Cryptoplexy archive: past medical cryptic crosswords
Every past Saturday cryptic, with each clue, its answer and the parsing. Newest first.
Play today’s puzzle All medical games
3 past puzzles, up to Saturday 7 November 2026. Today’s and future puzzles are never shown here.
November 2026
#3 · Saturday 7 November 2026
Across
1. Fat: cheek and identity (5)
Answer: LIPID
LIP (cheek) + ID (identity).
4. Sticker peeled off reveals a vitamin D deficiency (7)
Answer: RICKETS
Anagram (peeled off) of STICKER.
8. Skin oil: south-east bottom (5)
Answer: SEBUM
SE (south-east) + BUM (bottom).
9. Hearing organ plus part of the brain: where a ring goes (7)
Answer: EARLOBE
EAR + LOBE.
10. Skull: about, ran, I, um (7)
Answer: CRANIUM
C (about) + RAN + I + UM.
11. Fingertip covering lain awkwardly (4)
Answer: NAIL
Anagram (awkwardly) of LAIN.
14. Rehab worker: hypos I adjusted (6)
Answer: PHYSIO
Anagram (adjusted) of HYPOS I.
15. Digestive enzyme: energy and wrongdoing (6)
Answer: PEPSIN
PEP (energy) + SIN (wrongdoing).
18. Young cow, or back of the leg (4)
Answer: CALF
Double definition.
20. Gentian mixed: it triggers an immune response (7)
Answer: ANTIGEN
Anagram (mixed) of GENTIAN.
23. Role spy plays in Hansen's disease (7)
Answer: LEPROSY
Anagram (plays) of ROLE SPY.
24. Pub, er, inside (5)
Answer: INNER
INN (pub) + ER.
25. Rub: weight and period (7)
Answer: MASSAGE
MASS (weight) + AGE (period).
26. Mother adds a postscript about a swollen-cheek virus (5)
Answer: MUMPS
MUM (mother) + PS (postscript).
Down
1. Lips moved for a speech impediment (4)
Answer: LISP
Anagram (moved) of LIPS.
2. Teen change: bar freedom without Lib (7)
Answer: PUBERTY
PUB (bar) + (LIB)ERTY (freedom without LIB).
3. Memory loss: mead tine reworked (8)
Answer: DEMENTIA
Anagram (reworked) of MEAD TINE.
4. Hers, us, mixed in blood group (6)
Answer: RHESUS
Anagram (mixed) of HERS US.
5. Heal, or smoke bacon (4)
Answer: CURE
Double definition.
6. A lobe damaged by a haemorrhagic virus (5)
Answer: EBOLA
Anagram (damaged) of A LOBE.
7. Lump: excellent, in, good (8)
Answer: SWELLING
SWELL (excellent) + IN + G (good).
12. Examination instrument: mule cups broken (8)
Answer: SPECULUM
Anagram (broken) of MULE CUPS.
13. I dim lure, wandering in acute confusion (8)
Answer: DELIRIUM
Anagram (wandering) of I DIM LURE.
16. Breastbone's strict, um (7)
Answer: STERNUM
STERN (strict) + UM.
17. Catalyst found in Genzyme (6)
Answer: ENZYME
Hidden in G(ENZYME).
19. Wolf, in Latin, or an autoimmune disease (5)
Answer: LUPUS
Double definition: Latin for wolf, and the disease.
21. Punctuation missing a thousand? Deep unconsciousness (4)
Answer: COMA
COM(M)A minus M (a thousand).
22. Flower, or part of the eye (4)
Answer: IRIS
Double definition.
October 2026
#2 · Saturday 31 October 2026
Across
1. Heart's tip: monkey gets a kiss (4)
Answer: APEX
APE (monkey) + X (kiss).
3. Organ of pregnancy: can plate broken (8)
Answer: PLACENTA
Anagram (broken) of CAN PLATE.
9. Lockjaw: aunt set off (7)
Answer: TETANUS
Anagram (off) of AUNT SET.
10. Organ belonging to someone still alive? (5)
Answer: LIVER
Cryptic definition: a LIVER is one who lives.
11. Stress hormone: coir lost, scattered (8)
Answer: CORTISOL
Anagram (scattered) of COIR LOST.
12. Arm bone found in Istanbul navy (4)
Answer: ULNA
Hidden in istanb(UL NA)vy.
14. Physician to falsify? (6)
Answer: DOCTOR
Double definition: a physician, and to doctor (falsify).
15. Restricts spasms (6)
Answer: CRAMPS
Double definition: cramps (restricts), and muscle cramps.
19. Infestation found in public emergency (4)
Answer: LICE
Hidden in pub(LIC E)mergency.
21. Scalar UV distorted? It concerns vessels (8)
Answer: VASCULAR
Anagram (distorted) of SCALAR UV.
23. Coil and club, turned, cause infant pain (5)
Answer: COLIC
Anagram (turned) of COIL + C (club).
24. Pain relief: pair sin, oddly (7)
Answer: ASPIRIN
Anagram (oddly) of PAIR SIN.
25. Brain's layers: engines and motorway reworked (8)
Answer: MENINGES
Anagram (reworked) of ENGINES + M (motorway).
26. Sleep, east, at the back of the neck (4)
Answer: NAPE
NAP (sleep) + E (east).
Down
1. Insect with sour stuff for heartburn relief (7)
Answer: ANTACID
ANT (insect) + ACID (sour stuff).
2. Gut-related: go in, in charge (7)
Answer: ENTERIC
ENTER (go in) + IC (in charge).
4. Insole worn creates a sore spot (6)
Answer: LESION
Anagram (worn) of INSOLE.
5. Prison unit of life (4)
Answer: CELL
Double definition: a prison cell, and the unit of life.
6. Belly button heard at sea? (5)
Answer: NAVEL
Sounds like NAVAL (at sea).
7. A taro cooked for the main vessel (5)
Answer: AORTA
Anagram (cooked) of A TARO.
8. Ironic S twisted into a front tooth (7)
Answer: INCISOR
Anagram (twisted) of IRONIC S.
13. Crisp ET mashed: an arm muscle (7)
Answer: TRICEPS
Anagram (mashed) of CRISP ET.
16. Bad song brings a mosquito-borne fever (7)
Answer: MALARIA
MAL (bad, French) + ARIA (song).
17. Injector: singer and year rearranged (7)
Answer: SYRINGE
Anagram (rearranged) of SINGER + Y (year).
18. Roof of the mouth, heard as an artist's board (6)
Answer: PALATE
Sounds like PALETTE.
19. Temporary doctor, crazy, briefly hesitates (5)
Answer: LOCUM
LOC(O) (crazy, briefly) + UM (hesitates).
20. Punctuation mark, or part of the bowel (5)
Answer: COLON
Double definition.
22. Read quickly in radiology (4)
Answer: SCAN
Double definition: to scan (read quickly), and a radiology scan.
#1 · Saturday 24 October 2026
Across
1. Way of walking heard at the entrance (4)
Answer: GAIT
Sounds like GATE (entrance).
3. Eye condition: a coal mug smashed (8)
Answer: GLAUCOMA
Anagram (smashed) of A COAL MUG.
9. Kidney unit: phone RN in a muddle (7)
Answer: NEPHRON
Anagram (in a muddle) of PHONE + RN (registered nurse).
10. Gash is the skin, in Latin (5)
Answer: CUTIS
CUT (gash) + IS. Cutis is Latin for skin.
11. Health resort with sergeant major gets cramp (5)
Answer: SPASM
SPA (health resort) + SM (sergeant major).
12. Are each upset over this childhood complaint (7)
Answer: EARACHE
Anagram (upset) of ARE EACH.
13. Art very, losing five, for a vessel (6)
Answer: ARTERY
ART + VERY minus V (five).
14. Organ: true, us, rearranged (6)
Answer: UTERUS
Anagram (rearranged) of TRUE + US.
18. Drip line: tin, mostly void, a (7)
Answer: CANNULA
CAN (tin) + NUL(L) (void, mostly) + A.
21. Live with learner at church, and burp (5)
Answer: BELCH
BE (live) + L (learner) + CH (church).
23. Sailors and I find ankle bones (5)
Answer: TARSI
TARS (sailors) + I.
24. Surgeon's tool places learner awkwardly (7)
Answer: SCALPEL
Anagram (awkwardly) of PLACES + L (learner).
25. Very thin elk's tale twisted (8)
Answer: SKELETAL
Anagram (twisted) of ELK'S TALE.
26. Microbe found in hamburger mustard (4)
Answer: GERM
Hidden in hambur(GER M)ustard.
Down
1. Inherited units sound like denim trousers (5)
Answer: GENES
Sounds like JEANS.
2. I'm a factory? Insert it surgically (7)
Answer: IMPLANT
I'M + PLANT (factory).
4. Medical journal, or a small sharp blade (6)
Answer: LANCET
Double definition: The Lancet, and a lancet.
5. Cruel twist leading to a sore (5)
Answer: ULCER
Anagram (twist) of CRUEL.
6. Topic rearranged for the eye (5)
Answer: OPTIC
Anagram (rearranged) of TOPIC.
7. Abdominal muscles, then tax, give a collection of pus (7)
Answer: ABSCESS
ABS (abdominal muscles) + CESS (a tax).
8. Shake as Tom, err, wobbles (6)
Answer: TREMOR
Anagram (wobbles) of TOM ERR.
13. Abdominal fluid: castes, I, wrecked (7)
Answer: ASCITES
Anagram (wrecked) of CASTES + I.
15. Of the shin, a bone with a learner (6)
Answer: TIBIAL
TIBIA (bone) + L (learner).
16. Pleaser upset by return of illness (7)
Answer: RELAPSE
Anagram (upset) of PLEASER.
17. Sodium use, a sickly feeling (6)
Answer: NAUSEA
NA (sodium) + USE + A.
19. Courage? It's trapped in sciatica (5)
Answer: NERVE
Double definition: courage, and the sciatic nerve.
20. Sample found in Turin, Easter (5)
Answer: URINE
Hidden in T(URIN E)aster.
22. Greeting chimney at the root of the lung (5)
Answer: HILUM
HI (greeting) + LUM (Scottish chimney).