crossword
noun/ˈkɹɒswɜː(ɹ)d/
Etymology From cross + word. Various word puzzles referred to as "crosswords" date back to the 1860s. The modern crossword puzzle was invented in 1913 by Arthur Wynne, who coined the name word-cross – crossword first appeared a few weeks later as a typographical error or deliberate transposition.
1
Games A word puzzle in which interlocking words are entered usually horizontally and vertically into a grid based on clues given for each word.
2
Broadly, Informal The grid of such a puzzle.
- HOW TO ENTER::Fill in the crossword and send it to CROSSWORD No.54, DRUM, 176 Main Street, Johannesburg1957, Drum: A magazine of Africa for Africa, page 72:
- I sat on the bed and began to fill in the crossword.1962, Juan Garcia Hortelano, Summer Storm, page 175:
4 more examples
- All you have to do is fill in the crossword on this page and write your name and address on the coupon in Block Capitals (those written in longhand will not qualify).1967, Pigeon Racing News and Gazette - Volumes 23-24, page 27:
- They should be able to fill out the crossword using their knowledge from this chapter.1979, Judith A. Gillespie, An Energy Curriculum for the Elementary Grades - Page 2-45, Indiana Dept. of Commerce Energy Group, page 2-45:
- “You said you wanted me to fill out the crossword for you!”2021, Sarah Everett, Some Other Now, page 218:
- Flair, the butler, drank.[…]On weekdays when we were alone, he would open The Times and fill in the crossword, each clue no sooner read than solved. At weekends he merely read the crossword, then ironed the paper before giving it to Herbie.2021, Sian Phillips, Private Faces and Public Places: The Autobiography:
3
Obsolete The words in an acrostic puzzle from which the letters are to be taken.
- DOUBLE ACROSTIC. My primals and finals are the same as the first crossword. Crosswords--(1) A castle in Spain. (2) The quantity contained in a ladle. (3) A convulsive sound which comes from the throat.[…]1895, The Woman at Home, page 399:
- CROSSWORDS: I. Not plain. 2. Wandering tribes. 3. To disparage.[…]1897, Mary Mapes Dodge, St. Nicholas, page 792:
4
Obsolete A crossword enigma poem.
- A CROSSWORD. My first is in army but not in fort. My second is in prisoner but not in court.[…]1874, Alfred Emanuel Smith, Francis Walton, Outlook, page 237:
- Synonyms
- crossword puzzle
- Derived terms
- crossword enigma, crossworder, crosswordese, crosswording, crosswordlike, crosswordy, cryptic crossword, two-speed crossword
- Related terms
- acrostic, cruciverbalism, cruciverbalist, cryptic crossword, game, puzzle