Answer or hint Voice & text Refine as you go

A smarter way through every crossword clue

Speak or type a clue, add the answer length and any letters you know, then choose a clear answer or guided hints that help you solve it yourself.

Available for iPhone, iPad, and Android.

Crossy clue entry screen showing answer length and known-letter refinement

Built for the moment you get stuck

More than a list of matching words

Crossy follows the clue’s meaning and gives you useful ways to keep moving, whether you want the solution now or one careful nudge at a time.

Answers with context

See the strongest match, its confidence, and a plain-language explanation of why it fits.

Hints that unfold gradually

Reveal the definition, wordplay, edge letters, and pattern step by step without spoiling the answer.

Refine without starting over

Add or lock in letters, ask for more answers, or request a different explanation as the grid develops.

Every solve, easy to revisit

Search your history, favorite useful answers, and keep track of confirmed solutions, hints, and progress.

Simple when the clue isn’t

How it works

Give Crossy the clue

Type it or say it naturally. Add the answer length and known letters whenever you have them.

Choose answer or hint

Go straight to the best match, or work through guided hints and keep the satisfaction of solving it yourself.

Refine and keep going

Lock in new letters, explore another answer, copy or favorite the result, then find it again in your history.

Two ways to get unstuck

See a complete clue go from question to useful next step

These original clues were tested in the app, so you can see how Answer and Hint modes work in practice.

Answer mode

Compare likely answers when more than one word fits

Clue: The beginning (5)
Top match: ONSET · Very likely
Alternatives: START and FIRST

A broad definition and five-letter enumeration do not identify one answer with certainty. Crossy ranks a top match, shows other possibilities, and lets you refine the search by adding or locking crossing letters. You can also ask for more answers or a different explanation.

Crossy answer screen showing ONSET as the top match for The beginning, with START and FIRST as other five-letter possibilities — A real Answer-mode result showing ranked alternatives and refinement controls.

Hint mode

Reveal the construction without revealing the answer

Clue: Mixed tone gives musical sound (4)
Definition: A musical sound.
Wordplay: Mix the letters of “tone”.
Edge letter: It begins with N.

The trailing “(4)” is recognized automatically. Crossy identifies the definition first, then the anagram instruction, while NOTE remains hidden until the solver asks for it.

Crossy guided hints showing the definition, wordplay, and first letter for an original cryptic clue — The third hint is visible; the answer is still concealed.

What Crossy considers

Meaning and grid evidence belong together

A letter pattern can narrow the field, but it cannot decide what the clue means. Crossy combines the complete clue with the enumeration and any crossing letters you trust.

Complete clue

Punctuation, tense, abbreviations, and words such as “mixed” or “back” can change how a clue should be read.

Answer shape

Single words, multiword answers, and hyphenated enumerations such as (5), (3, 5), and (4-4) are handled explicitly.

Known letters

Confirmed crossings sharpen the match. Uncertain positions stay blank so one guess does not rule out the right answer.

Human verification

Suggestions are evidence, not guarantees. Check grammar, crossings, theme, and - when solving a cryptic - every part of the wordplay.

Solver guides

Get better at the clues that slow you down

Practical techniques for finding an answer, reading cryptic wordplay, and making the most of the letters already in your grid.

Clue solving

Use a clue solver without losing the fun

Learn when to add the answer length, known letters, or a hint - and how to check that a suggested answer really fits.

Read the guide Cryptic clues

Separate the definition from the wordplay

Recognize common indicators, understand clue structure, and reveal only as much help as you need.

Read the guide Letter patterns

Turn crossing letters into sharper matches

Use answer length and partial patterns effectively without letting one uncertain letter derail the search.

Read the guide Clue types

Recognize what kind of clue you are facing

Definitions, fill-in-the-blanks, abbreviations, question marks, themes, and cryptic constructions each leave different signals.

Explore clue types Conventions

Read abbreviations and shortened-answer signals

Learn how “briefly,” compass points, titles, organisations, and other conventions shape short crossword answers.

Open the reference Troubleshooting

Find out why a plausible answer does not fit

Work through length, grammar, crossings, spelling, word breaks, themes, and cryptic parsing in a reliable order.

Diagnose the mismatch

Built and checked by the Crossy team

Explanations should help you verify an answer

Crossy is made by Ineptlyawesome for the moment a clue stops being enjoyable and starts feeling stuck. The app is designed to show its reasoning, accept new crossing letters, and keep the final decision with the solver.

Every example in these guides is original or deliberately generic, and the product examples are tested in the app. We do not republish clues or answer lists from daily crossword publishers.

How we create and review Crossy’s guides

A good answer should survive four checks

Meaning: it answers the clue that was actually written.
Shape: its letters and word breaks match the enumeration.
Grammar: tense, number, and part of speech agree.
Evidence: crossings - and cryptic wordplay where relevant - support it.

Frequently asked

Crossword help without an all-or-nothing reveal

Can Crossy help with cryptic clues?

Yes. Hint mode can reveal the likely definition, wordplay, an edge letter, a partial pattern, and finally the answer. Because indicator words depend on context, confirm that the full construction accounts for every letter.

Do I have to reveal the answer?

No. Choose Hint and stop as soon as you have enough information to continue. The answer stays concealed until the final stage or until you choose “I think I know it.”

How do I enter known letters?

Include the answer count at the end of the clue or set the length in Refine search. Enter only confirmed crossings in their exact positions and leave every unknown position blank.

What if the first suggestion is wrong?

Mark it No, identify whether the problem is length, a crossing conflict, or the explanation, then refine the clue or ask for more answers. Removing one doubtful letter is often more useful than adding another guess.

Can I speak a clue?

Yes. Crossy can record a spoken clue, turn it into text, and solve the transcription. You can review the recording before it is sent unless voice auto-submit is enabled in Settings.

Crossy 2.0

Everything you need to find the next word

From first clue to saved solution, Crossy keeps the process focused, flexible, and easy to follow.

Enter a crossword clue with answer length and known letters

View the top answer with confidence, explanation, and refinement options

Reveal guided crossword hints one step at a time

Speak a crossword clue for hands-free solving