How to Solve This Criss-Cross Crossword

A criss-cross plays like a crossword, but every answer is already listed in the word bank — your job is to work out where each one fits. Here's the method:

• Start with the word bank. Each of the 15 sea creatures is used exactly once, so cross them off as you place them to narrow every remaining choice.
• Count letters before you write. Every slot is a fixed length. Match a bank word to a slot of exactly the right size, then check the crossing letters agree before committing in pen.
• Let the crossings do the work. Once a few names are down, each shared square hands you a letter in the answer that crosses it — often enough to place a word without even reading its clue.
• Start with the long ones. JELLYFISH and STINGRAY only fit one way each — anchor those first and the shorter words fall into place around them.

New to grid puzzles? Our complete guide to solving crosswords walks through clue-reading and fill strategy from the ground up.

About This Puzzle

Sea Life fits fifteen ocean creatures into one interlocking grid — from the eight-armed OCTOPUS and ink-squirting SQUID down to the tiny three-letter EEL. Along the way you'll cross paths with reef-builders like CORAL and STARFISH, shelled residents like OYSTER, CLAM, and LOBSTER, and open-water regulars like SHARK, WHALE, and DOLPHIN. Because every answer also appears in the word bank below, it plays fair as a Medium puzzle: the challenge is placement and the crossings, not obscure vocabulary.

More to solve: browse dozens of free printable puzzles