Enter a word to see all the clues used for it, or enter a pattern to see all answer words that match that pattern.
Standard matching: Patterns use ? for unknown single letters. For example, P??CH will find both POOCH and PEACH.
Use * to mean any number of letters.
A*Z finds both ADZ and ALCATRAZ, *CRY gets words that end with CRY, etc.
Up to 1000 results are shown from each word list.
This page finds words from Daily, Sunday and Variety puzzles, and also from a dictionary search. See FAQs for dictionary info.
You can use $v to mean a single vowel or $c to mean a consonant. The v and c must be lower case.
For consistency with other search engines, Y is always considered to be a consonant. Try these sample links:
$c??$c displays 4-letter answers that start and end with a consonant.
$v$v*$v$v returns words of any length that start and end with two vowels.
Some extensions are available using standard matching. For example,
[QJXZ]???[^A-M] finds 5-letter words starting with Q, J, Z, or Z
and ending with a letter not in the first half of the alphabet.
New regex matching (advanced): You can now choose to use full regular expression (regex) syntax in your searches.
You must explicitly click the RegEx button to perform a regular expression search.
Up to 10,000 results from the combined databases (Shortz, Variety, Pre-Shortz, Dictionary) are returned in a single list.
Standard matching patterns will not work in regex mode. The syntax is completely different.
XWord Info cannot help with regex syntax but the web is full of
helpful sites about this .
The Regex Dictionary has a particularly good tutorial .
The one extension I provide is that $c and $v can be used as shorthand for any consonant and any vowel.
Queries can be arbitrarily complex but here are a few simple ones to get you started.
Find words that include the string ABC somewhere inside:
ABC
Words that can be spelled using only the names of musical notes:
^[A-G]+$
Entries that do not include a vowel:
^[^AEIOU]*$
Words ending in c + 2 vowels + a single consonant:
C$v$v$c$
15-letter words containing neither A nor E:
^[^AE]{15}$
Words containing at least one Q and one V in any order:
(V.*Q)|(Q.*V)
112 entries were found. Click any date for context. Repeated clues show (number of occurrences.)
Date Grid Clue Author
Sunday, April 14, 2013 75A ___ Balls (bygone snack cakes) Elizabeth C. Gorski
Monday, April 8, 2013 40D ___-Cat (29) Janet R. Bender
Sunday, November 4, 2012 115D ___-Seal (leather protector) Brendan Emmett Quigley
Thursday, July 5, 2012 42A ___-Caps (5) Ian Livengood
Monday, May 28, 2012 50A ___-Caps (5) Kurt Mueller
Wednesday, February 1, 2012 56D Hostess ___ Balls (2) Elizabeth C. Gorski
Sunday, December 4, 2011 14D Hostess ___ Balls (2) Kelsey Blakley
Sunday, July 31, 2011 63A Hostess's ___ Balls (2) Pamela Klawitter
Tuesday, May 24, 2011 64D ___-Caps (movie snacks) Michael Blake and Andrea Carla Michaels
Sunday, May 15, 2011 63A ___-Caps (5) Cathy Allis
Tuesday, March 22, 2011 58D ___-Cat (29) Albert R. Picallo
Saturday, January 22, 2011 27D ___ Mountain (Pennsylvania ski resort) Victor Fleming
Sunday, October 31, 2010 31A ___ Balls (Hostess snack food) Elizabeth C. Gorski
Tuesday, June 1, 2010 8D ___-cone (27) Sarah Keller
Monday, August 17, 2009 69A ___-cone (27) Mike Buckley
Thursday, August 13, 2009 26D ___-Cat (29) Patrick McIntyre
Sunday, July 26, 2009 52A ___-Caps (candy) (6) Kevin G. Der
Tuesday, April 7, 2009 21D ___-cone (27) Joon Pahk
Wednesday, March 25, 2009 55D ___-Cat (winter vehicle) (6) Jerry E. Rosman
Saturday, February 7, 2009 40A ___ Balls (snack brand) Pete Muller
Thursday, December 25, 2008 68A ___ Balls (snack cakes) Eric Tentarelli
Friday, October 31, 2008 30A Hostess's ___ Balls (2) Jim Page
Thursday, August 14, 2008 33A Prefix for many cold-weather product names Damon J. Gulczynski
Thursday, April 10, 2008 66D With 4-Down, tracked vehicle David J. Kahn
Wednesday, February 20, 2008 34A ___-cone (27) Chuck Hamilton
Tuesday, January 1, 2008 40A ___-cone (27) Adam G. Perl
Tuesday, November 13, 2007 51A ___-Caps (Nestlé candy) Fred Piscop
Thursday, October 18, 2007 46D ___-Cat (29) Lucy Gardner Anderson
Sunday, August 26, 2007 116D ___-Caps (candy) (6) Andrew M. Greene and Craig Kasper
Wednesday, July 18, 2007 69D ___-Cat (29) Tibor Derencsenyi
Sunday, March 25, 2007 89D ___ Balls (Hostess brand) Fred Piscop
Wednesday, February 7, 2007 13D ___-Globe (2) David Kwong
Thursday, January 18, 2007 41A ___-Caps (5) Randolph Ross
Sunday, December 24, 2006 90A ___-Caps (5) Brendan Emmett Quigley
Sunday, November 26, 2006 40D ___-Cat (29) Manny Nosowsky
Thursday, August 17, 2006 64D Winter product name prefix Harvey Estes
Friday, June 23, 2006 8D ___-Off (windshield cover brand) (2) Bruce Venzke and Stella Daily
Monday, May 29, 2006 42D ___-cone (27) Alex Boisvert
Thursday, April 27, 2006 61D ___-Caps (candy) (6) George Barany and Michael Shteyman
Thursday, April 13, 2006 51A ___-cone (27) Barry Silk
Saturday, February 11, 2006 34D ___-Off (windshield cover brand) (2) David Quarfoot
Sunday, January 29, 2006 16D ___-Globe (common paperweight) Rich Norris
Thursday, December 22, 2005 28A ___-Cat (29) Elizabeth C. Gorski
Wednesday, December 7, 2005 9D ___-Cat (29) Manny Nosowsky
Friday, October 21, 2005 25A Cone head? Louis Hildebrand
Tuesday, September 20, 2005 26D ___-cone (27) Harriet Clifton
Thursday, March 31, 2005 64D ___-cone (27) David Liben-Nowell
Wednesday, January 19, 2005 65D ___-cone (27) Leonard Williams
Thursday, November 25, 2004 29A ___-Caps (candy brand) Nancy Salomon and Earl W. Reed
Friday, November 12, 2004 52D ___-Caps (candy) (6) Brendan Emmett Quigley and Ethan Friedman
Thursday, November 11, 2004 21A ___-cone (27) Michael Shteyman
Thursday, September 9, 2004 41D ___-Jet (winter vehicle) (2) Peter Abide
Sunday, April 25, 2004 142A ___-Caps (candy) (6) Elizabeth C. Gorski
Sunday, April 11, 2004 37A ___-Globe (2) Patrick Merrell
Wednesday, September 3, 2003 56A ___-cone (27) Myles Callum
Sunday, August 31, 2003 68A Commercial prefix with Cat Fred Piscop
Monday, August 4, 2003 35A ___-Cat (off-road vehicle) (2) Nancy Salomon and Harvey Estes
Sunday, July 13, 2003 105D ___-Caps (candy) (6) Randolph Ross
Saturday, June 7, 2003 41A ___-Caps (Nestlé brand) Sherry O. Blackard
Wednesday, April 23, 2003 44D ___-Cone (27) Gilbert H. Ludwig
Wednesday, March 19, 2003 39D ___-cone (27) Alan Arbesfeld
Sunday, March 16, 2003 113D ___-cone (27) Elizabeth C. Gorski
Sunday, February 9, 2003 110D ___-Cat (29) David J. Kahn
Sunday, October 27, 2002 96D ___-Cat (29) Nancy Nicholson Joline
Sunday, October 13, 2002 94A ___-Cat (29) Elizabeth C. Gorski
Sunday, August 4, 2002 5D ___-cone (27) Robert Malinow
Sunday, July 14, 2002 97D ___-Cat (29) Patrick Berry
Friday, February 8, 2002 19A ___-Jet (winter vehicle) (2) Manny Nosowsky
Sunday, January 13, 2002 58A Prefix in many winter product names Nelson Hardy
Sunday, December 2, 2001 104A ___-Cat (29) Nancy Nicholson Joline
Thursday, September 6, 2001 24A Commercial prefix for winter products Frank Longo
Wednesday, August 15, 2001 32A ___-cone (27) Karen Young Bonin
Saturday, August 11, 2001 57D ___-Cat (29) David J. Kahn
Thursday, July 26, 2001 64A ___-Cat (29) Manny Nosowsky
Wednesday, May 23, 2001 59D ___-Cone (27) Alan Arbesfeld
Saturday, April 14, 2001 32D ___-Cat (29) Rich Norris
Sunday, February 25, 2001 6A ___-Cat (29) Greg Staples
Friday, January 19, 2001 10D ___-Cross Championship Racing Joe DiPietro
Monday, October 30, 2000 39A ___-cone (27) Gregory E. Paul
Friday, October 27, 2000 26A ___-Cat (29) Manny Nosowsky
Sunday, July 23, 2000 46D ___-Cat (29) Patrick Berry
Thursday, July 13, 2000 56D ___-cone (27) Rich Norris
Wednesday, June 28, 2000 51A ___-Cone (27) Randy Sowell
Monday, March 27, 2000 4D ___-Cat (off-road vehicle) (2) Dave and Diane Epperson
Wednesday, March 15, 2000 67A ___-cone (27) Jim Page
Monday, March 6, 2000 50A ___-Cat (winter vehicle) (6) Gregory E. Paul
Sunday, February 6, 2000 64D ___-Cat (29) Richard Hughes
Friday, December 3, 1999 46A With 47-Across, winter vehicles Martin Ashwood-Smith
Saturday, August 14, 1999 9D With 1-Across, carnival cooler Joe DiPietro
Tuesday, July 13, 1999 43A ___-Cat (29) Brendan Emmett Quigley
Thursday, February 4, 1999 56D ___-Cat (29) Rich Norris
Wednesday, September 30, 1998 29A ___-Cat (winter vehicle) (6) Fran and Lou Sabin
Saturday, August 22, 1998 19A ___-Jet (popular toy) David J. Kahn
Sunday, April 5, 1998 101A ___-Cat (29) David J. Kahn
Sunday, November 23, 1997 35D Start with Cone or Cat Christopher Hurt and Derek Tague
Thursday, June 26, 1997 48D ___-Cat (29) Martin Ashwood-Smith
Tuesday, May 27, 1997 8D ___-cone (27) Stephanie Spadaccini
Friday, May 23, 1997 34A Commercial prefix for many cold-weather products Martin Ashwood-Smith
Sunday, April 13, 1997 90A ___-Cat (29) Cathy Millhauser
Sunday, April 6, 1997 26A ___-Cat (29) Rich Norris
Friday, March 21, 1997 43A ___-Cat (29) Shannon Burns
Thursday, November 28, 1996 44A ___-cone (27) B. Klahn
Tuesday, October 8, 1996 23A ___-Cat (winter vehicle) (6) E. C. Gorski
Friday, September 13, 1996 18A ___-cone (27) M. Nosowsky
Sunday, June 2, 1996 111A ___-Cat (29) R. Norris
Thursday, April 25, 1996 62A ___-Cone (27) W. Canine
Friday, March 15, 1996 24A ___-Cat (winter vehicle) (6) A. J. Santora
Wednesday, June 14, 1995 43A _____-Cat (29) Richard Hughes
Thursday, August 4, 1994 69A _____ - Cat (arctic vehicle) Jim Page
Saturday, July 16, 1994 54D _____-Cone (27) Mark Diehl
Saturday, April 23, 1994 62D -cat (winter vehicle) (6) Manny Nosowsky
Thursday, March 17, 1994 6D _____ Cat (Aspen vehicle) Jim Page