There are days when you sit down with your morning coffee, pen in hand, ready to conquer the grid, and then you hit it: the one crossword clue that stops you dead in your tracks. It’s not necessarily the most obscure or academic clue of the puzzle; sometimes, it’s the most deceptively simple one. It’s the kind of phrase that feels so familiar, so conversational, that the answer should be right on the tip of your tongue. Yet, it remains stubbornly out of reach.
Today, for many of us, that stumbling block was the brilliantly crafted crossword clue: “It’s badly in need of a pick-me-up.”
What a fantastic piece of misdirection. On first read, your mind likely goes where mine did. You start picturing a person, bleary-eyed and yawning, desperate for that first jolt of caffeine. Or perhaps a wilting houseplant, its leaves drooping sadly towards the floor, begging for a bit of water and sunlight. The clue paints such a vivid picture of exhaustion and fatigue that the brain immediately locks onto living things. A sleepy student? A marathon runner after the race? The entire concept feels so human, so relatable.
This is the genius of a well-written crossword clue. It leverages our everyday experiences and assumptions to send us down a delightful rabbit hole. You start running through synonyms for “tired” or “droopy.” You think about the various kinds of “pick-me-ups” we use to get through the day: coffee, tea, a nap, an energy drink, a sugary snack. But as you try to fit these concepts into the blank squares, the crosses don’t cooperate. The letter count feels wrong, or that ‘Q’ from the intersecting down-clue just won’t find a home.
That’s the moment of frustration, but it’s also the moment where the real fun of solving begins. It’s time to take a step back and re-evaluate the crossword clue from a different angle. What if it’s not literal? The phrase “in need of a pick-me-up” can be applied to so much more than just a living organism. Think metaphorically. A boring party is in need of a pick-me-up. A national economy can be in need of one. A story with a lagging second act certainly fits the bill.
The beauty of this particular crossword clue is in its clever wordplay, pushing the solver to pivot from the tangible to the abstract, or perhaps to something else entirely—something common and overlooked. It forces us to break free from our initial interpretation and consider the phrase in a new light. When the answer finally clicks into place, it isn’t just a moment of relief; it’s a moment of genuine appreciation for the puzzle’s constructor. It’s the kind of clue that elicits a smile, a nod of respect, and the satisfying feeling of having unraveled a truly elegant bit of linguistic trickery. It reminds us why we love these daily black-and-white grids in the first place.
Available Answers:
STY.
Last seen on the crossword puzzle: 1114-25 NY Times Crossword 14 Nov 25, Friday