Meaning & use
sudoku
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Meanings
nouncountable
a logic puzzle where you fill a 9x9 grid so that every row, column, and 3x3 box contains the digits 1 to 9 exactly once.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a sudoku' or 'two sudokus'.
Patterns
- a sudoku puzzle
- do a sudoku
- solve a sudoku
She bought a book of sudoku puzzles to keep her mind active on the train.
He solves a sudoku every morning with his coffee.
The newspaper prints a sudoku next to the crossword.
noununcountable
the activity or game of solving such puzzles.
Grammar: Uncountable when talking about the activity in general: 'I play sudoku.'
Patterns
- play sudoku
- do sudoku
My grandmother plays sudoku to relax.
They spend their evenings doing sudoku together.
Word forms
| plural | sudokus |
|---|
Common combinations
- sudoku puzzle
- He finished the sudoku puzzle in under ten minutes.
- solve a sudoku
- It took her an hour to solve the sudoku.
- sudoku grid
- Each sudoku grid has 81 squares.
- play sudoku
- I like to play sudoku on my phone.
- hard sudoku
- This hard sudoku took me all afternoon.
- sudoku book
- She bought a sudoku book for the flight.
Synonyms and how they differ
- number puzzle
- A general term for any puzzle involving numbers; sudoku is a specific type.
- logic puzzle
- A broader category that includes sudoku and other deduction puzzles.
Commonly confused: sudoku or crossword?
sudoku vs crossword
A crossword uses words and clues, while sudoku uses numbers and logic.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence:
Choose one answer.
When talking about the activity in general, 'sudoku' is uncountable, so no article is used: 'I played sudoku yesterday.' 'A sudoku' would refer to one specific puzzle, which is possible but less natural here; 'the sudoku' implies a specific one already mentioned; 'sudokus' is the plural and does not fit this context.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sudoku”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.