Spy Sudoku for 9/12/2026: FLAKY

Today's keyword is FLAKY.
Drop "K" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "E" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

Today’s hidden words should be familiar to most players.

-K

FLAKY

+E

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: MUNGO
4x4 (MUNGO - G): MUON
6x6 (MUNGO + I): GONIUM

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku (Paraprosdokian Sudoku!) Puzzles for Saturday, 9/12/2026

Sea captains … don’t like crew cuts.

A paraprosdokian is wordplay where the latter part of a statement forces you to reinterpret the first part. The phrase intentionally leads you in one direction—misleads you into thinking one way—and then abruptly changes direction, ending with the unexpected twist. The origin of the word is Greek, meaning "against expectation."

Most of the statements in these weekly blog posts are actual paraprosdokians; you might possibly dispute a few. But since they’re still fun plays on words, I’m sharing them anyway.

Because paraprosdokians come in two parts, I present each part as a separate quote, each revealed by solving its own set of word Sudoku puzzles.

SLIGHT
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

FADE
4x4 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x2 square and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

NORM
4x4 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x2 square and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once
Copy circled letters to the corresponding numbered cells in the quote grid to spell out the quote

SWATCH
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

DOUBLE
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once
Copy circled letters to the corresponding numbered cells in the quote grid to spell out the quote

Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to Friday's Word Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday's 5x5 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in ARY + SX (X RAYS) and the 7x7 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in COTE + SIX (COEXIST).

The Saturday paraprosdokian in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 9/11/2026: MUNGO

Today's keyword is MUNGO.
Drop "G" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "I" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

Today’s hidden words may be less familiar; your Sudoku skills will reveal them!

-G

MUNGO

+I

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: FINDS
4x4 (FINDS - F): DINS
6x6 (FINDS + E): FIENDS

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzles for Friday, 9/11/2026

ARY + SX
5x5 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and enclosed shape contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells out in the shaded cells

COTE + SIX
7x7 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and enclosed shape contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells out in the shaded cells

Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solution to Thursday's Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday's 10x10 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in NOT FLEA + SIX (EXFOLIANTS).

Another set of puzzles in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 9/10/2026: FINDS

Today's keyword is FINDS.
Drop "F" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "E" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

Today’s hidden words should be familiar to most players.

-F

FINDS

+E

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: FINCH
4x4 (FINCH - F): CHIN
6x6 (FINCH + L): FLINCH

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Thursday, 9/10/2026

NOT FLEA + SIX
10x10 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x5 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal

Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solution to Wednesday's Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday's 8x8 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in OK BET + SIX (BOX KITES).

A new puzzle in a bit.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 9/9/2026: FINCH

Today's keyword is FINCH.
Drop "F" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "L" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

Today’s hidden words should be familiar to most players.

-F

FINCH

+L

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: FARCY
4x4 (FARCY - F): RACY
6x6 (FARCY + T): CRAFTY

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Wednesday, 9/9/2026

OK BET + SIX
8x8 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x4 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal

Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

Solution to Tuesday's Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday's 9x9 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in OPERAND + SX (EXPANDORS).

A new puzzle in just a bit.
Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 9/8/2026: FARCY

Today's keyword is FARCY.
Drop "F" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "T" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

Today’s hidden words should be familiar to most players.

-F

FARCY

+T

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: DOWEL
4x4 (DOWEL - O): WELD
6x6 (DOWEL + G): GLOWED

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Tuesday, 9/8/2026

OPERAND + SX
9x9 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 3x3 square contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal

Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to Monday's Word Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday's 4x4 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in RT + IX (TRIX) and the 6x6 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in PAIR + SX (PRAXIS).

More puzzles in a bit.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 9/7/2026: DOWEL

Today's keyword is DOWEL.
Drop "O" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "G" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

Spy Sudoku is a new word game based on Word Sudoku. Each day, you're given a 5-letter word, and told which letter to take away or add, to solve a 4x4 and 6x6 Word Sudoku puzzle.

Fair warning! These puzzles use more than just the common words you undoubtedly know; they also include rare, obsolete, and archaic words, scientific terms, and even names—of people and places. This is because the rules of Sudoku don't require you to know the word to solve the puzzle. Most of the week, the hidden words are ones you'll probably recognize—common and familiar. Some days, especially Fridays and Sundays, you may encounter unfamiliar words. But the logic of Sudoku will always lead you to the answers, and you might learn some new words!

On Sundays, you'll also be challenged to solve a 5x5 puzzle spelling out an anagram of the 5-letter word.

I'd love your feedback! Please use the blog comment feature to let me know what works for you, and what doesn't.

Today’s hidden words should be familiar to most players.

-O

DOWEL

+G

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: LOWED
4x4 (LOWED - W): DOLE
6x6 (LOWED + H): HOWLED
5x5: DOWEL

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzles for Monday, 9/7/2026

RT + IX
4x4 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x2 square contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells out in the shaded cells

PAIR + SX
6x6 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x3 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal

 

Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

(A reminder that weekday puzzles in 2026 are based on words or phrases containing at least two of the letters in SIX, a puzzle form I call Missing Letter, Hidden Word Sudoku. Please see my amazon puzzle page www.bit.ly/WordSudokuBooks for a series of nine puzzle collections of this form that span the entire alphabet.)

 

Solutions to the Sunday [Did You Hear?] Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday’s Qudoku puzzle set spelled out a Did you hear? joke.a contronym.

DID YOU HEAR ABOUT...

New puzzles in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave