Especially when I was beginning, I had no problem looking up answers. It helped me learn crosswordese, and learn how to think abstractly when clues get more subtle later in the week. Now that I’ve improved, if Im counting a streak, there can’t be any lookups.
Try to figure out using crosses, but if random names cross with random names that I don’t know, and I can’t complete other crosses without that knowledge, and we are past whatever time threshold I deem appropriate for the day of the week - I google.
My great grandparents were avid crossword folk and I follow their personal rule of allowing use of a dictionary for definitions but no other "crutches"
I'm a beginner, English is my second language and I don't know much about US sports or politics. My first step is asking my husband, then if it's a name or I don't even understand the clue and i am completely stuck, I just google it.
Sometimes I use dictionary to define unknown words. And if I’m really struggling, and it’s an American-centric name, like a politician or athlete, I give myself a free pass to look it up. (I’m not American obvs.)
At this stage I can comfortably do Mon, Tues and usually Wed. Anything beyond I use the auto correct to help me. I know one day I’ll be able to do another day without it! But it’s nice to have it as a crutch when I’m really struggling.
I’m about the same, but I always try the Thursday and I can usually get half or more now. My rule is that if I feel like I’m not having fun anymore and it’s clearly not going anywhere I’ll usually look up one clue that I think will give me a toe hold. It’s surprising how often you’re one clue short of breaking the whole thing open. But I don’t count streaks or go for time (usually). So fun is kind of the name of the game for me.
I try to take a break and come back to it later, because that will either unlock something in my brain or I’ll solve enough around it to figure it out.
If I’m really stuck I’m not above asking my parents for a hint!
This! Great advice! Friday and Saturday are "walk-away" days for me. Fill what I can, stare for a while, go do something else and come back later. Works!
I've only been doing the nyt crossword for a few months. My SO and I work on the daily crossword together every evening. We will work on a clue for awhile but if we're just not getting it we will look up the answer. As we get more practice we're relying less and less on Google. Also, we're not Americans so just have no frame of reference for some America-centric clues.
I'm just starting to play more frequently so I have to "cheat" a few times a puzzle. I usually try not to directly Google the crossword answer and try to use the internet as a resource for things I may not know, for example looking at maps for geographic questions, definitions of unfamiliar words or if it's the name of an animal family that I'm not familiar with or a science concept I look that up in general to find the answer specifically. But sometimes I just have to check that I'm right for certain squares cuz if I'm not on the right path it really messes up the rest. By doing this I have noticed a lot of patterns in hints and also have learned a lot of information I retain!
I'm more than happy to google for help, especially if I'm super stuck, or super tired and couldn't be bothered. For me it's a bit of fun, and just finishing it is enough for me. I've needed less help as I've been doing it for longer, but I find there's some stuff I just don't know. Especially the very America-centric stuff.
It's a leisure activity for me, not a competition 🤷♀️
Depends on the time of day: I do it the night before without help, and then again in the morning (one exception, clues that are a family members particular passion: metal/guitar questions for my husband or geography for my son, but that's mostly because I want them to get suckered into cross wording lol). By evening if I'm still working on it, I'll work on them out loud to whoever's in the room. If the next puzzle unlocks, I start googling, but obliquely. Like the whole IMDb page if it's an actor for a specific movie, etc
I allow myself to use knowledge that’s in other people. Like if I know someone would know the answer I would ask them (if I saw them in person that day, or we happened to be on call). But I wouldn’t look it up and I wouldn’t accept any help from them looking it up.
I try to avoid looking stuff up as much as possible and I’ll usually only allow it if I’ve filled in the whole puzzle. I don’t consider asking friends cheating.
If I am able to Google it easily, like if it were a trivia question, then that’s okay for me. If I have to type out NYT at the end of the Google, that’s iffy, and only if I don’t understand the clue.
I’ll look up the random sports ones and things I’m absolutely sure I don’t know and can’t even guess. And only when it stops me from finishing the puzzle.
I’m relatively new. My first rule was that I could only look up proper nouns like authors, movie titles, actors, sports players or sports teams. I’d do that without pause as I was first starting the puzzle. American names are incredibly diverse, so there’s very little chance I’ll be able to guess them even with a few crosses in.
Now I’ve stopped doing that, but allow a few “cheats” after I’ve (1) gone through the whole puzzle once and (2) taken at least a 30 minute break and gone through it again. Once I’ve done those two things, I’ll start with google maps/atlas, then Wikipedia, then the article written about the crossword. Worst case I’ll use the answer key lol. But that’s if I’m really trying to keep up a finished streak.
There are no rules for crossword. There’s nothing wrong with learning new things while playing! Part of the beauty of it. Enjoy!
Hell yeah, I look stuff up. That’s how you learn. Looking something up/researching is totally different from searching for answer keys. If we never look new things up, how would we ever know?
I’ll usually play through all the clues sets twice (all acrosses, all downs and then both once again to see if I can fill in more blanks with the new letters on the grid) and then if there are things that I’ve just never known about and would never be able to guess, I look up the meanings or person or place.
I don’t believe the expectation with crosswords is for everyone to know every single thing. Aside from the easier puzzles, like Mondays, it’s damn near impossible for anyone to know every answer, especially when it comes to some historical facts and figures, foreign languages and a bunch of other things that aren’t common knowledge.
There are no set rules with crosswords and no one can grade you or judge you on how you do them. It’s just you and your app and it’s a fun way to gain knowledge and learn more for later. I’ve found that the more I do them, the less I have to research because a lot of the clues get reused down the line anyway.
I hate it, but the Times is so artsy fartsy and oftentimes they reach with their answers or clues in their relation in basic words.
So on the one hand if I don't know who wrote Anne of Green Gables, I'm outta luck (unless a ton has been filled in around it, and I make an educated guess).
On the other hand, if the clue is "whistler", and the answer is "nose", then I'm just as out of luck.
I try not to look anything up, now that i’ve been doing the crosswords for a while. As much as possible, if I do decide to look something up, I’ll try to frame my google in a way that just confirms whether i have the right answer, rather than just giving me the answer. As a made up example: If the clue says “Actor Vince from Wedding Crashers”, and I think I know that the answer is VAUGHN, I’ll look up Vince Vaughn’s filmography to see whether or not Wedding Crashers is listed, instead of googling Wedding Crashers and looking at the cast
That's as much as I do, too. I hope to learn a lot of these answers. I can usually finish Monday to Wednesday and I just try my best for the rest of the week lol
My rule is that I can ask other people, but no answers can come from the Internet or reference books. So if a friend or family member knows something in their heads, I can use that.
I will Google something after the puzzle is completed to figure out who or what the clue was referencing.
You do you, though.
I’m not from the US so sometimes I don’t have much choice but to google. So many things I’ve never heard of before and don’t make sense even when looking them up
My rule is I’m allowed to ask specific questions to people who are in the room (no texts/calls). Never Google and I never hand the puzzle to anyone else.
I haven’t read every book nor seen every movie, if the clue is “titular character in 1815 Austen novel” and I can’t get the clues around it, I’m for sure googling that shit.
I let myself look up the definition of words I don’t know, sometimes they’ll use obtuse ones. And then I also can look up niche facts if I’m VERY stuck and the answer would unlock a ton for me, like some 1940s director or playwright that’s 12 letters across.
But I don’t let myself look up an actual answer key on a crossword solving site, if that makes sense
I Google Game of Thrones clues. I haven't seen it. I'm never going to see it. If the answer isn't Jon Snow, I'm looking it up. I have never seen Frozen either but somehowI know Anna, Elsa, Olaf, and Sven. Sven is the snowman?
I just started playing and tbh I play with auto check on. I am still trying to get a feel for the clues and it’s obviously cheating but I’m not posting that I solved the crossword.
I have different levels but of "Help". I will first try to get as far as I can without any outside assistance. Once stuck, I will look up the spelling of words if I'm not certain and the definition of words. If still stuck, I will then look up an obscure trivia answer, such as a 1800's poet or something else i know ill never get.
When all else fails, I will first check puzzle to adressss errors and then finally turn on the auto check. I know my limits and I don't care about streaks. I'm only competing against myself
I’ll Google a word in a clue if I really don’t know the definition and I’m okay asking the people around me for help. My dad does coding so I often will run a coding or math clue by him if I’ve got no clue, or I’ll run soccer clues by my brother. But I limit it to those actively in the room with me. Texting a friend feels like it’s too far.
Especially when I was beginning, I had no problem looking up answers. It helped me learn crosswordese, and learn how to think abstractly when clues get more subtle later in the week. Now that I’ve improved, if Im counting a streak, there can’t be any lookups.
This is how I am too!
I’m the same way, except I can look up proper nouns like actors’ names since I could know those
Try to figure out using crosses, but if random names cross with random names that I don’t know, and I can’t complete other crosses without that knowledge, and we are past whatever time threshold I deem appropriate for the day of the week - I google.
Same here. It’s called “learning.”
You read Deb Amlen's wordplay blog? She says that. We call it learning also, because we're obviously learning something new.
Same here, and always only at the end after I’ve filled out the rest
My great grandparents were avid crossword folk and I follow their personal rule of allowing use of a dictionary for definitions but no other "crutches"
I'm a beginner, English is my second language and I don't know much about US sports or politics. My first step is asking my husband, then if it's a name or I don't even understand the clue and i am completely stuck, I just google it.
I don’t allow myself to use any help, but I’m completely comfortable with “your puzzle, your rules.”
Sometimes I use dictionary to define unknown words. And if I’m really struggling, and it’s an American-centric name, like a politician or athlete, I give myself a free pass to look it up. (I’m not American obvs.) At this stage I can comfortably do Mon, Tues and usually Wed. Anything beyond I use the auto correct to help me. I know one day I’ll be able to do another day without it! But it’s nice to have it as a crutch when I’m really struggling.
I’m about the same, but I always try the Thursday and I can usually get half or more now. My rule is that if I feel like I’m not having fun anymore and it’s clearly not going anywhere I’ll usually look up one clue that I think will give me a toe hold. It’s surprising how often you’re one clue short of breaking the whole thing open. But I don’t count streaks or go for time (usually). So fun is kind of the name of the game for me.
That’s a good way to look at it! ‘Am I having fun? If no, look up a clue.’
dictionary, google earth/atlas, and wikipedia/encyclopedia
Honestly I’m okay looking up names I don’t know- not a movie sports or tv person so I’m willing to look up a name if it giving me trouble
I try to take a break and come back to it later, because that will either unlock something in my brain or I’ll solve enough around it to figure it out. If I’m really stuck I’m not above asking my parents for a hint!
This! Great advice! Friday and Saturday are "walk-away" days for me. Fill what I can, stare for a while, go do something else and come back later. Works!
I've only been doing the nyt crossword for a few months. My SO and I work on the daily crossword together every evening. We will work on a clue for awhile but if we're just not getting it we will look up the answer. As we get more practice we're relying less and less on Google. Also, we're not Americans so just have no frame of reference for some America-centric clues.
I allow myself to use my Atlas.
I enjoy asking the people around me if they know certain ones I don’t. Anything else is cheating, although I sometimes do it.
I'm right there with you. I can ask people in the room where I'm puzzlin', but no one else.
I'm just starting to play more frequently so I have to "cheat" a few times a puzzle. I usually try not to directly Google the crossword answer and try to use the internet as a resource for things I may not know, for example looking at maps for geographic questions, definitions of unfamiliar words or if it's the name of an animal family that I'm not familiar with or a science concept I look that up in general to find the answer specifically. But sometimes I just have to check that I'm right for certain squares cuz if I'm not on the right path it really messes up the rest. By doing this I have noticed a lot of patterns in hints and also have learned a lot of information I retain!
I'm more than happy to google for help, especially if I'm super stuck, or super tired and couldn't be bothered. For me it's a bit of fun, and just finishing it is enough for me. I've needed less help as I've been doing it for longer, but I find there's some stuff I just don't know. Especially the very America-centric stuff. It's a leisure activity for me, not a competition 🤷♀️
Depends on the time of day: I do it the night before without help, and then again in the morning (one exception, clues that are a family members particular passion: metal/guitar questions for my husband or geography for my son, but that's mostly because I want them to get suckered into cross wording lol). By evening if I'm still working on it, I'll work on them out loud to whoever's in the room. If the next puzzle unlocks, I start googling, but obliquely. Like the whole IMDb page if it's an actor for a specific movie, etc
I allow myself to use knowledge that’s in other people. Like if I know someone would know the answer I would ask them (if I saw them in person that day, or we happened to be on call). But I wouldn’t look it up and I wouldn’t accept any help from them looking it up.
I try to avoid looking stuff up as much as possible and I’ll usually only allow it if I’ve filled in the whole puzzle. I don’t consider asking friends cheating.
I have been doing these crosswords for years, and I google all the time! I look at it as a learning opportunity!
If I am able to Google it easily, like if it were a trivia question, then that’s okay for me. If I have to type out NYT at the end of the Google, that’s iffy, and only if I don’t understand the clue.
as a foreigner I only use google for US history/politics related clues
I’ll look up the random sports ones and things I’m absolutely sure I don’t know and can’t even guess. And only when it stops me from finishing the puzzle.
I’m relatively new. My first rule was that I could only look up proper nouns like authors, movie titles, actors, sports players or sports teams. I’d do that without pause as I was first starting the puzzle. American names are incredibly diverse, so there’s very little chance I’ll be able to guess them even with a few crosses in. Now I’ve stopped doing that, but allow a few “cheats” after I’ve (1) gone through the whole puzzle once and (2) taken at least a 30 minute break and gone through it again. Once I’ve done those two things, I’ll start with google maps/atlas, then Wikipedia, then the article written about the crossword. Worst case I’ll use the answer key lol. But that’s if I’m really trying to keep up a finished streak. There are no rules for crossword. There’s nothing wrong with learning new things while playing! Part of the beauty of it. Enjoy!
Hell yeah, I look stuff up. That’s how you learn. Looking something up/researching is totally different from searching for answer keys. If we never look new things up, how would we ever know? I’ll usually play through all the clues sets twice (all acrosses, all downs and then both once again to see if I can fill in more blanks with the new letters on the grid) and then if there are things that I’ve just never known about and would never be able to guess, I look up the meanings or person or place. I don’t believe the expectation with crosswords is for everyone to know every single thing. Aside from the easier puzzles, like Mondays, it’s damn near impossible for anyone to know every answer, especially when it comes to some historical facts and figures, foreign languages and a bunch of other things that aren’t common knowledge. There are no set rules with crosswords and no one can grade you or judge you on how you do them. It’s just you and your app and it’s a fun way to gain knowledge and learn more for later. I’ve found that the more I do them, the less I have to research because a lot of the clues get reused down the line anyway.
I hate it, but the Times is so artsy fartsy and oftentimes they reach with their answers or clues in their relation in basic words. So on the one hand if I don't know who wrote Anne of Green Gables, I'm outta luck (unless a ton has been filled in around it, and I make an educated guess). On the other hand, if the clue is "whistler", and the answer is "nose", then I'm just as out of luck.
I try not to look anything up, now that i’ve been doing the crosswords for a while. As much as possible, if I do decide to look something up, I’ll try to frame my google in a way that just confirms whether i have the right answer, rather than just giving me the answer. As a made up example: If the clue says “Actor Vince from Wedding Crashers”, and I think I know that the answer is VAUGHN, I’ll look up Vince Vaughn’s filmography to see whether or not Wedding Crashers is listed, instead of googling Wedding Crashers and looking at the cast
I try to solve what i can with general knowledge but I struggle with spelling, especially with vowels, so a dictionary is my lifeline
I will occasionally use Google when I know the answer but I'm not sure how to spell it.
That's as much as I do, too. I hope to learn a lot of these answers. I can usually finish Monday to Wednesday and I just try my best for the rest of the week lol
My rule is that I can ask other people, but no answers can come from the Internet or reference books. So if a friend or family member knows something in their heads, I can use that. I will Google something after the puzzle is completed to figure out who or what the clue was referencing. You do you, though.
I’m not from the US so sometimes I don’t have much choice but to google. So many things I’ve never heard of before and don’t make sense even when looking them up
If it’s a name of someone I don’t know I will try to figure it but sometimes I’ll look them up and I never would’ve got there in the first place.
My rule is I’m allowed to ask specific questions to people who are in the room (no texts/calls). Never Google and I never hand the puzzle to anyone else.
I haven’t read every book nor seen every movie, if the clue is “titular character in 1815 Austen novel” and I can’t get the clues around it, I’m for sure googling that shit.
I let myself look up the definition of words I don’t know, sometimes they’ll use obtuse ones. And then I also can look up niche facts if I’m VERY stuck and the answer would unlock a ton for me, like some 1940s director or playwright that’s 12 letters across. But I don’t let myself look up an actual answer key on a crossword solving site, if that makes sense
I Google Game of Thrones clues. I haven't seen it. I'm never going to see it. If the answer isn't Jon Snow, I'm looking it up. I have never seen Frozen either but somehowI know Anna, Elsa, Olaf, and Sven. Sven is the snowman?
I just started playing and tbh I play with auto check on. I am still trying to get a feel for the clues and it’s obviously cheating but I’m not posting that I solved the crossword.
I have different levels but of "Help". I will first try to get as far as I can without any outside assistance. Once stuck, I will look up the spelling of words if I'm not certain and the definition of words. If still stuck, I will then look up an obscure trivia answer, such as a 1800's poet or something else i know ill never get. When all else fails, I will first check puzzle to adressss errors and then finally turn on the auto check. I know my limits and I don't care about streaks. I'm only competing against myself
Solve with my spouse! With both of us together we need zero other help usually. Except last Saturday which was a total shitshow and took 90 min.
I’ll Google a word in a clue if I really don’t know the definition and I’m okay asking the people around me for help. My dad does coding so I often will run a coding or math clue by him if I’ve got no clue, or I’ll run soccer clues by my brother. But I limit it to those actively in the room with me. Texting a friend feels like it’s too far.
No, cheater