Chance western must be given new beginning

Latest answer — August 12, 2026

14 Across

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Clue explained

ACCIDENTAL means chance or happening unexpectedly. The clue also alludes to the musical sense: an accidental gives a note a new pitch, while “western” supplies a setting of Western musical notation.

Clue type:
Pun or wordplay
A music score showing sharp, flat and natural accidental signs

Times Cryptic Crossword

This clue's Wednesday, August 12, 2026 appearance

Tap a square to reveal a letter.

Or reveal one clue at a time with the Hint and Answer buttons below.

Across

  1. 1F1 driver leaving hotel in Bow, or somewhere else in London?
  2. 5Hard worker from city of Paris
  3. 8Agent regularly offends
  4. 9Frances’s empty day unravelling costume
  5. 10What saves time is suggestion of copper?
  6. 11Distinction one craves, reportedly
  7. 12Bondage of peasant never-ending
  8. 14Chance western must be given new beginning
  9. 17Those returning members choose to speak
  10. 20Teresa uncertainly restraining hairy man
  11. 23Sex twists in court case
  12. 24Humiliated and given low mark, I hear
  13. 25Losing head, run off with Polish rascal
  14. 26First mate never taking jacket off
  15. 27Little one really making Charlie nervous at first
  16. 28Sly Asian sabotaged investigation

Down

  1. 1Magazine of old on chic way of conducting oneself
  2. 2State of the Union?
  3. 3Force as yet skipping shelter
  4. 4Presenter’s article on new Republican carrying little weight
  5. 5Barber swayed and walked unsteadily
  6. 6Order European to support island party in show of respect
  7. 7Courts going round American state
  8. 13Cook a nice dahl and another dish
  9. 15At sea mostly
  10. 16Doctor slanders university washerwoman
  11. 18I am troubled about offspring’s affair
  12. 19Dispensing with hat, initially get too hot in gorge
  13. 21Heartache of daughter when getting up before noon on English boat
  14. 22Nightmare examination holding back Miliband?

The answer to “Chance western must be given new beginning” in the The Times Cryptic crossword is ACCIDENTAL — a 10-letter word. It most recently appeared in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 12, 2026, a Wednesday puzzle, at 14-Across. Below you'll find why that fill fits, every other answer we've recorded for this clue, and links into the puzzle it came from.

“Chance western must be given new beginning” answer

ACCIDENTAL (10 letters)

Reveal the solution one letter at a time with the tiles above if you'd rather nudge yourself toward it than see the whole word at once. Just want it outright? The answer is ACCIDENTAL.

What does ACCIDENTAL mean?

Reading the plain dictionary sense of ACCIDENTAL is often the fastest way to see why it answers this clue.

(adjective)

  • happening by chance, unintentionally, or unexpectedly
  • incidental; subsidiary
  • (in Aristotelian thought) relating to or denoting properties which are not essential to a thing's nature

When else has “Chance western must be given new beginning” appeared?

The Times Cryptic reuses clues across dates, sometimes with a different answer depending on the grid. Here's where this exact clue has shown up, and what the answer was each time — handy when you're checking whether today's fill is the only one.

August 12, 2026 (most recent) → ACCIDENTAL. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Chance western must be given new beginning”?

The answer is ACCIDENTAL, a 10-letter word. It most recently appeared in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 12, 2026.

How many letters is the answer to “Chance western must be given new beginning”?

10 letters: ACCIDENTAL.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 12, 2026 (a Wednesday puzzle), at 14-Across.

Can “Chance western must be given new beginning” have a different answer?

Yes — The Times Cryptic sometimes reuses a clue with a different solution to fit the grid. The answers we've recorded for each date it appeared are listed above when available.

Where can I find the rest of this day's Times Cryptic answers?

The full grid for August 12, 2026 is on the Times Cryptic answers page, with every clue and answer from that puzzle.

The Times Cryptic Crossword is published by The Times; WordHint is an independent site and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the publisher.

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