Nightmare examination holding back Miliband?

Latest answer — August 12, 2026

22 Down

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Clue explained

ORDEAL means a nightmare or severe trial. ORAL, an examination, holds DE, which is ED (Miliband’s first name) “back”, with the question mark signalling the playful identification of Miliband by his first name.

Clue type:
Nickname or title
A portrait of British politician Ed Miliband.

Times Cryptic Crossword

This clue's Wednesday, August 12, 2026 appearance

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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 “Nightmare examination holding back Miliband?” in the The Times Cryptic crossword is ORDEAL — a 6-letter word. It most recently appeared in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 12, 2026, a Wednesday puzzle, at 22-Down. 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.

“Nightmare examination holding back Miliband?” answer

ORDEAL (6 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 ORDEAL.

What does ORDEAL mean?

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

(noun)

  • a very unpleasant and prolonged experience
  • an ancient test of guilt or innocence by subjection of the accused to severe pain, survival of which was taken as divine proof of innocence

When else has “Nightmare examination holding back Miliband?” 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) → ORDEAL. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Nightmare examination holding back Miliband?”?

The answer is ORDEAL, a 6-letter word. It most recently appeared in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 12, 2026.

How many letters is the answer to “Nightmare examination holding back Miliband?”?

6 letters: ORDEAL.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 12, 2026 (a Wednesday puzzle), at 22-Down.

Can “Nightmare examination holding back Miliband?” 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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