Soldiers ready to drop out of service?

Latest answer — August 29, 2026

27 Across

The joke points to personnel who have left active duty rather than merely being ready 🎖️

Scroll down for rest of crossword answers

Times Cryptic Crossword

This clue's Saturday, August 29, 2026 appearance

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Across

  1. 1Disclose bonus after sacking some internally
  2. 5Eat something from this meal
  3. 9One of several young relations returned deposit with rent
  4. 10Recorder of minutes perhaps lying about terms of reference
  5. 11NZ union man missing every line once behind
  6. 12Cover overcoat when carrying overhead projector around
  7. 13Look forward to lecture material delivered by Hawking
  8. 17Part of kitchen cabinet reducing liquidity of executives?
  9. 21Accommodation on boat where one throws up?
  10. 24Cold-blooded individual in City bank ultimately consumed by success
  11. 25Have a little bit of judgment
  12. 26Outstanding anti-Brexit government originally getting elected
  13. 27Soldiers ready to drop out of service?
  14. 28Ignore article made into chapter in elegant novel

Down

  1. 1Depose international body established to protect America
  2. 2Dumb ox came racing around one taking shots
  3. 3Was proud and snobbish
  4. 4Don’s partner on university study is sluggish?
  5. 5Without being out of pocket, get around obstacle
  6. 6State embracing Republican — evil, thuggish individual
  7. 7Attempt to persuade did work for those attending
  8. 8Transforming complex integral repositioned triangle
  9. 14Mediator reconciled son with bad mum
  10. 15Popular writer’s hosting channel using conclusive methods
  11. 16This admirer makes marriage vow subsequently
  12. 18Source of power is vague after leader steps down
  13. 19Use of line going off at a tangent
  14. 20Give up on first of those left behind
  15. 22Surprising result increases trade deficit in the end
  16. 23Shaved heads of punks appeared revolutionary

The answer to “Soldiers ready to drop out of service?” in the The Times Cryptic crossword is RETIRED — a 7-letter word. It most recently appeared in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 29, 2026, a Saturday puzzle, at 27-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.

“Soldiers ready to drop out of service?” answer

RETIRED (7 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 RETIRED.

Why the answer is RETIRED

The joke points to personnel who have left active duty rather than merely being ready 🎖️

What does RETIRED mean?

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

(adjective)

  • having left one's job and ceased to work
  • (of a place) quiet and secluded

When else has “Soldiers ready to drop out of service?” 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 29, 2026 (most recent) → RETIRED. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Soldiers ready to drop out of service?”?

The answer is RETIRED, a 7-letter word. It most recently appeared in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 29, 2026.

How many letters is the answer to “Soldiers ready to drop out of service?”?

7 letters: RETIRED.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the The Times Cryptic crossword on August 29, 2026 (a Saturday puzzle), at 27-Across.

Can “Soldiers ready to drop out of service?” 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 29, 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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