Put different word parts together to solve charade cryptic clues. The clues include cryptic references to the word parts and instructions for putting them together. 

The simplest references to word parts are abbreviations but there are hundreds of possibilities. Use this list to identify familiar and obscure abbreviations in cryptic crosswords.

Related content
How to solve cryptic charade clues, part 2 - 1001 Cryptic short words
How to solve cryptic charade clues, part 3 - 1001 Cryptic letters

A

aberdeenshire - abd
able seaman - ab (able-bodied)
academician - a
account - ac
accountant - ac, aca, ca
ace - a 
acre - a 
across - a 
adult - a 
advertisement - ad
Afghanistan - af, afg 
after date - ad 
aircraftsman - ac 
Alabama - al 
Alaska - ak 
Albania - al, alb 
Alderney - ald 
Algeria - dz, dza

alternating current - ac 
alto - a 
aluminium - al (elemental symbol)
America - am, amer 
ampere - a 
Anglesey - agy 
Anglo-Saxon - as 
Angola - ago, ao 
angstrom - a 
Angus - ans 
annual meeting - agm 
answer - a, ans 
Antartica - aq, ata 
Antrim - ant 
arab - ar 
are - a 
area - a 
Argentina - ar, arg 

argon - ar (elemental symbol)
Argyllshire - arl 
Arizona - az 
Arkansas - ar 
Armagh - arm 
Armenia - am, arm 
army regulation - ar 
arrival - ar, arr 
arsenic - as (elemental symbol)
artificial intelligence - ai 
associate - a 
Australia - au, aus 
Austria - at, aut 
average - ave, aver 
Avon - avn 
Ayrshire - ayr 
Azerbaijan - az, aze

B

bachelor - b 
Bachelor of Arts - ba 
Bahamas - bhs, bs 
Bahrain - bh, bhr 
band of citizens - cb 
Banffshire - ban 
Bangladesh - bd, bgd 
Barbados - bb, brb 
barium - ba (elemental symbol)
baron - b 
bass - b 
Bedfordshire - bdf 
before Christ - bc 
behind - b 
Belarus - blr, by 
Belgium - be, bel 
Belize - blz, bz 
Benin - ben, bj 

Berkshire - brk 
Bermuda - bm, bmu 
Berwickshire - bew 
Bhutan - bt, btn 
billion - b
birth - b 
bishop - b, bp 
black - b 
bloody - b 
Bolivia - bo, bol 
book - b 
books - bb 
Borders - bor 
born - b 
Botswana - bw, bwa 
bowled - b 
boy - b 
​branch -br

​​Brazil - br, bra 
breadth - b 
Breconshire - bre 
bridge - br 
brig - br 
Britain - b, br 
British Museum - bm 
British Rail - br 
brother - br, bro 
Brunei - bn, brn 
Buckinghamshire - bkm 
Bulgaria - bg, bgr
Burkina Faso - bf, bfa 
Burundi - bdi, bi 
business - biz 
Bute - but

C

Caernarvonshire - cae 
Caithness - cai 
calcium - ca (elemental symbol)
California - ca 
Cambodia - kh, khm 
Cambridgeshire - cam 
Cameroon - cm, cmr 
Canada - ca, can 
cape - c 
Cape Verde - cpv, cv 
carat - car, ct 
carbon - c (elemental symbol)
carbon monoxide - co 
Cardiganshire - cgn 
care of - co 
Carlow - car 
Carmarthenshire - cmn 
caught - c 
Cavan - cav 
Cayman Islands - cym, ky 
cedi - c (Ghana currency)
Celsius - c 
cent - c 
centigrade - c 
centime - c, ct 
central - cen 
Central African Republic - caf, cf 

central heating - ch 
century - c 
Chad - tcd, td 
champion - ch 
Channel Islands - ci 
chapter - c, ch 
Cheshire - chs 
chief - ch 
child - ch 
Chile - chl, cl 
China - chn, cn 
chlorine - cl (elemental symbol)
church - ch 
Church of England - ce 
circa - c 
citation - cit 
Civil Service - cs 
Clackmannanshire - clk
Clare - cla 
clubs - c (card suit)
Clwyd - cwd 
cobalt - co (elemental symbol)
​cocaine - c
cold - c 
college - c 
Colombia - co, col
Colorado - co 

commander - com 
commanding officer - co 
Comoros - com, km
Companion of Honour - ch 
company - co 
Connecticut - ct 
conservative - c, con 
contralto - c 
copper - cu (elemental symbol)
copyright - c 
Cork - cor 
Cornwall - con 
Costa Rica - cr, cri 
coulomb - c 
county - co 
county council - cc 
court - ct 
credit - cr 
Croatia - hr, hrv (Hrvatska) 
crown - cr 
Cuba - cu, cub 
Cumberland - cul 
Cumbria - cma 
Cyprus - cy, cyp 
Czech Republic - cz, cze

D

damn - d 
date - d 
daughter - d 
day - d 
days - dd 
death - d 
debit - dr 
deci - d (prefix)
degree - deg 
Delaware - de 
Democrat - d 
Denbighshire - den 
Denmark - dk, dnk 
density - d 
depth - d 

Derbyshire - dby 
detective - det 
deuterium - d 
Deutsch - d 
Devon - dev 
diameter - d 
diamonds - d (card suit)
died - d 
director - d 
director general - dg 
district attorney - da 
ditto - do 
Djibouti - dj, dji 
doctor - d, dr 
doctor of divinity - dd 

Dominica - dm, dma 
Dominican Republic - do, dom
Donegal - don 
Dorset - dor 
down - d 
Down - dow 
drawer - dr 
Dublin - dub 
duke - d 
Dumfries & Galloway - dgy 
Dumfries-shire - dfs 
Dunbartonshire - dnb 
Durham - dur 
Dyfed - dfd

E

each - ea 
earth - e 
East Lothian - eln 
East Riding of Yorkshire - ery 
East Sussex - sxe 
eastern - e 
ecstasy - e
Ecuador - ec, ecu 

editor - ed 
Egypt - eg, egy 
El Salvador - slv, sv 
energy - e
England - e, eng 
Equatorial Guinea - gnq, gq 
Eritrea - er, eri 
Essex - ess 

estimated time of arrival - eta 
​Estonia - ee, est 
Ethiopia - et, eth 
European - e 
evening - eve 
ever - eer, er 
extraterrestrial - et

F

fahrenheit - f 
farad - f 
farthing - f 
father - fr 
fathom - f 
feet - ft 
fellow - f 
female - f 
feminine - f 
Fermanagh - fer 
Fife - fif 
Fiji - fj, fji 
filly - f 

Finland - fi, fin 
Flintshire - fln 
Florida - fl 
fluid - fl 
fluorine - f (elemental symbol)
folio - f, fo, fol 
folios - ff 
following - f 
followings - ff 
foot - ft 
for example - e.g. (example gratia) 
force - f 
forced - fz 

foreign office - fo 
forte - f
fortissimo - ff 
franc - fr 
France - fr, fra 
free of charge - foc 
free on board - fob 
free on rail - for 
frequency - f 
friar - fr 
Friday - f, fri

G

Gabon - ga, gab 
Galway - gal 
Gambia - gm, gmb 
gauss - g 
general - gen 
general service - gs 
general staff - gs 
genesis - gen 
Georgia - ga, ge, geo 
Germany - de, deu 
Ghana - gh, gha 
Gibraltar - gi, gib 
girl - g 

Glamorgan - gla 
Gloucestershire - gls 
gold - au (elemental symbol)
good - g 
government - g
government issue - gi 
gram - g 
Grampian - gmp 
grand - g 
gravity - g 
great - gt 
Great Britain - gb 
Greater Manchester - gtm 

Greece - gr, grc 
​Greenland - gl, grl 
Grenada - gd, grd 
Guatemala - gt, gtm 
Guernsey - gsy 
guinea - g 
Guinea - gin, gn 
Guinea-Bissau - gnb,  gw 
gulf - g 
gunmen - grs (gunners)
Guyana - guy, gy 
Gwent - gnt 
Gwynedd - gwn

H

Haiti - ht, hti 
Hampshire - ham 
hand - h 
hard - h 
Hawaii - hi 
headquarters - hq 
hearts - h (card suit)
hectare - ha 
height - h 
helium - he (elemental symbol)
Her Majesty - hm 

Hereford & Worcester - hwr 
Herefordshire - hef 
heroin - h
Hertfordshire - hrt 
high tension - ht 
Highland - hld 
hire purchase - hp 
His Excellency - he 
His Majesty - hm 
holy see - va (Vatican)
home office - ho 

​Honduras - hn, hnd 
Hong Kong - hk, hkg 
hospital - h 
hot - h 
hour - h, hr 
Humberside - hum 
Hungary - hu, hun 
Huntingdonshire - hun 
husband - h 
hydrogen - h (elemental symbol)

I

I am - im 
I had - id 
I have - ive 
I shall - ill 
I will - ill 
I would - id 
Iceland - is, isl 
Idaho - id 
identification - id 
Illinois - il 

in charge - ic 
​in command - ic 
India - i, in, ind 
Indiana - in 
Indonesia - id, idn 
institute - i 
Inverness-shire - inv 
iodine - i (elemental symbol)
Iowa - ia 
Iran - ir, irn

Iraq - iq, irq 
Ireland - ie, irl 
​Irish - i 
iron - fe (elemental symbol)
island - i, is 
Isle of Man - im, iom 
Isle of Wight - iow 
Israel - il, isr 
Italy - it, ita 
Ivory Coast - ci, civ (Cote D'Ivoire)

J

Jamaica - jam,  jm 
Japan - jp, jpn 

Jordan - jo, jor 
joule - j 

judge - j
justice - j

K

Kansas - ks 
Kazakhstan - kaz, kz 
Kent - ken 
Kentucky - ky 
Kenya - ke, ken 
Kerry - ker 
kick off - ko 

Kildare - kid
Kilkenny - kik 
kilo - k 
kilometre - km 
Kincardineshire - kcd 
king - k 
Kinross-shire - krs 

Kiribati - ki, kir 
Kirkcudbrightshire - kkd 
knight - k, kt 
knockout - ko 
krypton - kr (elemental symbol)
Kuwait - kw, kwt 
Kyrgyzstan - kg, kgz

L

laboratory - lab 
labour - l, lab 
lake - l 
Lanarkshire - lks 
Lancashire - lan 
Laois - lex 
large - l 
latin - l 
latitude - l 
Latvia - lv, lva 
lead - pb (elemental symbol)
league - l 
learner - l 
Lebanon - lb, lbn 
left - l 

left hand - lh 
Leicestershire - lei 
Leitrim - let 
length - l 
Lesotho - ls, lso 
liberal - l, lib 
Liberia - lbr, lr 
Libya - lby, ly 
licentiate - l 
Liechtenstein - li, lie 
Lieutenant - lt 
Limerick - lim 
Lincolnshire - lin 
line - l 
lira - l 

lithium - li (elemental symbol)
Lithuania - lt, ltu 
litre - l 
Londonderry - ldy 
long playing - lp 
Longford - log 
Los Angeles - la 
Lothian - ltn 
Louisiana - la 
Louth - lou 
lumen - l 
luminance - l 
Luxembourg - lu, lux

M

Macau - mac, mo 
Macedonia - mk, mkd 
Madagascar - mdg, mg 
magnesium - mg (elemental symbol)
maiden - m 
Maine - me 
Malawi - mw, mwi 
Malaysia - my, mys 
Maldives - mdv, mv 
Mali - ml, mli 
Malta - mlt, mt 
man - m 
manuscript - ms 
manuscripts - mss 
mare - m 
mark of the beast - mb 
marriage - m 
Marshall Islands - mh, mhl 
Martinique - mq, mtq 
Maryland - md 
masculine - m 
mass - m 
Massachusetts - ma, mass 
master - m 

master of arts - ma 
master of ceremonies - mc 
Mauritania - mr, mrt 
Mauritius - mu, mus 
Mayo - may 
Meath - mea 
medium - m 
member - m 
member of parliament - mp 
merchant navy - mn 
mercury - hg (elemental symbol)
Merionethshire - mer 
Merseyside - msy 
metre - m 
Mexico - mex, mx 
Michigan - mi 
Micronesia - fm, fsm (Federated States) 
Mid Glamorgan - mgm 
Midlothian - mln 
mile - m 
military police - mp 
Minnesota - mn 
minute - m, min 
Mississippi -  miss, ms 

Missouri - mo 
mister - mr 
Moldova - md, mda 
moment - mo 
Monaco - mc, mco 
Monaghan - mog 
Monday - m, mon 
money - m 
Mongolia - mn, mng 
Monmouthshire - mon 
monsieur - m 
Montana - mt 
Montenegro - me, mne 
Montgomeryshire - mgy 
month - m, mo 
months - mos 
moon - m 
Morayshire - mor 
Morocco - ma, mar 
mountain - mt 
mounted police - mp 
Mozambique - moz, mz 
Myanmar - mm, mmr

N

Nairn - nai 
name - n 
name unknown - nu 
Namibia - na, nam 
national - n 
Nauru - nr, nru 
navy - n 
Nebraska - ne 
neon - ne (elemental symbol)
Nepal - np, npl 
Netherlands - nl, nld 
neutral - n 
Nevada - nv 
new - n 
New Hampshire - nh 
New Jersey - nj 
New Mexico - nm 
New Orleans - no 

New Testament - nt 
New York - ny 
New Zealand - nz, nzl 
Nicaragua - ni, nic 
nickel - ni (elemental symbol)
Niger - ne, ner 
Nigeria - ng, nga 
nitrogen - n (elemental symbol)
no - n 
no ball - nb 
no date - nd 
no good - ng 
non-commissioned officer - nco 
noon - n 
Norfolk - nfk 
Norfolk Island - nf, nfk 
North America - na 
North Carolina - nc 

North Dakota - nd 
North Pole - np 
North Riding of Yorkshire - nry 
North Yorkshire - nyk 
north-east - ne 
north-west - nw 
Northamptonshire - nth 
northern - n 
Northern Ireland - ni 
Northern Mariana Islands - mnp, mp 
Northern Territory - nt 
Northumberland - nbl 
Norway - no, nor 
not dated - nd 
not out - no 
Nottinghamshire - ntt 
​noun - n
number - no

O

occupational therapy - ot 
Offaly - off 
officer commanding - oc 
officer in charge - oic 
Ohio - oh 
okay - ok 
Oklahoma - ok 
old - o 
old boy - ob 
old English - oe 
old Etonian - oe 

Old Testament - ot 
Oman - om, omn 
omicron - o (Greek alphabet)
open university - ou 
operating system - os 
operation - op 
opposite - op 
opus - op 
ordinary seaman - os 
Oregon - or
Orkney - oki 

ounce - oz
out of print - op 
outsize - os 
over - o 
over the top - ott 
overdose - od 
overseas - os 
Oxfordshire - oxf 
oxygen - o (elemental symbol)

P

page - p 
pages - pp 
pair - pr 
Pakistan - pak, pk 
Palau - plw, pw 
Palestine - ps, pse 
Panama - pa, pan 
Papua New Guinea - pg, png 
Paraguay - pry, py 
park - p 
pawn - p 
Peebles-shire - pee 
Pembrokeshire - pem 
Pennsylvania - pa 
person - per 

Perth - per 
Peru - pe, per 
Philippines - ph, phl 
phosphorus - p (elemental symbol)
physical education - pe 
physical training - pt 
pianissimo - pp (music)
piano - p (music)
pint - p, pt 
Pitcairn - pcn, pn 
platinum - pt (elemental symbol)
point - pt 
Poland - pl, pol 
Portugal - prt, pt 
post office - po 

postscript - ps 
potassium - k (elemental symbol)
pound - l, lb 
power - p 
Powys - pow 
président - p, pr, pres 
pressure - p 
priest - pr 
prime minister - pm 
prince - p, pr 
public relations - pr 
public relations officer - pro 
Puerto Rico - pr, pri

Q

Qatar - qa, qat 
quality - q 
quart - qt, qu 

Quebec - q (phonetic alphabet) 
queen - q, qu 
Queensland - qld 

query - q 
question - q, qu 
quiet - qt

R

radius - r 
Radnorshire - rad 
railway - br, rly, ry 
rand - r 
rare - r 
recipe - r
rector - r 
red - r 
religious education - re 
Renfrewshire - rfw 
representative - rep
republican - r 
resident magistrate - rm 

resistance - r 
Reunion - re, reu 
Rhode Island - ri 
right - r 
right hand - rh 
right reverend - rr 
river - r 
road - r, rd 
Rolls Royce - rr 
Roman Catholic - rc 
Romania - ro, rou 
rook - r 
Roscommon - ros 

Ross and Cromarty - roc 
​Roxburghshire - rox 
royal - r 
royal academy - ra 
royal artillery - ra 
royal engineer - re 
royal marines - rm 
royal navy - rn 
rugby - ru (rugby union)
run - r 
Russian Federation - ru, rus 
Rutland - rut 
Rwanda - rw, rwa

S

sabbath - s 
saint - s, st 
Saint Lucia - lc, lca 
saints - ss, sts 
Samoa - ws, wsm 
San Marino - sm, smr 
Sark - srk 
Saturday - s, sat 
Saudi Arabia - sa, sau 
sea - s 
second - s, sec 
second hand - sh 
selenium - se (elemental symbol)
self-contained - sc 
Selkirkshire - sel 
Senegal - sen, sn 
senior - sr 
Serbia - rs, srb 
sergeant - sgt 
sex appeal - sa 
Seychelles - sc, syc 
Shetland - shi 
shilling - s 
Shropshire - sal 
Sierra Leone - sl, sle 
silicon - si (elemental symbol)

silver - ag (elemental symbol)
Singapore - sg, sgp 
sister - s, sis 
Sligo - sli 
Slovakia - sk, svk 
Slovenia - si, svn 
small - s 
society - s 
sodium - na (elemental symbol)
Solomon Islands - sb, slb
Somalia - so, som 
Somerset - som 
son - s 
soprano - s, sop 
south - s 
South Africa - za, zaf 
South America - sa 
South Carolina - sc 
South Dakota - sd 
South Glamorgan - sgm 
South Island - si 
south pole - sp 
South Sudan - ss, ssd
South Yorkshire - syk 
south-east - se 
south-west - sw 

southern - s 
spades - s (card suit)
Spain - es, esp 
square - s 
Sri Lanka - lk, lka 
Staffordshire - sts 
steamship - ss 
Stirlingshire - sti 
stone - st 
Strathclyde - std 
street - st 
substitute - sub 
Sudan - sd, sdn 
Suffolk - sfk 
sulphur - s (elemental symbol)
sun - s 
Sunday - s, sun 
Sunday school - ss 
Suriname - sr, sur
Surrey - sry 
Sussex - ssx 
Sutherland - sut 
Swaziland - swz, sz 
Sweden - se, swe 
Switzerland - ch, che 
Syria - sy, syr

T

Taiwan - tw, twn 
Tajikistan - tj, tjk 
Tanzania - tz, tza 
tax officer - to 
teetotal - tt 
temperature - t 
Tennessee - tn 
tenor - t 
Territorial Army - ta 
Texas - tx 
Thailand - th, tha 

them - em 
Thursday - t, thu 
time - t 
Timor-Leste - tl, tls 
tin - sn (elemental symbol)
Tipperary - tip 
titanium - ti (elemental symbol)
Togo - tg, tgo 
ton - t 
Tonga - to, ton 
tonne - t 

Trinidad and Tobago - tt, tto 
Troy - t 
Tuesday - t, tue 
tungsten - w (elemental symbol)
Tunisia - tn, tun 
Turkey - tr, tun 
Turkmenistan - tkm, tm 
Tuvalu - tuv, tv 
Tyrone - tyr

U

Uganda - ug, uga 
Ukraine - ua, ukr 
union - u 
united - u
United Arab Emirates - ae, are 

United Kingdom - gb, gbr, uk
United Nations - un 
United States - us, usa 
universal - u
university - u, uni 

uranium - u (elemental symbol)
​Uruguay - ury, uy 
Utah - ut 
Uzbekistan - uz, uzb 

V

vanadium - v (elemental symbol)
Vanuatu - vu, vut 
variance - var 
Vatican - v 
velocity - v 
Venezuela - ve, ven 

Vermont - vt 
versus - v, vs 
very - v 
very black - bb (pencils)
very hard - hh (pencils) 
victory - v 

vide - v 
Vietnam - vn, vnm 
Virginia - va 
viscount - vis 
volt - v 
volume - v, vol

W

Warwickshire - war 
Washington - wa 
Waterford - wat 
watt - w 
Wednesday - w, wed 
week - w 
weight - wt 
Welsh - w 
west - w 
West Glamorgan - wgm 
West Indies - wi 
West Lothian - wln 

West Midlands - wmd 
West Riding of Yorkshire - wry 
West Sussex - sxw 
West Virginia - wv 
West Yorkshire - wyk 
western - w 
Western Sahara - eh, esh 
Westmeath - wem 
Westmoreland - wes 
Wexford - wex 
whole numbers - w 
wicket - w 

​Wicklow - wic 
width - w 
wife - w 
Wigtownshire - wig 
Wiltshire - wil 
Wisconsin - wi 
with - w 
woman - w 
Worcestershire - wor 
Wyoming - wy

Y

yard - y 
year - y, yr 
Yemen - ye, yem 

yen - y 
yes - y 
Yorkshire - yks 

​young - y 
your - yr 
yttrium - y (elemental symbol)

Z

Zambia - zm, zmb 
zero - z 

Zimbabwe - zw, zwe 
zinc - zn (elemental symbol)

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