Check out our curated list of crossword puzzle sites to mark the 150th anniversary of the first ever version being printed
Arthur Wynne
The newspaper that you’re holding isn’t just meant to provide an insight into the world around you. Turn to the page right before the sports section begins and you’ll find an activity that also ignites your brain — the crossword puzzle. US-based British journalist Arthur Wynne invented it, and the first ever version was published in the New York World newspaper on this day in 1871. Since then, it has become a regular feature in dailies across the world, turning some people into addicts who need it with their morning cup of coffee.
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Rohan Ganguli is one such example. The Kolkata-based musician spends around half-an-hour every day solving the puzzle, and he tells us that an uncle who was obsessed with crosswords got him and the other kids in the house hooked to them in his childhood. “It’s a ritualistic thing for me, and when my cousins come over, we still sit together to solve puzzles. I’d also do it with a former band mate of mine whenever we would travel for shows,” the 41-year-old says, adding, “Certain days are fast and sometimes it takes time. But I am generally able to finish the puzzles because they have a pattern; if you are aware of that, you will crack it.”
The first ever crossword. Pics/Wikimedia
Now, Ganguli might still subscribe to the old-school method of cracking crossword puzzles with a pen or pencil on a newspaper. But there are also multiple online sites that offer the same thrill. We curated a list of such pages to mark the 150th anniversary of the first crossword. Go through it and give the sites a shot, but not before taking a crack at the day’s crossword puzzle that’s printed a few pages after the one you’re reading.
A puzzling journey
This website has a puzzle called The Daily Commuter Crossword, which indicates how numerous office-going people spend their journey to work in trains and buses solving these literary codes. This one’s easy enough to attempt (we were able to finish it in less than 20 minutes). For example, the four-letter answer for ‘Kismet’ was, of course, ‘Fate’. Head here if you are a beginner and want to get hang of things before moving on to more difficult puzzles.
Log on to: mindgames.com
Easy as pie
Rohan Ganguli
There are different levels of crosswords on this site, and we opted for the easy one, which, too, is beginner-friendly. But you’ll need some knowledge of geography to complete it, because the clues include options like ‘Honolulu’s island’ and ‘Nevada/California lake’. Otherwise, the clues were as straightforward as ‘Rudolph’s red feature’ (nose) and ‘Shakespearean verse’ (sonnet).
Log on to: wordgames.com
Popping in
What’s more apt than a dictionary to have its own crossword? Merriam Webster has an excellent option on its website, which forces you to rack your brain a fair bit. It includes clues that have pop-cultural references like ‘Renee’s Chicago role’ (Roxie) and ‘Macy Gray’s hairstyle’ (Afro). And one feature that sets it apart from other options is that if you type a letter on a wrong square, it will be coloured in red instead of black, indicating that an error has been made.
Log on to: merriam-webster.com
Stan, the man
There are different crossword puzzle setters who publish daily on this page, and we tried Stan Newman’s version. He is a New York-based puzzle-creator who’s been the editor of the Newsday daily crossword puzzle since 1992. His clues often involve historical references, such as ‘Lincoln’s nickname’ (Abe), and American inputs including ‘Potatoes from a Northwestern state’ (Idahoes). Otherwise, the difficulty level is moderate, with some words making you scratch your head.
Log on to: arkadium.com
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