AFR Cryptic, Saturday 10/2/2024, Clue Hints

Either a mixture of letters is placed inside or outside other letters, or letters are placed inside or outside a mixture of letters. An anagram indicator and containment indicator will be present.

A word or series of words that signify the position of wordplay elements in the answer.

Examples: before, after, leading, in the middle of, under (down only) etc.

The structure of the answer involves either letters placed outside other letters, or letters placed inside other letters. Which type of container clue is determined by an appropriate container indicator.

The entire answer is the result of removing the first or last letter from part of the clue or its synonym. A truncation indicator will be present.

A word or series of words that signify the turning around (across & down clues), or overturning (down clues only) of letters.

Examples: upset, reversed, retired, in withdrawal, over etc.

A type of clue where the WHOLE clue defines the answer, and the WHOLE clue also is the wordplay (a mechanism to derive the answer through various cryptic devices). "&lit" is short for "and literally".

To qualify as an &lit, a clue must have no unused components either in the definition or the wordplay - it must be readable one way as a definition, and another as the wordplay.

A question mark has been used to indicate "language abuse", that is, a word or words in a clue are used in a technically incorrect way, but the meaning can be still inferred.

Example: A indeed (?) could mean to insert A inside deed.

The structure of the answer involves either letters placed outside other letters, or letters placed inside other letters. Which type of container clue is determined by an appropriate container indicator.

The structure of the answer involves either letters placed outside other letters, or letters placed inside other letters. Which type of container clue is determined by an appropriate container indicator.

The structure of the answer involves either letters placed outside other letters, or letters placed inside other letters. Which type of container clue is determined by an appropriate container indicator.

The answer is found by butting together parts defined in the wordplay. There may be some positional indicators that change the order of these parts.

A type of clue that involves the mixing up of letters without the inclusion of a letter or letters. This clue will have an anagram indicator to signify jumbling and a subtraction indicator to signify the removal of a letter or letters.

A removed letter may be as seen in the clue, an abbreviation for a word in the clue, or the result of another cryptic device like taking the initial letter from a word. Removed letters may be a whole word as seen in a clue, the synonym of a word in the clue (if that synonym is contiguous within the anagram fodder), or the result of another cryptic device like taking the middle two letters from a word.

The answer is hidden among the words of the clue. No spare words should be present. A suitable hidden indicator will point to the buried text.

Examples: part of, associated with, types of.

The structure of the answer involves either letters placed outside other letters, or letters placed inside other letters. Which type of container clue is determined by an appropriate container indicator.

A word or series of words that signify a mixing-up of letters.

Examples: changed, at sea, confused, all over the place - anything that indicates change or jumbling.

A word or series of words that signify a mixing-up of letters.

Examples: changed, at sea, confused, all over the place - anything that indicates change or jumbling.

A word or phrase that defines the answer. All cryptic clues usually have a minimum of one definition which will be located at the beginning or end of the clue.