7 Little Words Hints, Clues And Answers For Saturday, July 12th

I thought I’d try out a new word puzzle to add to my list of games. I typically play Worlde, the Mini Crossword and Strands – all New York Times games – but there are so many out there. 7 Little Words crossed my path and I played today’s and enjoyed it quite a bit, so here’s a guide.

The game is simple. You have a five-by-five grid of boxes, each containing a group of letters. Above this grid are seven phrases, each giving you a clue to seven words. The number of letters is listed next to each phrase. There is no time limit and no penalty for wrong answers. The example given by the game is “deep fried treats” (6 letters) and the boxes that would create the word are DO + NU + TS for DONUTS. The game is played in UK English, so this could throw a little wrench into things for non-Brits.

Here’s today’s grid:

Hints and Answers for today’s 7 Little Words

Spoilers ahead!

Here are the first letters of each corresponding word:

1. soft toys = SQU

2. irritation in one’s side = TH

3. British actor Hugo = WEA

4. celeb owned Welsh FC = WRE

5. bowler by another name = DE

6. sea off Papua New Guinea = BI

7. Japanese style of painting = NI

Now here are the full answers.

1. soft toys = SQUISHIES

2. irritation in one’s side = THORN

3. British actor Hugo = WEAVING

4. celeb owned Welsh FC = WREXHAM

5. bowler by another name = DERBY

6. sea off Papua New Guinea = BISMARCK

7. Japanese style of painting = NIHONGA

Some of these I had no clue on, which is why #4 was the last one I solved. Others were more apparent. I got SQUISHIES right away, and I’m very familiar with Hugo Weaving’s work (The Matrix, Lord Of The Rings, Slow Horses). I actually wasn’t aware that bowler’s were referred to as DERBY but it was a pretty straightforward guess. I also wasn’t sure about NIHONGA or the BISMARCK sea, so these took me a bit. A THORN in one’s side was straightforward enough, however. All told, a pretty fun little puzzle!