What those marks mean in Minute Cryptic
Fodder, par, question marks, and indicators. The vocabulary Minute Cryptic solvers actually search.
Cryptic notation looks like in-jokes until each mark maps to an operation. This glossary is the map. For a full walkthrough, use how to play.
Fodder
Fodder is the raw letter material the wordplay operates on. In Keep a broken vase (4), vase is fodder. Broken tells you to anagram those letters.
Par
Par is the expected golf score for that clue. Solving with no hints scores 1. Extra hints add to the total. Matching par means you spent about as much help as the setter planned.
Question mark
A question mark flags a playful or slightly stretched definition. The clue is still fair. You should allow a joke, a homophone, or a double meaning in the definition.
Indicator
An indicator is the instruction word: mixed, in, back, we hear, initially. It tells you which operation to run on the fodder.
Surface
The surface is the sentence as it pretends to be English. Ignore it until you have a split. Then check that unused words are not leftover. Fair clues spend every word.
Enumeration
The number in parentheses. It is a hard filter, not a hint. (6) will never accept a five-letter synonym, even if the definition is perfect.
Definition
A straight clue for the answer, parked at one edge. If both edges could be definitions, test both parses. The winner is the one whose wordplay accounts for every remaining letter.