Meaning & use
cryptic
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Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Having a hidden or puzzling meaning that is hard to work out.
Grammar: Used before a noun or after be: a cryptic note; the message was cryptic.
Patterns
- a cryptic message
- a cryptic remark
He left a cryptic note on the table.
Her cryptic smile gave nothing away.
The instructions were so cryptic that nobody could follow them.
adjectivebefore a nounBritish
Describing a crossword whose clues are written as wordplay puzzles rather than plain definitions.
Grammar: Mostly in the phrase cryptic crossword or cryptic clue.
Patterns
- a cryptic crossword
- a cryptic clue
My father solves the cryptic crossword every morning.
That cryptic clue took me an hour.
Cryptic puzzles reward clever readers.
adjectivebefore a nounbiologytechnical
Of an animal, colored so as to blend in with its surroundings.
Grammar: Biology term, usually before a noun: cryptic coloration.
Patterns
- cryptic coloration
The moth's cryptic coloring hides it on bark.
Cryptic patterns help the lizard avoid predators.
The insect is cryptic and almost impossible to spot.
Common combinations
- cryptic message
- She sent a cryptic message that worried us all.
- cryptic comment
- His cryptic comment confused the team.
- cryptic clue
- The cryptic clue pointed to a hidden word.
- cryptic crossword
- A cryptic crossword needs patient thinking.
- deliberately cryptic
- The manager was deliberately cryptic about layoffs.
Synonyms and how they differ
- mysterious
- Mysterious is broader and can describe anything strange, while cryptic usually describes words or messages.
- enigmatic
- Enigmatic is more formal and often describes people or smiles that are hard to read.
- obscure
- Obscure suggests unclear or little known, often by accident rather than design.
Opposites
Word family
- cryptically adverb
- in a mysterious or puzzling way
- crypt noun
- an underground room, often a burial chamber
- encrypt verb
- to turn information into a secret code
- cryptography noun
- the art of writing or solving codes
Commonly confused: cryptic or crypt?
cryptic vs crypt
A crypt is a burial room beneath a church, while cryptic describes puzzling meaning.
Practice
The detective found a ___ message that no one could decode.
Choose one answer.
Cryptic means puzzling and hard to decode. Blatant and explicit mean obvious, and cheerful says nothing about meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “cryptic”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.