Decryptic

Decryptic #77 - 12th September 2026

Solution & wordplay explained · Published 12 September 2026

Ghost theme: Self-denial SUPPRESSION · DIETING · RESTRAINT · FASTING

The solved grid and a clue-by-clue explanation of every piece of wordplay in this Decryptic daily. Browse every past solution, or get the app to play the older crosswords yourself. Today's crossword is always free to play.

The solved grid

Across

2 Across Crackdown from scrambled purpose sins (11) → SUPPRESSION Anagram Anagram of “purpose sins”.
8 Across Church aide, locate y scrambled (7) → ACOLYTE Anagram Anagram of “locate y”.
9 Across Doctor housing two rings bellowed (5) → MOOED Container OO inside MED.
10 Across Reworded versions from appears rash, strangely (11) → PARAPHRASES Anagram Anagram of “appears rash”.
13 Across Trainers' time askew, moderation (9) → RESTRAINT Anagram Anagram of “trainers t”.
16 Across Wildly dampened thy hopes, unrewarded (5,6) → EMPTY HANDED Anagram Anagram of “dampened thy”.
20 Across Picture, endings of bikini, album, opera, song, large (5) → IMAGE Initialism Last letters of: bikini, album, opera, song, large.
21 Across Note followed by wasp's weapon, abstaining from food (7) → FASTING Charade FA + STING.
22 Across Figure parts rearranged into citrus fruits (11) → GRAPEFRUITS Anagram Anagram of “figure parts”.

Down

1 Down Drippy, blue back my, alternately (5) → LEAKY Alternate letters Every other letter of “blue back my”, starting with the second.
2 Down Bishop persists, concealing customer (7) → SHOPPER Hidden word Hidden inside “bishop persists”.
3 Down Funder, a pyre strangely (5) → PAYER Anagram Anagram of “a pyre”.
4 Down East, year rising, grain (3) → RYE Reversal E YR reversed.
5 Down Warrior from shuffled Maria, US (7) → SAMURAI Anagram Anagram of “Maria US”.
6 Down Restraints when gridirons shed grid (5) → IRONS Deletion GRIDIRONS without its initial GRID.
7 Down Bare bathers from jumbled stud sin (7) → NUDISTS Anagram Anagram of “stud sin”.
11 Down Winter coat from cores of apple, track, cards, maker, heart (5) → PARKA Middle letters Middle letters of: apple, track, cards, maker, heart.
12 Down Slimming found in birdie tingling (7) → DIETING Hidden word Hidden inside “birdie tingling”.
14 Down Plastic compound lurking in dusty renegade (7) → STYRENE Hidden word Hidden inside “dusty renegade”.
15 Down Hot tipples from time of death, then expires (7) → TODDIES Charade TOD + DIES.
17 Down Shopping center hides LA between parking and pizza, slangily (5) → PLAZA Container LA inside PZA.
18 Down Noir novelist losing extension, Japanese stock (5) → DASHI Deletion DASHIELL without its final ELL.
19 Down Baggy, square yard holding aggregate, briefly (5) → SAGGY Container AGG inside SY.
21 Down Supporting, by the sound of it, four (3) → FOR Homophone Sounds like “four”.

How this puzzle was checked

Every clue in this crossword was verified against its own wordplay by software, then the finished puzzle was read and edited by hand before publication: definitions, indicators, enumerations and surface readings all get looked at, and clues that don't hold up are rewritten. The editorial standards set out what that covers.

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