Homophone cryptic clues

7 worked homophone examples from this practice bank.

What it is

Homophone clues define the answer straight, then point to a word that sounds the same. We hear a pair of fruit defines PEAR and hears PAIR.

Fair setting places the hear flag next to the word that is not entered, so solvers know which spelling is required when lengths match.

Accents matter. British cryptic tradition often assumes non-rhotic or RP-friendly pairs; if a homophone feels forced, look for another device.

Homophone clues use sound rather than spelling. An indicator such as we hear, reportedly, orally, said, or on the radio marks that one stretch is spoken aloud to yield letters that match another sense.

Both spellings must be fair: the spoken partner and the written answer. Length matches the written answer, not the partner you heard in your head if those lengths differ.

How to spot it

Flags: we hear, reportedly, on the radio, by the sound of it, said, uttered.

Find the definition edge, then the spoken partner beside the hear word.

Say both candidates aloud. If they do not match, the parse is wrong.

Hear flags are the licence. Without we hear or reportedly, do not substitute a sound-alike even if a witty pair tempts you.

Write both candidate spellings, then ask which one means the definition edge. The definition picks the board answer; the other spelling is only the sound bridge.

Common indicators

• we hear
• reportedly
• on the radio
• by the sound of it
• said
• uttered

Solving tips

Place the hear flag next to the spoken partner. We hear twins shave defines PARE and hears PAIR. Enter PARE because shave is the definition edge.

When both spellings share a length, the indicator position is your fairness cue. Setters put we hear beside the word you do not write.

Homophones vary by accent. If a pair only works in one dialect, look for another parse before you force it.

Practice by reading the clue aloud twice: once as a sentence, once as definition plus soundalike. The second reading is the cryptic one.

Homophones in this bank stay common: pair/pear, night/knight, sent/scent, flower/flour, weight/wait, reign/rain.

If you hear a match but the enumeration fails, you chose the wrong spelling for the grid.

Homophones separate meaning from spelling. The definition names what you enter. The hearing flag marks the word you only say. We hear a pair of fruit enters PEAR, not PAIR.

Read the clue once for sense, once for sound. On the second pass, park we hear beside its neighbour and ask what that neighbour sounds like. Then ask whether that soundalike matches the definition edge.

Accent caution is part of fairness. If a pair only works in one regional accent and another parse fits cleanly, prefer the clean parse. This bank sticks to widely shared pairs.

Equal-length pairs need careful indicator placement. Setters put the hear flag on the non-answer so solvers are not guessing which spelling to type.

Homophones rarely need scribble space. They need listening. Say pair and pear, night and knight, flour and flower aloud before you touch the keyboard.

After a homophone cold solve, still read the explanation. Confirm which edge was definition and which was sound. That habit transfers to harder newspaper pairs.

Collect homophone pairs on a one-page sheet: pair pear, night knight, flour flower, reign rain, wait weight, sent scent. Cover the spellings and test yourself from sound alone, then from definition alone. Homophone clues collapse to that sheet plus a hear flag. On the board, force yourself to write both spellings before choosing; the definition edge picks the winner. That habit prevents typing the spoken partner by mistake when lengths match.

Worked examples

These 7 homophone clues come from this site's practice bank. Read the definition edge, then the construction, then why both sides agree.

Common mistakes

Practice this device

Open unlimited for another clue from the same bank, browse the full puzzles list, or return to all wordplay guides. For the solve order that sits above every device, read how to play.