Cryptic crossword reference lists > 1001 Cryptic short words
Letters and short words are the building blocks of cryptic charade clues. Short words could be English, foreign or archaic.
Related content How to solve cryptic charade clues, part 1 - 1001 Abbreviations How to solve cryptic charade clues, part 3 - 1001 Cryptic letters |
a French - un, une
a German - ein, eine a Scottish - ane able - can able seaman - salt, tar about - on, re acceptable - fine accompanied - and accomplishment - art account - tab acknowledge - own act - deed, do action - deed acting - on actor - ham, tree (Herbert Beerbohm) adage - saw admitting - am, iam, im advanced - lent affluent - rich after the style of - ala (French) again - bis (Latin), re |
age - eon, era
agent - spy agreement - aye, yes ahead - up airborne soldier - para allow - let alternative - or always - aye (archaic), eer, ever an - a anarchist - red ancient city - troy, ur and French - et anger - ire appeal - sue appearance - air application - use approach - near appropriate - bag approve - ok approval - nod approximately - some |
archer - tell (William)
arena - ring aristocrat - toff arrow - dart article - a, an, the as - qua (Latin) association - tie at home - in at university - up at work - in atmosphere - air attempt - go, shy, try attending - at Australia - oz author - pen available - on ave - Catholic petition average - mean, par away - out |
bad French - mal
badly - ill ball - orb band - ring bargain - go bark - tan, woof barrier - dam batting - in battle - loos, nile beam - ray beard - awn (botany) bears - has beat - lam, tan because - for bed - cot beer - ale before - ere beg - bum |
behalf - for
behind - late behold - lo benefitting - for biblical character - job, lot bikini - atoll bird - tit bit - ort (archaic) biting - icy bitter - ale blight - rot blood - gore, red bloody - red blue - sad bluetit - nun blunder - err boasting - am, iam, im bomb - egg |
bombast - rant
bone - rib book - tome born - nee bounder - cad boy - lad boyfriend - beau branch - arm Brazilian - para (state), wax bridge - span broadcast - on brown - bay, tan bug - flu bull - ox bum - beg business - ado, firm by - per |
Cambridgeshire city - ely
can - able, may, tin cape - hope, horn captain - old man capture - net car - ford, mini card - ace cardinal - red care - tend career - run cat - mog cattle - kine, neat, ox celebrity - star censor - edit cent - red certain - sure certainly - yes champion - ace charge - ion cheat - do cheated - did, had check - dam, rein cheeky - pert cheerful - up cheers - ta |
cherished - pet
chess master - tal (Mikhail) chess piece - pawn chewed - bit child - brat children - seed china - ming Chinese dynasty - han, ming circle - disc, ring city - ely clear - rid clock - see close - by, near, nigh, seal closely - hard cloth - rep coach - bus cocaine - snow Cockney girl - er cocktail - egg college - eton common sense - nous commotion - todo communist - red company - firm completely - all |
comprehensive - full
concerning - about, re condition - if conference - pear (fruit variety) conflict - war congress - sex conservative - blue continent - asia contrivance - art control - rein cook - do copy - ape corporation - tum (body) corruption - rot county - avon, down cover - hood, lid craft - art cream - best criminal charge - rap cry of delight - ole cry of triumph - io (Latin: io triumphe) cunning - art current - now curve - arc custom - use |
daily - char
daisy - cow dance - pas (French) dart - fly dear French - cher, chere debauchee - roue decay - rot decree - act deep - main, sea depart - go deposit - park desert - rat desert fighter - rat deserter - rat |
designer - dior
desire - urge dessert - fool (pudding) detectives - yard diamond - ice, rock difficulty - ado, er diocese - see dismissed - out display - air ditch - haha doctor - who doctrine - ism dog - cur, mutt, tail don't change it - stet (Latin) |
don't speak - sh
donkey - ass, ned dossier - file doubt - er, um drink - ale, beer, deep, gin, main, rum, sea, tea drinking - on drug - dope, grass, hash, hemp, ice, joint, junk, pot, weed, whack drug-addled - high drunk - sot dry - sec (French) duke - fist Dutch uncle - oom |
earn - gain
earth - gaia, ge (Greek goddess) east German - ost economist - mill (John Stuart) ecstatic - sent educational establishment - eton effective - bit Egyptian god - geb, nut, seth Egyptian goddess - isis elected - in employ - use employment - use enclosure - pen |
encore - bis (Latin twice)
encourage - egg energy - go engine - gin (gin trap) entertainment - fun ergo - so (Latin) err - sin error - miss essay - try ever - aye (archaic), eer every - each everybody - all everyone - all |
everything - all
evil - sin eviscerate - gut examination - oral, scan, test except - bar, save excited - up exist - be, is existing state - asis expert - able, ace, buff, dab, pro express - air extremely - so extremity - toe |
fabric - net
face - mug family - kin farewell - vale fashion - rage, ton (French) fashionable - in fashionable people - ton fast car - rod fastener - pin father - dad, pa, pop, time favoured - in favourite - pet fellow - don, gent, man female - hen, her, she female support - bra field - lea fighter - man filthy place - sty fine - scot (historic tax) finish - die, end firm - fast, set |
first person - Adam, I, me
fish - cod, eel, gar, ide, ling fit - apt flash - moon flower - lily, rose flowers - lei fly - dart fly larva - bot fool - ass foot - pay footballer - back, wing for - pro for each - per for every - per for example - say for instance - say former - old, once four feet - ell fragment - ort (archaic) free - rid French agreement - oui |
French art - es (French etre)
French article - la, le, les, un, une French flower - lis French king - roi French priest - abbe, cure French queen - reine French said - dit French say - dire French sea - mer French street - rue French wall - mur French who - qui French wine - vin friar - tuck (from Robin Hood) Friday - man (from Robinson Crusoe) fright - fear from French - de from the French - dela, du front - van fuss - ado |
Gaelic - erse
gain - earn gallery - tate gamble - bet garden - bed, eden, plot gathering - do generation - era German agreement - ja German article - das, der, die, ein, eine German with - mit |
gift - gab
girl - gal god - lar, pan, ra, sol god of agriculture - pan goddess - ate, hebe, isis goddess of mischief - ate gold - or (French) good man - dean goodbye - tata, vale gosh - wow |
gracious me - my
grain - rice grass - hay, rat Greek god - ares, eros, pan Greek goddess - ate, eos, hera greeting - ave, hi group - set growth - cyst gun - arm, bren, gat, sten |
hail - ave
hand - man happy - up hard water - ice hat - lid head - ness, pate heavenly body - star hedge - haw (hawthorn) hell - dis (Roman), pit hello - hi |
here in Rome - hic (Latin)
hesitation - er, erm, um high - up hill - tor hindrance - let Hindu god - agni, kama, rama, siva Hindu goddess - kali, maya, sita hip - in holiday - rest horse - arab, barb, cob, nag |
horse race - oaks
hostilities - war housekeeper - lar (Roman god) humbug - cant hundred - ton hundred thousand - lac, lakh (Indian) hunter - orion hurry - hare husband - man hush - sh |
I - a, an
I object - me I, being French - je I'm astonished - coo, wow if - an ignited - lit illness - flu immediately - now impertinance - gall important - big in court - up in favour of - for, pro |
in Paris, I - je
in the style of - ala increase - rise individual - i individuality - ka (Egyptian) infantry - foot inferior - less inferior horse - tit information - gen informer - nose inn - bar instinct - id |
intimate - hint
investigate - suss Irish house - dail irritation - itch is French - est island - ait, eyot, inch, man issue - son it - a Italian article - gli, i, il, la, le, lo Italian banker - po Italian flower - po |
Japanese play - noh
jazz fan - cat jelly - gel |
jerk - tic
jersey - neat (cow) joke - gag, pun |
journey - ride
joyful cry - io just - fair, only |
keen on - into
key - tab |
knew - wist
knight - sir |
label - tab, tag
ladder - run lady - dame, eve, she lake - loch large amount - lot, ton laugh - ha, haha, hehe lawman - earp (Wyatt) lawyers - bar leave - go, part leaves - tea left - port, went leftist - red |
leg - on, pin
legal document - deed length - ell lettuce - cos life symbol - ankh (Egyptian) like - as limb - arm, leg line - row lit - on little - wee little devil - imp little horse - gee, ned |
live - be
lives - is local - inn, pub loch - ness long time - age, eon look - la, lo, see, vide love - nil low - moo low down - gen lunchtime - one |
maestro - ace, pro
maiden - io, over main - deep, sea male - he, him man - he, isle manage - run managed - ran marketing - hype marsh - fen match - test, tie maths function - sine |
mature - age
means - end measure - ell, em, en member - arm, leg, toe men only - stag mine - pit minor- wee mischievous child - imp mischief-maker - ate (Greek goddess) miscreant - cad mole - spy |
moment - tick
money - cent monster - ness moon - io mother - dam, ma, mam, mum mountain - alp, tor mounted - up much-liked - in musical - cats, hair Muslim leader - aga |
near - nigh
neat - cow, kine, ox neat sound - moo news - word newspaper - sun no French - non no longer available - off no Scottish - na, nae |
nobleman - don
Norse god - odin, thor not at home - out not out - in not Scottish - na, nae not working - off note - do, fa, la, mi, re, si, sol, ti nothing - nil |
notice - see
novel - book, new, she number - pin number one - me number one French - un, une number one German - ein, eine number one Italian - una, uno |
obsessive - anal
of French - de of the French - dela, des, du of the Italian - del offense - sin offensive - tet (Vietnam War) office - den, loo old age - eld (archaic) old agreement - ay old city - troy, ur old fiddle - gue old goat - gate (archaic) old hat - out |
old injury - teen (archaic)
old king - offa (Mercia) old man - dad, pa, pop old paint - limn old Prime Minister - eden, pitt old ship - argo old thing - res (Latin) old way - via (Latin) old wine - tent (Spain) old woman - ma on - leg one - a, ace, an one French - un, une |
one German - ein, eine
one Scottish - ane opener - key operating - on opposing - anti organ - ear otherwise - or our man - he out there - odd outlaw - ban over - re own Scottish - ain ox - kine, neat |
painting - art
paradise - eden particle - ion partner - mate partnership - ns, we (game of bridge) party - do, rave pass on - die peak - alp peg - tee penitentiary - can people - men, race per - a perform - do performance - act performing - on period - age permit - let petition - sue piece - bit, king, pawn, rook |
pilot - ace
pin - leg pitcher - jug playing - in, on plot - bed plotters' street - cato (1820 conspiracy) Pluto - dis (Roman mythology) PM's address - ten (Downing Street) point - head, ness, tor pole - rod poor actor - ham poor horse - tit popular - in port - aden, left, rio portly - fat possesses - has pound - lam present - here, now pretty girl - dish |
prevent - bar
previously - then primate - ape primitive - ur printer's measure - dpi, em, en prison - can, hock, jug, nick, pen, quad, stir prisoner - con, lag pro - for problem - sum prohibition - ban prominence - tor promises to pay - ious propeller - oar provided - if punt - bet pure - net purpose - end put - set put on - don |
rage - ire
raised - up rating - rank ready - go, set reared - bred record - disc, log refer - cite refusal - no relationship - pi relative - aunt, ma, nan, pa, son remains - ash |
request - ask
resort - spa restore - fix restrain - dam retreat - den revolutionary - red riding - up ring - disc river - aire, alph, avon, cam, dee, ea, exe, fal, isis, nile, ob, ouse, po, tay, tees, ure rock - ore |
Roman god - mars
row - ado, tier rowing boat - four rubbish - rot, tat running water - ea rush - hare, tear rushed - tore Russian agreement - da Russian river - ob |
said French - dit
sailor - jack, salt, tar salt - jack, tar same - idem (Latin) sanctimonious - pi sash - obi save - bar saying - saw scab - rat Scandinavian - thor schedule - list school - eton, pod scoffed - ate scores - many Scottish chimney - lum sea - deep, main seaman - jack, salt, tar second hand - used second person - you secret - key see - lo, vide (Latin) self-confessed - am, iam, im service - mass setter - I, me sex appeal - it sheep - ewe, ram shipping company - line shoulder - bear sick - ill siege - troy sign of approval - nod, tick |
silence - mum, sh, tace
sin - err single - I, run skill - art skip - omit sloth - ai small - tiny, wee small measure - em, en smaller - less smuggle - run smuggled - ran snake - asp, boa so - ergo so long - tata socialist - red soldier - man soldiers - impi (Zulu) solve - do solver - you song - air, aria, lay soon - anon space - em, en Spanish agreement - si Spanish article - el, la, los spasm - tic speculator - bear, stag speed - rate spike - ear , lace spiritual - fey sports car - rod spring - spa |
spy - bond
stall - bay stalwart - rock standard - par, norm state - aver step - pas (French) still - yet stitch - sew stop - end, plug storm - gale stray - sin street - road strikebreaker - rat study - con, den, read style - elan stylus - pen submariner - nemo (movie) success - go, win sudden growth - boom suffering - ill sum - add sun - ra sun god - ra, sol superior - up support - bra, leg, prop, tee supposing - if surgeon - vet swan - cob, pen swear - aver swimmer - cod, eel, ling swindle - con |
tavern - inn, pub
tax - scot (archaic) tea - cha teacher - sir team - side tee - peg tend - care test - exam, oral thanks - ta that old - yt (archaic) that hurt - ow that Latin - id the old - ye the French - la, le, les the German - das, der, die the Italian - il, la the man - he the Spanish - el, la, los the thing - it |
the woman - her
theory - ism therefore - so third person - he, it, she this French - ce, cet this Latin - hic this person - me through - per thunder god - thor thus - sic, so time - age, eon times - by tinker - sly to be - am, are, is to the French - ala, au, aux toilet - bog tom - cat Tosti's song - tata (Paolo Tosti: Goodbye) tot - add |
traffic signal - go, stop, wait
train - aim tramp - hobo transport - bus, cab, car, cart, tram trap - gin travel - go tree - ash, elm, fir, teak, yew trendy - in tribe - dan, gad (Israel) trick - con triumphant cry - io trophy - cup trouble - ado, ail turned - off twenty-five pounds - pony (slang) twice - bis (Latin) twitching - tic two - bis (Latin) |
uncle - eme (archaic)
undergarment - bra underworld - dis (Roman mythology) undivided - one |
unfashionable - out
uniform - even unit - a, I united - one |
university teacher - don
untreated - raw unwell - ill |
very - so
very French - tres very Scottish - unco |
vessel - can, tin
vestment - alb veteran - old |
victory - win
voice - air |
wander - err
warning - cave (Latin), fore (golf) watch - spy water - wee way - path we object - us wearing - in weight - ton well - so whales - gam, pod what French - que |
when - as
whip - cat wife - rib, ux wine - asti, port, tent wing - ala (botany, zoology) witchcraft - obi (West Indies) with a tenant - let with it - in without - sine (Latin) wizard place - oz woman - eve, her, she women only - hen |
word - news
work - do, go, opus work unit - erg worker - hand, man working - on worn - on worried - ate worry - eat wreath - lei writer - nib, pen wrong - sin |
yearning - yen
yellow - or (French) yes - ay yes French - oui yes German - ja |
yes Italian - si
yes Russian - da yes Spanish - si you - thou you and I - we |
you and me - us
you old - ye young sheep - teg your - thy yours truly - I |