Puzzles Articles

Cheat Sheet / Updated 03-25-2022

Discover how solving crossword puzzles can benefit your senior brain by strengthening memory, mind function, and more. Next, dive into crossword-puzzle tips for seniors that can enhance your efficiency and enjoyment and hone your puzzle-solving skills.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-24-2022

Working crossword puzzles is great exercise for your brain — and great fun as well. To maximize your enjoyment and your mental workout, take some time to learn basic tips for solving crossword clues. Then, create the right environment so you can focus, move at your own pace, and give the crossword your best effort. And when you’re ready for a different type of challenge, consider working other types of puzzles as well. Your synapses will thank you!

Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-22-2022

Unlike traditional word or number puzzles, picture puzzles challenge you to discover differences or similarities between pictures or pieces of a picture. By following a few strategies (and they’re not just mental!), you can solid solve a puzzle and boost your brain power at the same time.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 09-27-2021

Cryptography offers you the chance to solve all kinds of puzzles. Use basic solving techniques to crack substitution ciphers, including the Freemason’s cipher. Encode your own messages, decode incoming communications, and have fun trying to figure out conspiracies, codes, and cryptograms!

Article / Updated 09-27-2021

These five cryptograms are all letter substitution ciphers, at an Easy level. Each letter of the alphabet is substituted by another letter, and no letter is encrypted as itself. To start out on these puzzles, look for the most frequent letter in each cryptogram — you’ll find it’s almost always E. Single-letter words will be A or I. The words THE, AND, and THAT are the most commonly seen short words in English. Double letters and apostrophes are also helpful when cracking ciphers. Easy Letter Cipher 1. Crack this cipher to reveal an interesting observation by J. Edgar Hoover, the first Director of the FBI. XURXE-XSIINBZ, N EOCS PKRBQ, NF XES ASG XK USFDKBFNMIS JNXNYSBFEND. XES XEKRFOBQF KP JUNHNBOIF N EOCS FSSB NB PKUXG GSOUF KP IOT SBPKUJSHSBX EOCS EOQ KBS XENBZ NB JKHHKB: SCSUG FNBZIS KBS TOF O INOU. Easy Letter Cipher 1 Answer Easy Letter Cipher 2.This cryptogram contains an old definition of Freemasonry: HX YPW FNNR WPHE, TAM CNUU ALNM P VNRXGMZ, XYPX TMNNBPWARMZ HW P WZWXNB AT BAMPUHXZ, LNHUNE HR PUUNJAMZ PRE HUUGWXMPXNE FZ WZBFAUW. Easy Letter Cipher 2 Answer Easy Letter Cipher 3. Look for repeating letter patterns to crack this cipher. EOI ETQDGPI ZHEO ORKHLV RL QBIL CHLN, QM JQDTYI, HY EORE BIQBPI ZHPP HLYHYE QL JQCHLV RPQLV RLN ETFHLV EQ BDE EOHLVY HL HE. EITTF BTREJOIEE Easy Letter Cipher 3 Answer Easy Letter Cipher 4. Discover what one American president thought about secret societies. SDD AGRNGI, ZSIF-MZWCX, QZDKIKRSD QSNIKGA SNG XSCYGNZWA IZ SCL CSIKZC, CZ HSIIGN FZE QWNG ZN FZE QSINKZIKR IFG HZIKOGA SCX QNKCRKQDGA EFKRF JKNAI MNKCY IFGH IZYGIFGN. QNGAKXGCI WDLAAGA A YNSCI Easy Letter Cipher 4 Answer Easy Letter Cipher 5. This was said by Dr. George Oliver (1782-1867), prominent English Freemason. AV AL T QWVS AJRWGKOJV XJ OHOZS GTLXJ VX LWIIXZV T KZXVPOZ'L RPTZTRVOZ AJ PAL TKLOJRO OYWTNNS TL VPXWDP PO EOZO IZOLOJV; JXV VX ZOHANO PAG KOPAJQ PAL KTRU JXZ LWMMOZ AV VX KO QXJO KS XVPOZL, EAVPXWV WLAJD OHOZS JOROLLTZS TVVOGIV VX IZOHOJV AV. Easy Letter Cipher 5 Answer Easy Letter Cipher 1 Answer U = R Easy Letter Cipher 2 Answer Z = Y Easy Letter Cipher 3 Answer P = L Easy Letter Cipher 4 Answer R = C Easy Letter Cipher 5 Answer Q = D

Cheat Sheet / Updated 08-31-2021

Word searches are fun once you get the low-down on how to solve them. They also bring benefits you may not realize and can play an important role in keeping you mentally fit. After you've mastered solving word searches, you can stretch your brain another way and try composing your own.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 08-30-2021

People love to do puzzles of all kinds, but cryptic crosswords are often seen as a challenging form of entertainment — delight may be rare to anyone new to cryptics! This cheat sheet covers the basics of how to start on a cryptic crossword grid, and you’ll also find some handy reference lists and explanations to spotting certain clue devices.

Article / Updated 06-19-2017

Solving crossword puzzles is more satisfying if you know key tips and strategies. Attain expertise with crossword puzzles by using these techniques. You'll be able to tackle any puzzle grid comfortably and efficiently, and increase your enjoyment in the process. Make sure you’re seated comfortably in a well-lit area. It can take an hour or more to solve certain crosswords, so make sure you’re seated comfortably at a table or desk, or in your favorite chair. You don’t want your joints to start aching over a crossword puzzle! Work in pencil. It’s okay to guess and make mistakes. Remember to keep your eraser handy! Stick with puzzles that are easy on the eyes. Even the most fine-tuned eyeglass prescription can only do so much to reduce the strain of looking at a small-print puzzle for a long period of time. Working on large-print puzzles helps keep your eyes from getting strained, and reduces your chance of getting a headache! Start with the fill-in-the-blank clues. They’re often the easiest to solve, and they help get your thought processes ready for more difficult solutions. Focus on small (three- to five-letter) word entries. There just aren’t as many of these short words to choose from in the English language. As you work more puzzles, you’ll get familiar with the short words that are used in puzzles over and over, and it will become another game for you find these in the puzzles and fill them in. The more brain stimulation, the better! Check off each clue that you solve. It’ll give you a sense of accomplishment and help you remember what you’ve already done so you can focus on the clues that remain. Work on more than one puzzle at a time. If one puzzle becomes too frustrating, move away it to another, more satisfying one. You can go back to the frustrating puzzle at a later time, and with a fresher perspective. Keep the puzzle’s theme in mind. Many crossword puzzles have themes, and have titles that hint at those themes. Keeping the theme in mind will help you focus on information associated with the theme, and help you remember clues for solving the puzzle. Another memory booster! Compile a trusty set of resources. Resources can help you find answers to puzzles, and open your mind to fresh information you can use later. Don’t be ashamed to use them. The object is to have fun and stimulate your brain. Keep in mind that those resources can include friends and family members. Solving crosswords doesn’t have to be a solitary activity. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and get solutions from other people. Getting help from others makes solving crossword puzzles more fun, and can help your mind stay sharp. Write out your partial solutions if you get stuck. If you’re trying to solve a Down clue, use that pencil to write out the letters you already know in a horizontal line. Chances are, you’ll be able to better visualize words when they’re written horizontally. This will help jog your memory so you can come up with the solution. Practice, practice, practice! To build muscle and stay in shape, you have to exercise frequently. The same is true of building your puzzling muscle — your brain. Make time for crosswords several times a week if you can.

Article / Updated 06-06-2016

In this cryptogram, influential Freemason Albert Pike expresses his true feelings on slavery, in several statements on the subject gathered here as a single paragraph:

Article / Updated 04-26-2016

You don’t have to be a crossword puzzle expert to enjoy solving easy puzzles or even more challenging ones. But when you sit down to work on any crossword grid, you’ll likely enjoy yourself more if you keep these simple tips in mind: Work in pencil. By working in pencil, you give yourself permission to guess and make mistakes. And mistakes make you a better puzzler in the end. Be loyal to a puzzle editor. When you’re first starting to work crosswords, stick with puzzles you find in a single source (one book or one newspaper, for example). Doing so allows you to become familiar with what to expect from the puzzle editor (the person who compiles and styles each puzzle). This familiarity can simplify puzzles for you. Think about theme. If a puzzle has a title, it indicates the theme of that puzzle. Usually the theme relates only to some of the clues — usually those that require longer answers — not all of them. Fill in the blanks first. The fill-in-the-blank clues often are the easiest type to solve, so you can get a good start on your grid by cracking these first. Focus on small (three-to-five-letter) word entries. Puzzle constructors just don’t have as many of these short words to choose from in the English language. So, as you work more puzzles, you’ll get familiar with the short words that constructors and editors use over and over. By filling these in early on, you may break open your grid and be able to solve a few of your more difficult clues. Visit Crosswordese.com. At this site, you’ll be introduced to short, often unusual English words that puzzle constructors love. Get trivial. Because they’re usually fairly straightforward and don’t involve wordplay, trivia clues also may be fairly easy to answer. Plus, you can locate trivia answers in outside resources when you’re stuck. Eye abbreviations and acronyms. If an answer needs to be an abbreviation or acronym, the clue tells you so. If you see “Abbr.” in the clue, or if the clue itself is abbreviated or an acronym, that’s your tip. Again, these smaller clues can help you answer the more complex surrounding clues you may be stumped by. Go global. If an answer is in a foreign language, the clue informs you by specifying the language or using words from that language. Pick out plurals. When you’re stuck, look for clues written in a plural form. Using a pencil, write an S at the end of each grid entry that you know must be a plural word or phrase. Often (though not always), the S will be correct. Tap outside resources. Most people can’t work a crossword puzzle without a little outside help. But don’t just type a clue into an online search engine; be picky about the resources you use. Keep a quality dictionary, thesaurus, quotation resource, atlas, and almanac on hand. You can use hard copies of these sources, or you can choose their electronic forms. Ask for help. Make a crossword a social experience by asking help from friends or family members when you’re stuck. Check off each clue that you solve. Marking your progress gives you a sense of accomplishment and helps you focus on those clues that remain. Don’t stress. If a puzzle stops being fun and starts feeling like work, simply walk away and come back to it a little later. The answers may come more easily after you take a breather.