Enter known letters
Use ? or _ for blanks, such as C?OS?WORD.
Crossword Solver for Known Letters and Blank Squares
Type the letters in your grid, use ? or _ for each blank
square, then add the clue when the pattern still leaves too many options.
Known letters Blank squares Clue cues Crossings first
Your grid
Start with the crossings you already trust
Keep the pattern honest first. Add the clue after the grid gives you a shape.
Use letters you know and ? or _ for blank squares.
Try:
Clue context
Add the clue only after the pattern gives you a real shape.
Let the grid lead
Use letters for squares you know and ? or _ for missing
squares. For example, C?T finds three-letter answers that start with C
and end with T.
Use the clue as context
Optional clue text can nudge simple plural, tense, abbreviation, and word-form signals.
Check crossings
Confirm the best answer against tense, theme, abbreviations, and crossing letters.
Enter a known-letter pattern above, or try an example.
Pattern matches come first. Clue text only nudges obvious forms like plural, abbreviation, and tense.
After candidates appear
Use the shortlist without forcing the clue
A matching pattern is only the first pass. Start with the words that fit the grid, then check tense, abbreviations, theme, and every crossing before you write the answer in.
- 1 Scan the tight matches
Look at words that match the fixed letters before you worry about clue wording.
- 2 Test the clue form
Check whether the answer should be plural, abbreviated, past tense, or themed.
- 3 Confirm every crossing
One wrong square can make a good-looking candidate fail the grid.
Pattern and clue
Known letters
Fixed positions do the real narrowing, especially on short answers.
Blank squares
Use one ? or _ for each unknown square.
Clue cues
The clue can nudge form, but it does not replace crossing letters.
Next check
Too many matches
Add one more crossing or check endings like S, ED, ER, and ING.
Tricky clue
Try the literal answer first, then watch for abbreviations or theme wordplay.
Final square
Check both the across and down clue before trusting a candidate.
Crossword examples
Examples for tricky crossword patterns
Use these examples when a short answer, blank square, or clue cue makes the candidate list hard to scan.
Sample pattern checks
Input What to check Why it matters
C?T CAT, COT, CUT Use a short pattern when only one crossing is missing.
C_OS_WORD CROSSWORD Underscores and question marks both mark unknown letters.
?A?E 4-letter pattern Useful when you know middle crossings but still need clue context.
Watch these edge cases
- Clue-aware ranking is heuristic; the pattern still drives the candidate list.
- Theme answers, abbreviations, and tense changes still need human checking.
- Multi-word answers should be searched as letters only, without spaces.
- Pasted punctuation is removed so clue notation does not break the pattern.
- Use crossings to eliminate candidates that fit the pattern but not the clue.
What the solver checks
The crossword solver cleans pasted patterns, normalizes ? and _ as unknown letters, searches matching word lengths, and returns pattern candidates from WordyLab's word-game data. Optional clue text adds lightweight form cues for sorting, but the tool is intentionally transparent and does not claim to infer every clue meaning.
Crossword Solver FAQ
How do I find a crossword answer from known letters?
Enter the letters you know and use ? or _ for each blank square. The solver returns words with the same length and matching letter positions, then you confirm the best answer against the clue and crossings.
Does the clue field rank answers by meaning?
It can apply a light clue-aware sort for simple signals such as plural, abbreviation, tense, and matching clue wording. It is not a full semantic clue solver, so always confirm against crossings.
Which wildcard should I use?
Use ? or _ for unknown letters. For example, C?OS?WORD and C_OS_WORD both work as pattern searches.
Why are crossword answers not always exact?
Crossword clues often depend on theme, tense, abbreviations, and wordplay. Use the list as a shortlist, then confirm against crossings.