Prepare for role in good play

Latest answer — August 28, 2026

11 Across

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Clue explained

GROOM as a verb means ‘prepare’, especially prepare someone for a particular role. The wordplay is G, the abbreviation for good, plus ROOM, a space in which one might play.

Clue type:
Pun or wordplay
An uncluttered room arranged as a space for play.

Times Cryptic Crossword

This clue's Friday, August 28, 2026 appearance

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Across

  1. 1Cricket and telly where there could be culture?
  2. 5Soviet region’s terminal east of Russian river
  3. 10Trace source of unusual food eaten when cycling
  4. 11Prepare for role in good play
  5. 12Weighty arguments against peer eating beans this regularly
  6. 14Performing dance with specialist shoes easy to access
  7. 16Fellow British annoy an insular Scot
  8. 18Head girl has recovered from being in love with head teacher
  9. 20Like wearing doctor’s pants
  10. 22Show wizard standing astride river
  11. 26Going on further than intended, almost back
  12. 27Littoral reshaped by delta, as it were
  13. 28Young chorister leaving out quaver in the middle
  14. 29Unusual parking light on front of car folded up

Down

  1. 1Stew not yet cooked?
  2. 2Petition on that basis allowed
  3. 3Clear up right after a bit of carpentry
  4. 4Book and at least three gardening tools fitting inside drum
  5. 6For one throwing away clothes, where to start?
  6. 7Stress back home upset Sue on vacation
  7. 8Not being late by skirting queues?
  8. 9List that could be read in three parts for us
  9. 13Trump heard Republican skewering silly crude text
  10. 15PTA in real knots dealing with end of term and after
  11. 17Shower leaving dirty marks? Not so bad taking bath
  12. 19Scat by large deer — one dropping from that
  13. 21Saudi travelling around noon left face partly shaded
  14. 23Place with parts not built up
  15. 24Dress for pilgrimage in India, hot being covered with fleece
  16. 25Melted part bubbled up, you’d say

The answer to “Prepare for role in good play” in the The Times Cryptic crossword is GROOM — a 5-letter word. It most recently appeared in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 28, 2026, a Friday puzzle, at 11-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.

“Prepare for role in good play” answer

GROOM (5 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 GROOM.

What does GROOM mean?

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

(verb)

  • brush and clean the coat of (a horse, dog, or other animal)
  • prepare or train (someone) for a particular purpose or activity
  • form a relationship with (a child or young person) with the intention of sexually assaulting them or inducing them to commit an illegal act such as selling drugs or joining a terrorist organization

When else has “Prepare for role in good play” 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 28, 2026 (most recent) → GROOM. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Prepare for role in good play”?

The answer is GROOM, a 5-letter word. It most recently appeared in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 28, 2026.

How many letters is the answer to “Prepare for role in good play”?

5 letters: GROOM.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 28, 2026 (a Friday puzzle), at 11-Across.

Can “Prepare for role in good play” 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 28, 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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