How do I solve 1 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

1 across reads "Second indifferent journalist is berated" (7 letters); the answer is SCOLDED. It's a charade: the answer breaks into parts in clue order, each part clued by a word or short phrase. No indicators needed; watch for standard abbreviations (RA = artist, US = American, IN = at home) and short synonyms. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 5 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

5 across reads "Recording by socialist got thinner" (7 letters); the answer is TAPERED. It's a charade: the answer breaks into parts in clue order, each part clued by a word or short phrase. No indicators needed; watch for standard abbreviations (RA = artist, US = American, IN = at home) and short synonyms. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 9 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

9 across reads "Cooler makes prisoner more stupid" (9 letters); the answer is CONDENSER. It's a charade: the answer breaks into parts in clue order, each part clued by a word or short phrase. No indicators needed; watch for standard abbreviations (RA = artist, US = American, IN = at home) and short synonyms. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 10 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

10 across reads "More business having puzzle" (5 letters); the answer is REBUS. It's a hidden-word clue: the answer is spelled out by consecutive letters in the clue itself, often crossing a word boundary. Indicators like 'in', 'some', or 'part of' signal that you're looking at a substring. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 11 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

11 across reads "Drive back concerning sign of life" (7 letters); the answer is REPULSE. It's a charade: the answer breaks into parts in clue order, each part clued by a word or short phrase. No indicators needed; watch for standard abbreviations (RA = artist, US = American, IN = at home) and short synonyms. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 12 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

12 across reads "Magnify space - he can move" (7 letters); the answer is ENHANCE. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 13 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

13 across reads "On-the-spot coffee, say - no use, a disaster" (13 letters); the answer is INSTANTANEOUS. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 18 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

18 across reads "It's attractive when there's a current" (13 letters); the answer is ELECTROMAGNET. It's a cryptic definition: the whole clue is a playful or punny description of the answer. No wordplay decomposition to do — read laterally and identify what's being described. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 20 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

20 across reads "Predicted following a worse development" (7 letters); the answer is FORESAW. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 23 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

23 across reads "Quiet artist somehow got writer to improve" (7 letters); the answer is SHARPEN. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 25 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

25 across reads "Good score, for a bird" (5 letters); the answer is EAGLE. It's a double-definition clue: two separate definitions of the same word sit side by side. No wordplay split and no indicators — both halves of the clue define the answer. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 26 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

26 across reads "Leaves a crown and continues" (4,5 letters); the answer is GOES AHEAD. It's a charade: the answer breaks into parts in clue order, each part clued by a word or short phrase. No indicators needed; watch for standard abbreviations (RA = artist, US = American, IN = at home) and short synonyms. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 27 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

27 across reads "He's furtive, producing a casual shoe" (7 letters); the answer is SNEAKER. It's a double-definition clue: two separate definitions of the same word sit side by side. No wordplay split and no indicators — both halves of the clue define the answer. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 28 across in Express Cryptic 20260520?

28 across reads "Carelessly rated the French lever" (7 letters); the answer is TREADLE. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 1 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

1 down reads "Safe certain to accommodate two keys" (6 letters); the answer is SECURE. It's a container clue: one word goes inside another. Container indicators include 'in', 'around', 'holding', and 'embracing' — identify the outer word, then the inner piece that gets slotted into it. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 2 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

2 down reads "One strange old man, English wine lover" (9 letters); the answer is OENOPHILE. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 3 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

3 down reads "Live healthily, following start of diet" (5 letters); the answer is DWELL. It's a letter-selection clue: take specific letters from a longer source. 'First of' means the opening letter, 'extremely' means first + last, 'regularly' means every other letter, 'oddly' / 'evenly' means odd or even positions. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 4 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

4 down reads "Gangster's road speed varied" (9 letters); the answer is DESPERADO. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 5 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

5 down reads "Short during quieter sermon" (5 letters); the answer is TERSE. It's a hidden-word clue: the answer is spelled out by consecutive letters in the clue itself, often crossing a word boundary. Indicators like 'in', 'some', or 'part of' signal that you're looking at a substring. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 6 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

6 down reads "Bird performing role first in temple" (9 letters); the answer is PARTHENON. It's a charade: the answer breaks into parts in clue order, each part clued by a word or short phrase. No indicators needed; watch for standard abbreviations (RA = artist, US = American, IN = at home) and short synonyms. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 7 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

7 down reads "Singer, getting dressed, doesn't finish" (5 letters); the answer is ROBIN. It's a deletion clue: start with a word the clue points to, then drop one or more letters. Indicators include 'endlessly' (lose the last letter), 'beheaded' (lose the first), or 'heartlessly' (lose the middle). The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 8 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

8 down reads "Unexpectedly spied two points, with another to allocate" (8 letters); the answer is DISPENSE. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 14 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

14 down reads "Apes took off, having succeeded, as you might say" (2,2,5 letters); the answer is SO TO SPEAK. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 15 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

15 down reads "Short-lived rant is about hospital department" (9 letters); the answer is TRANSIENT. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 16 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

16 down reads "Diffused using a red spout" (9 letters); the answer is OUTSPREAD. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 17 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

17 down reads "Sense fad had become inability to hear" (8 letters); the answer is DEAFNESS. It's an anagram clue: the answer is a rearrangement of letters supplied by the clue itself. Look for an indicator like 'mixed', 'broken', 'cooked', or 'wild', and find a phrase whose letters add up to the answer's length. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 19 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

19 down reads "Single daughter, say, returns, anxious" (2,4 letters); the answer is ON EDGE. It's a reversal clue: the answer is a word read backwards. Look for indicators like 'back', 'returned', or — in a down clue — 'up' or 'lifted'. Find the source word and reverse it. The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 21 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

21 down reads "Rascal took front off shoe" (5 letters); the answer is ROGUE. It's a deletion clue: start with a word the clue points to, then drop one or more letters. Indicators include 'endlessly' (lose the last letter), 'beheaded' (lose the first), or 'heartlessly' (lose the middle). The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 22 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

22 down reads "Bet women's rage has no name" (5 letters); the answer is WAGER. It's a deletion clue: start with a word the clue points to, then drop one or more letters. Indicators include 'endlessly' (lose the last letter), 'beheaded' (lose the first), or 'heartlessly' (lose the middle). The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

How do I solve 24 down in Express Cryptic 20260520?

24 down reads "Native American evicts husband quickly" (5 letters); the answer is APACE. It's a deletion clue: start with a word the clue points to, then drop one or more letters. Indicators include 'endlessly' (lose the last letter), 'beheaded' (lose the first), or 'heartlessly' (lose the middle). The full step-by-step breakdown is on this page.

Express Cryptic 20260520 — Answers, Hints & Wordplay Explained

1A — Second indifferent journalist is berated (7) — SCOLDED

Definition
Definition found: 'berated'
Wordplay
Wordplay: Charade
Abbreviation
Abbreviations spotted: 'Second' → S
Synonym
Synonyms spotted: 'indifferent' → COLD
Abbreviation
Abbreviations spotted: 'journalist' → ED
Assembly
S + COLD + ED = SCOLDED

Across

1A — Second indifferent journalist is berated (7) — SCOLDED

5A — Recording by socialist got thinner (7) — TAPERED

9A — Cooler makes prisoner more stupid (9) — CONDENSER

10A — More business having puzzle (5) — REBUS

11A — Drive back concerning sign of life (7) — REPULSE

12A — Magnify space - he can move (7) — ENHANCE

13A — On-the-spot coffee, say - no use, a disaster (13) — INSTANTANEOUS

18A — It's attractive when there's a current (13) — ELECTROMAGNET

20A — Predicted following a worse development (7) — FORESAW

23A — Quiet artist somehow got writer to improve (7) — SHARPEN

25A — Good score, for a bird (5) — EAGLE

26A — Leaves a crown and continues (4,5) — GOES AHEAD

27A — He's furtive, producing a casual shoe (7) — SNEAKER

28A — Carelessly rated the French lever (7) — TREADLE

Down

1D — Safe certain to accommodate two keys (6) — SECURE

2D — One strange old man, English wine lover (9) — OENOPHILE

3D — Live healthily, following start of diet (5) — DWELL

4D — Gangster's road speed varied (9) — DESPERADO

5D — Short during quieter sermon (5) — TERSE

6D — Bird performing role first in temple (9) — PARTHENON

7D — Singer, getting dressed, doesn't finish (5) — ROBIN

8D — Unexpectedly spied two points, with another to allocate (8) — DISPENSE

14D — Apes took off, having succeeded, as you might say (2,2,5) — SO TO SPEAK

15D — Short-lived rant is about hospital department (9) — TRANSIENT

16D — Diffused using a red spout (9) — OUTSPREAD

17D — Sense fad had become inability to hear (8) — DEAFNESS

19D — Single daughter, say, returns, anxious (2,4) — ON EDGE

21D — Rascal took front off shoe (5) — ROGUE

22D — Bet women's rage has no name (5) — WAGER

24D — Native American evicts husband quickly (5) — APACE