Phrase guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
No pronunciation record was provided for this word.
noun
A puzzle in the form of a poem with successive lines hinting at the individual letters of a word.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: dated
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
History
From crossword + enigma. The term predates the modern crossword puzzle and takes its name from an older meaning of crossword, referring to the words from which the letters of an acrostic are to be taken.
