? PN; 10/5/2021
• Things Are About to Get Cheesy In Here DB; 6/3/2021
• For crossword constructors, an inclusivity debate:
  What's 'common knowledge' and who decides? WaPo; 3/11/2021
• Montreal newspaper apologizes for N-word answer to crossword clue 2/16/2021
• How (Chemical) Elements Get Added to Crosswords 1/18/2021
• The New Words for Our New Misery doomscrolling, mask-hole, Zoom fatigue, Quarantini,
  covidiot, travel-shaming, You're on mute -- and more from the pandemic lexicon; NYT; 12/24/2020
• Names in Crosswords
  1. Who's in the Crossword? Representation in Major Crosswords:
  Ratio of men vs. women and non-Hispanic whites vs. minoritized racial groups
  found in clues and answers of major crossword publications;
  2. Modernizing old namesl 3. Redefining "common knowledge"; Pudding; 11/2020
• Oxford's 2020 Word of the Year? It’s Too Hard to Isolate NYT; 11/22/2020
• The Delicious World of Food Clues in Crosswords DB; 11/9/2020
• How Brand Names Worked Their Way Into Crosswords DB; 11/2/2020
• What Nicki Minaj, Emoji, and Iraq Have In Common on the Puzzle Grid
  unexpected ending letters, e.g., IMPROV, AVENUEQ, MARYJ, EMOJI, REIKI; DB; 9/14/2020
• 1925 crossword requires vintage brain different vocabulary; 2/23/2019
• The Crossword Symphony: 12 Musical Terms And Solving Tips
  ADAGIO, A DUE, ARCO, ASSAI, A TEMPO, LARGO, LEGATO, LENTO, POCO, RIT,
  STAC, TACET; _ MAJOR/MINOR, _ SHARP/FLAT, IN _; NYT; 2/6/2019
• 20 Words Turning 100 in 2019 MF; 1/4/2019
• The word of the year: Stop! BG; 12/21/2018
• The Crossword Library: 11 Authors You Should Know NYT; 11/21/2018
• The Crossword Garage: 8 Car Makes and Models You Should Know NYT; 9/19/2018
• The Crossword Garden, Part Two: 8 Fruits and Vegetables You Should Know NYT; 8/15/2018
• 10 Words and Phrases You Won't Believe Are More Than 100 Years Old 8/10/2018
• The Crossword Garden, Part One: 10 Plants You Should Know "flowery language"; NYT; 7/18/2018
• 25 Words That Are Their Own Opposites 6/15/2018
• 50 Acronyms and Initialisms All Spelled Out 5/8/2018
• 9 Innocent Words with Surprisingly Naughty Origins
  gymnasium; mastodon; partridge; forlorn; musk; orchid; punk; porcelain; pasta alla puttanesca; 4/11/2018
• The Reference Section A collection of Wordplay's "topics you need to know" articles: Birds,
  Spanish, Greek Mythology, Baseball, Sports Names, European Rivers, Opera; NYT; 3/29/2018
• How Many 9-Letter Words Can You Make With Airport Codes?
  Perth + Chattanooga + Nice = PERCHANCE; 3/29/2018
• 10 Greek Mythological Characters to Help You Raise Your Crossword Game NYT; 12/26/2017
• 8 Opera Terms That Will Raise Your Crossword-Solving Game NYT; 7/19/2017
• 10 Sports Names That Will Help You Become a Better Crossword Solver NYT; 4/19/2017
• 10 Baseball Terms That Will Help You Become a Better Crossword Solver NYT; 4/1/2017
• Online English Vocabulary Size Test 7/12/2016
• 11 Old-Fashioned Words for Idiots MF; 6/21/2015
• 25 Words That Are Actually Acronyms 1/28/2015
• These Are The Longest Words In The English Language, And They're Insane
  most wouldn't fit in crosswords; Giz; 7/17/2014
• Ebola Invades 'The New York Times' Sunday Crossword
  crosswords tend to avoid unpleasant subjects like diseases -- but occasionally the names do
  slip in unavoidably: POLIO, MALARIA, EBOLA, SARS (not TB, MERS); NPR; 7/13/2014
• The history of AOL as told through New York Times crossword clues 12/6/2012
• (Sunday) Breakfast Test discussion ;-); any word is offensive to some audience? 4/25/2011
• Cruciverbal Cheat Sheets An Englishman Solves American Puzzles
• Pavlov's Guide to Crosswords 12/2009
• From Aaron to Zion Bible & Jewish refs; 1/2011
• Alphabet Soup US govt. orgs; 5/2010
• The Crucy League Amer. univ; 2/2009
• Cross Examinations LSAT, etc.; 2/2011
• Me Old China Chinese dynasties; 7/2011
• A Monograph on Monograms literary, presidents, others; 1/2011
• Become a Crossword Super Solver by Will Johnston Commonly used words;
  Finding the easy ones; Method of attack; Ambiguous fill; [.pdf; p3]; 1/19/2010
• Ask Will: "breakfast test" #7; NYT; 1/10/2010
• How to remember: Greek letters 3/2008; Roman numerals 4/2008; Abbrev. (Wikipedia)
• Roman numeral crosswords: easy; difficult "The World's Worst"
• Crossword Trivia and Trip-ups 3/11/2005
• HSW 5: Double-check Your Spelling (var.); Word Buff: 3. Learn the Repeaters
• about.com: 2. Check the 3-, 4- and 5-letter Words; 8. Multi-word Answers
• Wonder 8. Memorize Commonly Used Words
• A Drudge of Lexicographers Presents: Collective Nouns A Murder of Crows; An Exaltation of Larks;
  Geese, Ducks, Swans, and Their Location; A Melody of Harpers and a Poverty of Pipers
• The Most Complicated Word in English is Only Three Letters Long run: 645 different meanings
• Word Buff Word Lists: most frequent; common 3-,4-,5-letter answers; alphabets
• Wordsmith.org: the magic of words forums, email lists
• Crasswords: Dirty Crosswords for Cunning Linguists Francis Heane; book

Animals

• 50 Collective Nouns for Your Favorite Groups of Animals 7/26/2018
• The Crossword Zoo: 10 Animals You Should Know
  asp; eft; eland; elk; ewok; gnu; ibex; okapi; orca; tsetse; NYT; 4/12/2018
• These Words Are for the Birds: A Crossword Aviary NYT; 3/2/2018
• View a Clue Animals edition! PN; 2/5/2016
• View a Clue: Crossword Animals PN; 1/28/2016
• Cruciverbal Canines dogs; 9/2009
• 27 Hilarious (but Totally Real) Names for Groups of Animals

Characters / Names

• Dad 'gives his son most ridiculous name ever because he loves crossword puzzles'
  "ABCDEF GHIJK Zuzu" (nickname Adef); 10/26/2021
• View a Clue: Crossword Characters Answers! PN; 4/23/2020
• View a Clue: Crossword Characters PN; 4/10/2020
• The Griddy Awards, Part 2: 10 Male Actors You Should Know NYT; 8/7/2019
• Farewell, Rip Torn, Star of Stage, Screen, and Crossword Grids PN; 7/11/2019
• The Griddy Awards, Part 1: 10 Female Actors You Should Know
  EDIE; ELKE; GENA; MIRA; NIA; POLA; SELA; TERI; UMA; UTA; NYT; 5/8/2019
• Celebrity View a Clue edition! PN; 11/27/2015
• View a Clue: Crossword Celebrities PN; 11/17/2015
• Star Wars 101: Attack of the Clues Star Wars characters; 11/2011

Dictionaries

• The First 10 Words of the African American English Dictionary Are In NYT; 5/23/2023
• Merriam-Webster Adds 455 New Words to the Dictionary
  they range from "dad bod" to "fluffernutter"; 10/30/2021
• More Than 650 New Words Have Been Added to Dictionary.com --
  here Are 50 of Them MF; 9/21/2020
• Find Your Birthday Word With the Oxford English Dictionary's Birthday Word Generator
  find a word that began the same year you did; MF; 6/23/2019
• Expand Your Vocabulary With These New Words From Merriam-Webster LH; 4/23/2019
• 7 Fake Words That Ended Up in the Dictionary
  dord; abacot; morse; phantomnation; momblishness; cairbow; esquivalience; 10/29/2018
• 25 Words You Didn't Know Were in the Dictionary 10/15/2018
• If Printed Dictionaries Are History, What Will Children Sit on to Reach the Table?
  HUMANITIES, Fall 2018, Volume 39, Number 4
• 12 Things You Might Not Know About Dictionaries 10/16/2018
• Duck face, lolcat, and permadeath: new words added to OxfordDictionaries.com OED; 12/3/2014

Geography

• Yreka! How this North State city landed
  in the NYT Sunday crossword puzzle
  36D. What is the Northern California town once home
  to the Palindromic Bakery? 10/4/2021
• 85-Across: 'State capital on the Colorado River.' Six letters 10/2/2020
• How Geography on the Crossword Grid Can Teach You A Thing or Two DB; 9/7/2020
• The Crossword Travel Guide: 10 Cities You Should Know
  ACCRA, AGRA, AMES, ARLES, ESSEN, ODESSA, OREM, OSLO, RENO, RIGA; NYT; 11/13/2019
• The New Capital of European Crosswords? PN; 10/11/2019
• 12 European Rivers That Will Help You Raise Your Crossword Game NYT; 7/12/2017
• Crucial Counties 5/2011

NYT: What/Who the Heck Is That? The Crossword Stumper

• ABEAM; ABO; ABOU; ADUBA; AFB; AGITA; AHN; AKINS; ALAIN;
  ALPH; ALT; AMARO; AMOS; AMPERE; ANYA; ARS; ASCH; AT BAT;
  AUBADE; AVEO; AY CARAMBA; AZO
• BABAS; BCC; BILES; BINGE WATCH; BOFFO; BUCK
• CALVINBALL; CAPTCHA; CASCA; CGI; COATI; CRIT; CYD
• DE NOVO; DECKLE; DHS; DRAGSHOW
• EARLE; ELBERT; ELO; EMO; ERATO; ERIS; ERL; EST; EVE CURIE
• FARAD; FATHA; FIAT
• GABON; GROK
• HORAE
• IAGO, IAGO (2); IDAS; ILO; ILYA; IMARET; INIGO;
  IONA, IONA; IQs; IROC; ISAO; ISUZU; IVES
• L-DOPA; LATINX; LEGATO; LGBT; LLANO
• MAGE; MATCHA; MERL; MOA; MOAI; MOTET; MOTO
• NEAL; NEMEAN; NENE NYT entry a total of 295 times since 1944; NIOBE; NOH
• OCHOA; OCHS; ODAY; ODEON; OED; OLLA; ONAGER;
  OP ART; ORC; ORINOCO; OYEZ
• PENSIEVE; PEWEE; PIPS; POGS
• RAE; REBUS; RECTO; RHETT; RIIS; ROTI; RPI; RUPIAHS
• S AND P; SABRA; SAZERAC; SHIM; SHMOO; SKRILLEX; SKUA;
  SONGZ; SPANG; STARCRAFT; STAUB; STEAGALL; STOP-TIME; SWOLE
• TABOR; TAU; THEA; TO BED; TORII; TOTES; TREY; TRY
• UNIX; USMA; USO; UTNE; UVEA
• WIZ
• XFL
• ZEBU

Languages

• 12 Words With Very Different Meanings in the U.S. and the UK MF; 7/24/2020
• 9 Words That Were Borrowed From One Language, Transformed, Then Borrowed Back MF; 10/23/2019
• 14 Latin Words and Phrases for the Modern World
  new Latin words/phrases for decidedly modern things; MF; 8/28/2019
• NYT crossword editor apologizes after derogatory Hispanic slur appears in puzzle BEANER; 1/3/2019
• The Future of Crosswords: Multilingual Grids? PN; 8/16/2018
• 15 French Words That Will Raise Your Crossword Game ÉTAT, ÉTÉ; NYT; 5/30/2018
• 10 Spanish Words That Will Raise Your Crossword Game
  do you know your ESA from your ESTA? NYT; 2/15/2018
• 10 Scifi Curse Words for All Occasions
  frak, petaQ, grozit; frell, cruk, shazbot, sithspit, kriff, gorram, smeg; Giz; 2/28/2017
• Puzzles Schmuzzles Yiddish & Hebrew; 9/2011
• Espanol para los crucigramistas 1/2009
• HSW 2: Pay Attention to Foreign-language Answers

OREO

• crossword puzzle clues with the answer OREO: xwordinfo, crosswordtracker, wordplays
• see: 1912: OREO history / articles, beer & oreos
• Oreos and the Art of Crossword Puzzle Construction
  an investigation into 2020's most notorious crossword puzzle clue, told at three levels of complexity; 1/2021
• Why Does Oreo Keep Releasing New Flavors? Oreo has introduced 65 flavors since
  Birthday Cake Oreo in 2012; the new flavors function as advertisements for the original; NYT; 12/16/2020
• Lady Gaga Is Getting Her Own Oreos 12/2/2020
• Mustard on Oreos? A Crossword Clue Is Causing Confusion Among Cookie Fans
  USA Today (2/12); 2/14/2020
• What Is an Oreo Cookie's "Creme" Filling Made Of? MF; 3/12/2019
• 8 Discontinued Oreo Flavors MF; 3/6/2019
• Winter Is Coming -- and So Are Game of Thrones Oreo Cookies MF; 2/26/2019
• Oreo Has Introduced Wasabi and Hot Chicken Wing Flavored Cookies in China; 9/3/2018
• LA Times: Me Eat Cookie 10/6/2016
• LA Times: Got Milk? 7/8/2012
• Reagle: Crunch Time latcrossword, crosswordkathy 97th anniversary, featuring OREO; 12/19/2010
• Puzzle Makers Exchange Cross Words 'oreo war': old school constructors insist that if the puzzle
  demands the four letters o-r-e-o, then the clue should be 'mountain: prefix,' as in 'oreortyx,'
  or mountain quail. The new wave believes that if ''Oreo'' is the answer, 'cookie' should be
  the clue; NYT; 8/10/1988

Crosswordese

• Puzzle Nation various posts (most below)
• Poems with crosswordese: An ODE to Crosswordese;
  Crosswordese: Now with Rhythm!
• Crosswordese Selfies
• vocabulary.com: crosswordese
• A Day in the Life of a Crossword Editor Reddit; 12/1/2022
• The Hunt for New Crossword-Friendly Vocabulary PN; 9/4/2020
• The Fun Side of Crosswordese PN; 7/28/2020
• Let’s Play Crossword Bingo! PN; 7/2/2020
• An Ode to Crosswordese puzzle & ode; PN; 10/25/2019
• How the Tiny Village of Aa Became Estonia's New 'National Capital.' Sort of.
  A puzzle magazine called Nuti asked readers to vote on their favorite crosswordese; NYT; 9/29/2019
• 13 Words That Will Help You Solve Almost Any Crossword Puzzle
  EPEE, AGA, OREO, AREA, ERIE, ALEE, ELAND, OLEO, EIDER, ETUI, ENO, SMEE, OTT; RD; 1/10/2019
• 10 Common Crossword Puzzle Words You Should Know 12/25/2017
• How Well Do You Know Your 'Crosswordese?' quiz; NYT; 11/28/2017
• Crosswordese: Now with Rhythm! PN; 7/25/2017
• Crossing swords with crosswordese! PN; 7/28/2015
• Puzzle #101 -- Introduction to Crosswordese .pdf, .puz; 8/15/2014
• A 12-letter word for puzzly frustration
  "words that crop up a lot but are otherwise pretty useless;" 8/20/2013
• Crosswordese: pre-Shortz 10/15/2012
• The Shortz List of Crossword Celebrities URI; YMA; OTT; ESAI; ERTE; RAE; ERLE; Slate; 1/27/2012
• Crosswordese 101 Summary LA Times; 2/20/2011
• Playing in the Word Farm 11/3/2010
• The Myth of Crosswordese 3/20/2010
• Farewell, etui the changing language of crosswords; 2/15/2009
• My Crossword Life 3/3/2008
• Crosswordese Poetry 2/10/2008
• NYT CrossWorld Pantheon: A Hall of Fame for Crossword fill 11/22/2006
• Across or Down... Alito Fills the Bill Elena (Kagan) also popular; 10/2005
• Talking Crosswordese Blues 3/13/2005
• Partying with all the gnus that fit Varble; [.pdf]; MT
• Puzzlers Exchanging A Lot Of Cross Words Maleska vs. 'new wave' constructors; 3/20/1988
• Wikipedia: frequently used examples
• about.com; visualthesaurus
• Word Buff: A Crash Course In Crosswordese; 30 Crossword Answers You MUST Learn
• Crosswordese: word-of-the-day
• Crosswordese Quizzes, Flashcards: =70; =100; =116; =54; =24; =116