World of Puzzles
Welcome to the new puzzle blog from Clarity Media, world of puzzles. Here you will be able to download and print off free puzzles to enjoy, as well as learning more about various different puzzle types and tips on how to solve them. In additionally you'll be able to find out about puzzle competitions and more from the world of puzzling. You can post your comments or thoughts on any article.
Humorous Crime Puzzle Book: The Misadventures of Sir Pelham Welby
If you’re on the hunt for brainteasers with a generous helping of laughs, then prepare to have your fancy tickled by The Misadventures of Sir Pelham Welby. ...
Added: 20 Mar 2024
Crime Logic Puzzles for Adults
Detective Dilemmas: Crime-themed Logic Grid Puzzles
Channel your inner detective with our new book of crime-themed puzzles, detective dilemmas:
The book contains 50 brand-new cross-referencing logic puzzles, in which you will be confronted with...
Added: 07 Nov 2023
Hard Codeword Puzzles
Codeword puzzles are one of the most popular newspaper puzzles, and the aim of the game is simple, although solving them might not be.
In order to solve a codeword puzzle, you must crack a code. The code assigns a different number to each letter of...
Added: 31 Mar 2023
Sudoku Variants: How Many Are There?
It is probably impossible to come up with a definitive list of sudoku variants because the number of them is truly mind-boggling. And there are new types being created all the time. There is also some ambiguity about what counts as a sudoku variant: for...
Added: 21 Dec 2022
Hints and Tips on Solving Cryptogram Puzzles
What is a cryptogram puzzle, how does it work and how do you go about solving it? Those are the topics we will cover in this article.
If you prefer to watch than read, our most popular video on YouTube tackles how to solve cryptogram puzzles: you...
Added: 18 Nov 2022
Code Puzzles Challenge - Can You Crack the Codes?
If you like code puzzles and trying to crack codes then we hope you'll enjoy our new series of ten videos each containing a code to crack that get gradually harder as you work your way through the series of puzzles. The first few videos are now available...
Added: 14 Oct 2022
How to Solve Cryptic Crosswords
Cryptic Crosswords
Cryptic crosswords can look very daunting to the uninitiated, and indeed also to the initiated! However, knowing more about what cryptic crosswords are and how they work, together with solving experience, can make them a conquerable...
Added: 30 Oct 2021
How to Solve Star Battle Puzzles
In this article, we will take a look at some strategies you can use to help you solve star battle puzzles, also sometimes just called 'stars'. In these puzzles, you are typically presented with a 10x10 grid and must place two stars in each row, column...
Added: 02 Jun 2021
How to Solve Skeleton Crosswords
One of the more popular crossword variants is the skeleton crossword - which you may also know under names such as diagramless crosswords.
The word 'skeleton' is apt as, unlike a normal crossword, you are just given a few scant details about a grid,...
Added: 19 Jun 2020
How to Fill a Sudoku Grid
How do you actually go about filling a sudoku puzzle grid? This is a question we get asked from time to time, either by budding puzzle writers, those wanting to create a one-off puzzle, or, no doubt in some cases, those who have been tasked with creating...
Added: 30 May 2020
Anti-Knight Sudoku: Rules and Puzzle Book
Anti-knight sudoku is an enjoyable variant of a standard sudoku puzzle.
The rules are as follows:
You must place 1-9 once in each row, column and 3x3 box of the grid, as with standard sudoku.
However, there is also one new rule. The new rule is...
Added: 30 Apr 2020
Dominoes Puzzles for One Player
Dominoes is best-known as a game involving a range of tiles that must be placed end to end with matching numbers.
But did you know that dominoes is also the name of a single-player logic game? If not, then you do now!
The rules of the dominoes...
Added: 23 Mar 2020
Puzzle Videos and Tutorials
You may have noticed that we have recently started creating a range of puzzle videos, that explain the rules and how to solve various different puzzle types.
You can find a list of many of our videos so far at the following page: Clarity Media...
Added: 29 Oct 2019
Jumbo Wordwheels
If you're a fan of wordwheel puzzles, then you might be intrigued to hear about a new puzzle - a jumbo wordwheel!
As the name suggests, the jumbo wordwheel is like a standard wordwheel puzzle, only bigger.
A standard puzzle contains eight letters...
Added: 31 Jul 2019
Sandwich Sudoku Puzzles
The below information tells you the rules of sandwich sudoku, and how to play it. You can also:
- play a sandwich sudoku online, and
- play a puzzle a day via our new puzzle site.
Of the many sudoku variants that exist, sandwich sudoku is one of...
Added: 18 May 2019
The I Book of Children's Puzzles
We have pleasure in introducing The i Book of Children's Puzzles.
This book makes the ideal gift for any young puzzle lover, and is targeted approximately at the 8-12 year age range, although younger and older puzzlers should also find something...
Added: 15 Nov 2018
TatamiDoku Puzzles
Welcome to this exciting new sudoku variant: the tatamidoku puzzle. Tatami is a logic puzzle that can be supplied in a range of different grid sizes, the popular sizes are 6x6 and...
Added: 02 Nov 2018
Spelling Word wheels
Introducing our latest variant of the word wheel puzzle, called the spelling wheel. Whether you're a lover of anagrams, vocabulary, spelling bees and related puzzles, or just enjoy word puzzles, then we hope this new introduction to our puzzle range...
Added: 02 Nov 2018
3D Snowflake Star Sudoku
Welcome to the latest addition to our Sudoku family, the 3D Snowflake Star Sudoku, just in time for the festive season!
As you'll see from the image at right, this attractive little puzzle makes the perfect Sudoku addition to any festive-themed puzzle...
Added: 05 Oct 2018
The i Book of Crosswords
The i Book of Crosswords is now available to buy from Amazon.
The book features 100 brand new 13x13 quick crossword puzzles.
Solutions for all 100 puzzles are included at the back of the book, so if you get stuck whilst solving a crossword, or...
Added: 06 Oct 2017
The i Book of Codewords
We are pleased to announce the release of a brand new book, the i Book of Codewords which contains 100 brand new codeword puzzles.
All the puzzles are of the same type and difficulty as in the newspaper, containing three clue letters per puzzle to...
Added: 05 Aug 2017
The i Book of Sudoku
The i Book of Sudoku Puzzles is out now, available to buy from Amazon, featuring standard Sudoku puzzles and also idoku puzzles!
The book contains a total of 200 puzzles. The Sudoku puzzles are split into three different levels of difficulty, these...
Added: 03 Aug 2017
Link Word Puzzles
Link Word puzzles are the sort of puzzle that many people enjoy, but are hard to find other than the occasional puzzle here and there in a mixed puzzle book or magazine.
If you've not come across this simple yet deceptively fun puzzle type before,...
Added: 24 Feb 2017
The i Book of Puzzles
We are pleased to announce the launch of The i Book of Puzzles. Containing over 100 puzzles, and no less than 28 different puzzle types, there is something for everyone in this delightful collection of puzzles.
The book contains a mix of the...
Added: 15 Nov 2016
GCHQ Christmas Puzzles: Did You Tackle Them?
In the run up to Christmas 2015, GCHQ launched a website with a series of puzzles for people to solve, with the option for people to submit their answers if they reached the final part. The deadline set for entries was 31 January 2016.
The puzzle...
Added: 29 Jan 2016
How To Create Symmetrical Sudoku Puzzles
Two of the most popular puzzles in the world have something in common: and that commonality is symmetry.
We're talking about the great staple of the word puzzle world: the crossword, and the logic puzzle that has taken its place alongside the...
Added: 13 Aug 2015
How to Write a Themed Crossword
Writing a themed crossword puzzle can be a time-consuming and tricky process, and depends on a few different factors:
- The grid pattern and grid size being used to create the puzzle
- The fill requirements: essentially the more themed entries you...
Added: 11 May 2015
Easy Codeword Puzzles
Easy codeword puzzles are not very common, despite codewords themselves being a very common and popular puzzle. Why is this? There are a couple of reasons:
Firstly, codeword puzzles of course require the solver to place every letter from A-Z into the...
Added: 08 Nov 2014
Making Wordsearch Difficult
We recently had a request for some hard wordsearch, which is a fairly unusual thing. Unlike many other puzzle types like sudoku, for instance, people rarely request a difficulty level with wordsearch. Indeed, go and look at any wordsearch publication in...
Added: 08 Oct 2014
Father's Day Gift Idea
Sunday June 15th is Father's Day in the UK in 2014.
As thoughts turn to what to buy our Dads to show our appreciation, inevitably various gift ideas will crop up: perhaps their favourite beer, tickets to the football, that book on trains you know they...
Added: 23 May 2014
Automatic Codeword Solving Program
For those of you who are struggling to solve a codeword puzzle, look no further!
We've recently added an online codeword solving tool to the site, which can be accessed on our codeword solver page.
This tool does what it says on the tin - you enter...
Added: 23 May 2014
Mother's Day Puzzles
Mother's Day is fast approaching at the time of writing - being on Sunday 30th March 2014.
Of course, most of us will buy our mother a card, and perhaps some flowers and chocolates as a sign of our appreciation for all that they do for us.
But...
Added: 11 Mar 2014
One Hundred Years of the Crossword
Did you know that the crossword has just turned 100 years old? The puzzle was first published in what would be recognised as a modern form on 21st December 1913 in the USA. The puzzle was created by a British journalist, Arthur Wynne. And it has gone...
Added: 23 Dec 2013
World Sudoku Championships 2013
The World Sudoku Championships for 2013 took place in October in Beijing.
This was the eighth time that the tournament has been run. It occurs at the same time of year as the world puzzle championship, which you can read more about in the article on...
Added: 17 Nov 2013
World Puzzle Championships 2013
The World Puzzle Championships for 2013 recently took place in October, hosted this year in China.
The world puzzle championship is an event organised by the WPF - World Puzzle Federation - where the best solvers from around the year meet annually to...
Added: 17 Nov 2013
Anniversary Sudoku Gift Books
Welcome to the latest addition in our range of gift related puzzle books - the range of anniversary Sudoku puzzle books.
These cover a wide range of anniversaries, including all anniversaries from 1 - 10 years, and then the significant anniversaries...
Added: 18 Sep 2013
Personalised Puzzle Book Gifts
Have you ever been stuck for the perfect gift idea for a child who enjoys puzzles?
If so, then you might like to consider a book from our new collection of personalised puzzle books for children.
These books contain a range of different puzzle...
Added: 29 Aug 2013
Guessing and Puzzle Solving
One of the perennial debates is around what count as valid strategies when it comes to puzzle solving, and what a 'good' puzzle should expect of the solver.
Generally most solvers would expect that a puzzle can be solved without having to guess, ie,...
Added: 05 Jun 2013
Custom Sudoku
Customised Sudoku puzzles are those that have an element of theming to them; whether this be a letter associated with a newspaper forming an additional region in them or some other element.
The benefit of a customised or personalised Sudoku puzzle is...
Added: 04 Jun 2013
What makes a good puzzle
We regularly receive submissions of new puzzle types from aspiring puzzle authors. One of the most common problems is that the puzzle is either too derivative, and is effectively just an existing puzzle presented differently, OR the rules are too...
Added: 04 Jun 2013
Buy Puzzle Books
Are you a fan of puzzles that it is hard to find in volume?
For instance - if crossword puzzles or standard sudoku are your thing then there are a plethora of titles out there that contain nothing but sudoku and crossword puzzles.
But what do you...
Added: 25 Jul 2012
Kids Educational Puzzles
One of the great things about puzzles is that they are fun. And there is a real sense of satisfaction that comes with solving a puzzle.
Therefore puzzles make a great educational tool, particularly where they help children to practice certain skills...
Added: 28 Jun 2012
Tips on Solving Word Ladder Puzzles
Word ladder puzzles - how do you go about solving them?
There are two distinct strategies that people tend to use. The first is to solve from top-to-bottom, whilst the other is to solve from bottom-to-top.
In truth, the best way to solve a...
Added: 12 Jun 2012
Solving Hanjie Puzzles
Hanjie Puzzles are rarely seen in publication, yet they tend to become something of an addiction for those who are bitten by the hanjie bug.
Hanjie is a type of logic puzzle, and it consists of a rectangular grid with various numbers around the...
Added: 10 Feb 2012
Arrow Sudoku Puzzles
Arrow Sudoku puzzles are an enjoyable sudoku variant that is rarely seen in print.
If you have done, then the chances are that you buy the i newspaper on Saturday, and if so you'll be familiar with the striking visual of this puzzle, as per the image...
Added: 11 Jan 2012
World Puzzle Championships
It may not be well known, but there is a World Puzzle Championship that takes place once a year.
And this year's competition has just been held in Eger in Hungary.
The World Puzzle Championship - or WPC - pits the wits of the best puzzlers...
Added: 14 Nov 2011
Human vs Computer Created Puzzles
Are computer created puzzles as good as ones made by humans? It is an interesting question that has been asked many times.
In order to answer it, it seems reasonable to come up with a test to see if a person can distinguish between the two - if a...
Added: 13 Jun 2011
The Knights Tour
The Knights Tour belongs to an interesting group of puzzles known as travelling puzzles.
Many of these puzzles follow the path of a chess piece around the board, or are inspired by that movement on a grid of a variety of shapes.
You may have...
Added: 13 Apr 2011
Free Sudoku Plus Puzzle
Sudoku Plus is a variant of sudoku that you might not have seen before.
The puzzle grid itself is the same as usual: a 9x9 grid that you must place 1 - 9 in once per region (row, column and 3x3 box).
However there are far fewer givens in the puzzle...
Added: 24 Mar 2011
Solving Wordwheel Puzzles
Wordwheel puzzles are a simple but fun word puzzle that tests your vocabulary skills to the max.
There are various variations on the standard wordwheel rules, but usually a wordwheel puzzle will require you to as a minimum find one word that uses all...
Added: 09 Feb 2011
Cracking Killer Sudoku
One of the best known sudoku variants is killer sudoku.
However, by its very name the puzzle can seem quite intimidating, as it does sound quite daunting!
The main difference between this puzzle and normal sudoku is that it is also a maths...
Added: 16 Jan 2011
Free Consecutive Sudoku
Happy New Year! We hope that all our visitors had a great Christmas and a good New Year.
As 2011 starts, here is a free consecutive sudoku puzzle for you to print (including the solution in case you get stuck or want to verify your solution).
To...
Added: 04 Jan 2011
Christmas Tree Mosaic Puzzle
Christmas is well and truly coming!
And what better way to celebrate than with a free puzzle that is Christmas themed?
Then look no further than our Christmas tree themed mosaic puzzle, the solution to which - as the name heavily hints at - is a...
Added: 22 Dec 2010
Wordladder puzzles
Wordladder puzzles are said to have been invented by Lewis Carroll, and are a fun little word puzzle with simple rules, but that can be quite hard to solve nonetheless.
The aim of a word ladder is to move down a ladder from a word at the top to a word...
Added: 16 Dec 2010
Puzzle Magazines
There are a huge number of puzzle magazines out there in the market.
When you go to your local newsagent or even supermarket, you will see a large range of puzzle magazines.
Predominantly these magazines will cover crosswords, wordsearch and...
Added: 08 Dec 2010
Creating Irregular Sudoku Puzzles
Have you ever wondered how irregular sudoku puzzles are created? Also known as jigsaw sudoku, these are a reasonably common variant of sudoku that replace the neat 3 x 3 boxes with regions of all sorts of different shapes (but all containing nine...
Added: 03 Dec 2010
Sudoku and Symmetry
Most sudoku puzzles that you see - although not all - contain symmetry.
Sepcifically, they tend to contain rotational symmetry such that if the puzzle is rotated 180 degrees it looks the same.
This is visually quite pleasing, and infact some...
Added: 01 Dec 2010
Writing a good program to create sudoku
One of the reasons why sudoku has been able to become so popular all over the world is because supply has been able to keep up with demand.
And the reason for that is because firstly the vast majority of sudoku seen in mainstream publications are...
Added: 30 Nov 2010
A Chess Puzzle
Chess is one of the oldest games that is still popular today. And it continues to go from strength to strength.
Whilst there are several rules to learn with regard to how the pieces can move, taking manoeuvres, castling, check and so on, this pales...
Added: 29 Nov 2010
Sudoku: Maths Puzzle or Logic Puzzle?
A question that comes up with some frequency is whether sudoku is a maths puzzle or a logic puzzle, and depending where you look, you can see it referenced as falling in both these genres.
Infact, sudoku is purely a logic puzzle.
The reason for...
Added: 26 Nov 2010
Solving Hard Futoshiki Puzzles
This article discusses 5 x 5 sized futoshiki which is the most commonly seen size of this puzzle type. However, the strategies can be applied to larger puzzle sizes by simply adjusting the numbers.
The first thing to say is that a good futoshiki...
Added: 25 Nov 2010
Creating your own Puzzle
Creating your own puzzle can be a very interesting and rewarding process, although as with any creative process it can also be frustrating.
Are there any guidelines when coming up with a new puzzle that will help to make it good, and therefore...
Added: 24 Nov 2010
Do brain training puzzles work?
In the last few years, there have been a couple of notable shifts in the puzzling world.
The first, of course, was the launch of sudoku in 2004 and the massive interest in sudoku in particular and puzzles in general that was caused as a result of that...
Added: 23 Nov 2010
Puzzle Competitions and World Puzzle Championships
There are various different puzzle competitions that take place around the world, and of course within many countries there are a large range of national contests.
Probably the most well-known nationally are crossword championships and scrabble...
Added: 22 Nov 2010
iDoku Solving Tips
iDoku is a variant of ordinary sudoku that appears in the 'i' newspaper.
Rules
The aim of iDoku is to fill each row, column and 3x3 box in the puzzle such that 1-9 appear once only in each of them. In addition, there is a pink/red letter 'i'...
Added: 19 Nov 2010
Loop Puzzles
Loop puzzles are the class of puzzles that require you to draw a loop of some sort.
The rules vary, but in all the different types of loop puzzle you must form a single loop such that if you depart from any point on the loop you will ultimately...
Added: 18 Nov 2010
Strategy Tips for Solving Number Squares
There are various strategies that can be used to help you when solving number square puzzles.
The first one is simply to be ordered in the solving process: start by writing down the numbers from 1 to 9 and then cross them off as you use them. ...
Added: 17 Nov 2010
Why is sudoku so popular?
The word phenomenon is arguably over-used, but it certainly does apply when talking about sudoku.
For many years, the puzzle world was dominated by word puzzles such as the crossword and word search puzzle.
Then suddenly in 2004 and early 2005,...
Added: 16 Nov 2010
Your Favourite Crossword Clue
What is your favourite crossword clue?
For most people who solve general knowledge or cryptic crosswords, there are clues that stand out from time to time as being particularly memorable.
This could be because they were quite involved and hard to...
Added: 16 Nov 2010
Free Outside Sudoku Puzzle
The SudoPlus puzzle is a sudoku variant.
The rules are the same as the standard version of the puzzle with one additional rule.
Place 1 - 9 once in each row, column and 3x3 box.
In addition, you will see there are numbers around the grid, at the...
Added: 16 Nov 2010