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CrosswordsWordMerriam-Webster

The Missing Letter

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Solve the crossword, find the letter no answer starts with, and save it for the week's Mystery Word.

Play The Missing Letter

on merriam-webster.com

The Missing Letter title art from Merriam-Webster: the game's name in white on dark blue between rows of white crossword squares, some holding circles

The Missing Letter is a daily crossword from Merriam-Webster, written by Matt Gaffney using the Collegiate Dictionary. Many clues are dictionary definitions, and each answer begins with a different letter. The letter of the alphabet that no answer starts with is the day's missing letter, and at the end of the week you unscramble the missing letters into a Mystery Word.

About The Missing Letter

The Missing Letter is Merriam-Webster's crossword with a built-in second puzzle. It is written by the crossword constructor Matt Gaffney, who draws on Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, so many of the clues are the dictionary's own definitions.

The twist is in the starting letters. Each of the clued answers begins with a different letter of the alphabet, and as you fill the grid the starting letters you have used are ticked off in an A to Z list. When the grid is done, exactly one letter of the alphabet has not started any answer: that is the day's missing letter.

Merriam-Webster launched The Missing Letter as a weekly puzzle in 2023 and made it daily in 2024, adding a weekly layer on top. Each day's missing letter is one piece of a Mystery Word, and once you have the week's letters you unscramble them to find it. Past puzzles stay playable from the archive on the game page, so a missed day does not break the week.

It is free to play in the browser. It suits crossword solvers who like a small meta puzzle, and anyone who enjoys dictionary definitions as clues.

How to play The Missing Letter

  1. Open The Missing Letter on merriam-webster.com and start today's puzzle.
  2. Solve the clues and fill the crossword grid as usual.
  3. Watch the A to Z list: each answer's first letter is marked off as you use it.
  4. When the grid is full, note the one letter no answer starts with; that is the day's missing letter.
  5. Collect the missing letters through the week.
  6. Unscramble the week's letters to solve the Mystery Word.

Tips

  • Keep an eye on the A to Z list as you go; near the end it tells you which starting letters the remaining answers can have.
  • Many clues are dictionary definitions, so think of the formal headword rather than slang.
  • Write down each day's missing letter so the Mystery Word is ready to unscramble.
  • If you miss a day, play it from the All Puzzles archive on the game page before trying the week's word.

Questions

Who writes The Missing Letter?

Matt Gaffney, using Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.

What is the missing letter?

Every clued answer starts with a different letter. The one letter of the alphabet that starts no answer is the day's missing letter.

What is the Mystery Word?

A weekly word made by unscrambling the missing letters from each day of the week.

Is The Missing Letter free?

Yes, it is free to play on Merriam-Webster's website, and older puzzles are in its archive.

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