Welcome back, fellow word nerds and cryptic conquerors! Today, we’re diving into a particularly fiendish little number that recently had me scratching my head and circling my dictionary like a hawk. This is the kind of
crossword clue
that makes you truly appreciate the cunning of a good setter – and sometimes, makes you want to throw your pen across the room in glorious defeat!
The
crossword clue
in question is:
“Indignation where tour organised before time (7)“
.
At first glance, it looks like a classic cryptic setup, doesn’t it? We have our definition, “Indignation,” a seven-letter word we’re hunting for. And then, the tantalising, perplexing wordplay: “where tour organised before time.” Ah, the joy and agony of it all!
My initial approach, as probably many of you would agree, was to pounce on those tell-tale indicators. “Organised” immediately screams anagram, doesn’t it? And what’s the most obvious candidate for its fodder? “Tour,” of course! So, my brain immediately started churning out anagrams of TOUR: ROUT, TOUR itself (less likely for an ‘organised’ clue, but possible), and so on. This seemed like a solid starting point for breaking down this
crossword clue
.
Next, my eyes drifted to “before time.” This is another staple of cryptic crossword clues. “Time” can often be T (a common abbreviation), AGE, or ERA. “Before” might mean PRE (as in pre-empt, pre-date), or it could mean placing something
before
another element. So, if we take PRE and add it to an anagram of TOUR, we might get something like PREROUT. A seven-letter word, certainly. But does “prerout” mean indignation? A quick mental check (and a physical one with a dictionary, if you’re like me!) confirms that it doesn’t quite fit the definition.
This is where the true beauty of a challenging
crossword clue
reveals itself. The most obvious interpretations can often be brilliant misdirections. If “tour organised” gives us an anagram of TOUR, and “before time” gives us PRE, and those pieces don’t form a word that fits the definition, we know we need to think deeper. The setter has laid a clever trap!
Perhaps “organised” isn’t just for “tour.” Could it be hinting at an anagram of “where tour”? That opens up a whole new set of letters to play with: W, H, E, R, E, T, O, U, R. But then we’d still have “before time” to account for, and the letter count might get tricky. And does “where tour” actually form a coherent anagram that leads to indignation when combined with “before time”? It’s unlikely.
Then there’s the enigmatic “where.” In many cryptic
crossword clues
, “where” can be a positional indicator, or even a hint for a container word. “Where” could mean the solution is found
within
the subsequent words, but “Indignation” is a standalone word, not a hidden one. So, “where” likely functions differently here, possibly as a connector or an instruction for how the other parts of the wordplay interact.
The key to unlocking such a tricky
crossword clue
often lies in reconsidering
every
word’s potential meaning and function. Could “tour” be a less literal “tour” and more about its components? Could “time” be something other than the usual T or AGE? Or perhaps “organised” isn’t just about shuffling letters, but about a more abstract arrangement?
This specific
crossword clue
demands that we step back from our first instincts and explore alternative avenues. It might involve a less common synonym for one of the wordplay elements, or a more subtle manipulation of letters than a straightforward anagram. It’s a reminder that cryptic crosswords are not just about vocabulary; they’re about lateral thinking, pattern recognition, and sometimes, a healthy dose of intuition.
So, how did you tackle this one? Did you fall for the initial misdirections, or did you spot a more cunning path to the solution for this intricate
crossword clue
? Share your thoughts and strategies in the comments below!
Available Answers:
OUTRAGE.
Last seen on the crossword puzzle: Metro Cryptic Crossword Clues Wednesday, 3 December 2025