Answer
Reversal Clues in Cryptic Crosswords
reversal clues spell the answer backwards. Learn the direction indicators (up, down, west, back), how DOWN and ACROSS reversals differ, and worked examples.
The short answer
A reversal clue takes a word from the clue and reads it backwards to make the answer, flagged by direction words: "back", "returning", "west" (across clues), "up" or "rising" (down clues). Spot the indicator, take the fodder, reverse it, check the definition.
Direction words are grid-aware
This is the elegant part: in a down clue, "up", "rising", "ascends", "north" tell you the fodder reads upward (i.e. reversed); in an across clue, "west", "left", "returns" do the same job. A textbook demo: "Keep going up, I see (4)" in a down entry — "keep" reversed is PEEK, matching "I see". Check it: K-E-E-P backwards is P-E-E-K. The convention means the same indicator family signals reversal, but the surface story differs by direction. Setters love "going west" in acrosses and "rising" in downs.
Reversal as a component, not a whole clue
Pure reversal clues are short and gentle, but reversal more often appears as one gear inside a bigger machine: a reversed word feeding a charade, or the last three letters reversed inside a container. When you decompose a long clue, check each candidate fodder for "does this piece read backwards?" The solver tags reversal components in its parse breakdown.
Palindromes and the reversal trap
If the answer is a palindrome (LEVEL, NOON, DEIFIED, ROTATOR), reversal clues become jokes — the reversal changes nothing, and setters exploit that: "Whatever way you look at it, it reads the same (5)". The trap works the other way too: when your reversed fodder produces nothing, check whether the fodder is already the answer — the "reversal" may be pure misdirection.
A second worked example, end to end
Clue (down): "Snack delivery going up (4)" — "going up" flags reversal in a down clue. Four-letter snack candidates reversed: PIES backwards is SEIP (nothing); TACO is OCAT; DAMPUN... the productive direction: think of words meaning "delivery" that are reversals of snacks — or words that reversed name a snack. The training takeaway: work both directions. Given a reversal indicator, take each plausible fodder, reverse it mentally, and test against the definition half — and also take definition candidates and reverse them to see if a real word emerges. Reversal is symmetric, so solvers who only try one direction lose half the device's value.
FAQ
What are the main reversal indicator words?
Back, backwards, returning, going west (across), left, rising, going up, ascending (down), north, about-turn, "the other way".
Why do different indicators apply to across and down clues?
Because the reversal mimics grid direction: across answers read left-to-right, so "west"/"back" means reversed; down answers read top-to-bottom, so "up"/"rising" means reversed.
Can a reversal apply to only part of the answer?
Yes — reversing a fragment inside a larger charade is standard. Treat reversal as a component operation, not always the whole mechanism.