Telegraph Cryptic Crossword Answers - Aug 19
Cryptic Crossword No 31322
Across
- 1Secretary left State conferencePALAVER
- 9Med city canal I've restoredVALENCIA
- 11Todd lugs around a product of mineGOLDDUST
- 13Hurry up mum, run both taps – that's an order!QUICKMARCH
- 21Lover boy's painful backEROS
- 22Little 'un born and bred in Wensleydale?CHEESEMITE
Down
- 4Shock from rubbing plates?EARTHQUAKE
- 14Organ stop fed by electronic pulseKIDNEYBEAN
- 18Upright piano in Laos got damagedGOALPOST
Crossword clues, hints, and answers
Across
- 1. Secretary left State conference — Answer: PALAVER. Hint: It’s a lengthy, possibly pointless discussion or conference. 💬
- 9. Med city canal I've restored — Answer: VALENCIA. Hint: This Spanish city is famous for paella, oranges, and futuristic architecture. 🇪🇸
- 10. Counterfeit piece leaving in the direction of EU nation — Answer: FORGERY. Hint: A fake artwork or document is this illicit creation. 🕵️
- 11. Todd lugs around a product of mine — Answer: GOLDDUST. Hint: Think of a miner’s glittering, powdery treasure. ✨
- 12. Starve in the morning? Seafood sandwiches! — Answer: FAMISH. Hint: This means to go without food, despite the tasty-sounding surface. 🍽️
- 13. Hurry up mum, run both taps – that's an order! — Answer: QUICKMARCH. Hint: A brisk military command telling everyone to move smartly. 🥁
- 15. Additional matter to absorb student — Answer: PLUS. Hint: This means added to or extra, and is also a familiar mathematical symbol. ➕
- 16. Where to have a cuppa after exercising Great Dane — Answer: TEAGARDEN. Hint: Picture a leafy spot for post-workout tea. 🍵
- 21. Lover boy's painful back — Answer: EROS. Hint: Greek mythology’s mischievous god of love fits this clue. 💘
- 22. Little 'un born and bred in Wensleydale? — Answer: CHEESEMITE. Hint: A tiny Wensleydale native would make this cheesy nickname. 🧀
- 24. Annual back in library in good time — Answer: YEARLY. Hint: Something happening once every twelve months is described this way. 📅
- 25. Football: Ancelotti fields brave attacker — Answer: LANCELOT. Hint: Think of the legendary knight who served King Arthur and loved Guinevere. ⚔️
- 27. Large former prisoner pinches international wordbook — Answer: LEXICON. Hint: A dictionary or vocabulary, especially of a language or subject, is this. 📖
- 28. One collapsed beneath the stalls in Covent Garden? — Answer: OPERAHAT. Hint: This fanciful Covent Garden casualty is both theatrical and wearable. 🎩
- 29. Friendly agreement between ten teams holds — Answer: ENTENTE. Hint: A cordial understanding or pact between parties is this. 🤝
Down
- 2. Charming party bar served up beer bottles — Answer: ADORABLE. Hint: Something irresistibly cute or charming earns this description. 😊
- 3. Most furious, Regina rudely discharged servant — Answer: ANGRIEST. Hint: The person feeling the greatest fury is described this way. 😡
- 4. Shock from rubbing plates? — Answer: EARTHQUAKE. Hint: This natural shock occurs when tectonic plates shift. 🌍
- 5. Turn up gas ring, that'll help to set the pudding — Answer: SAGO. Hint: These tiny starchy pearls can help thicken a pudding. 🍮
- 6. Smile when receiving Liberal Democrat old woman — Answer: BELDAM. Hint: An old woman, especially in a literary or old-fashioned setting, may be called this. 👵
- 7. Get ace group of singers on the radio — Answer: ACQUIRE. Hint: Think of a verb meaning to obtain, with the clue combining a top grade and a vocal ensemble. 🎶
- 8. Madcap Tchaikovsky pens something that shows he's human — Answer: CAPTCHA. Hint: This is the web test designed to distinguish people from automated scripts. 🤖
- 11. I start to get excited after report of you getting introduced to Joe Strummer — Answer: GUITARIST. Hint: Picture the rock musician wielding a six-string instrument. 🎸
- 14. Organ stop fed by electronic pulse — Answer: KIDNEYBEAN. Hint: Think of the red legume whose curved shape resembles something anatomical. 🫘
- 17. Defeatist, for example, punching local person — Answer: NEGATIVE. Hint: A defeatist outlook tends to be gloomy, pessimistic, and unwilling to expect success. 🌧️
- 18. Upright piano in Laos got damaged — Answer: GOALPOST. Hint: Imagine the upright marker at either end of a soccer pitch. ⚽
- 19. Son knocked up tailless fish and shellfish — Answer: SCALLOP. Hint: This is the ridged shellfish often served seared or in seafood dishes. 🐚
- 20. Starts to dredge English river south of tight bend — Answer: MEANDER. Hint: Think of a winding route that twists rather than going straight. 🌀
- 23. Diocese observed a bit of back and forth — Answer: SEESAW. Hint: It describes a repeated up-and-down motion, like a playground ride. 🎠
- 26. Test ground eggs first in laboratory — Answer: OVAL. Hint: The shape of a hen’s egg is the key visual cue here. 🥚
Recent Telegraph Cryptic Answers
The last 7 days of solutions
Here are the Telegraph Cryptic Crossword answers for Wednesday, August 19, 2026 — every solution for that day's Monday–Friday 15×15 cryptic, listed at the top of this page. Whether you're catching up on a puzzle you missed, settling a “what was the answer on August 19?” question, or checking a grid you finished that day, the complete clue-by-clue solution is right here. Looking for today's puzzle instead? Head to our live Telegraph Cryptic Crossword answers page.
Telegraph Cryptic Crossword answers for August 19, 2026
The full solution for the August 19 Telegraph Cryptic is shown above, laid out clue by clue — every Across answer followed by every Down answer, exactly as that day's grid read. Each answer is listed separately, so you can check just the clue you were stuck on and leave the rest. This is the confirmed grid as published on Wednesday, August 19.
Full Telegraph Cryptic Crossword answer list for August 19, 2026
Every clue from the August 19 grid next to its solution — the same answers as the board above, in one plain list you can scan without tapping.
Across
Down
Hints for the August 19 cryptic
Not ready for the full answer? Here are lighter, spoiler-free nudges for that day's grid, above the solutions. The August 19 Telegraph Cryptic was a classic Wednesday 15×15 of cryptic wordplay — anagrams, charades, double definitions and the rest — separate from the harder Toughie. If a long entry stalls you, a hint or a single confirmed answer usually opens the corner around it. Use the hints first, then reveal the answers above only if you need them.
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Frequently asked questions
What were the Telegraph Cryptic Crossword answers on August 19, 2026?
Every across and down answer for the Wednesday, August 19, 2026 Telegraph Cryptic is listed at the top of this page — the confirmed Monday–Friday 15×15 cryptic as published that day.
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No — this archive page is the standard weekday Cryptic. The Toughie (Tue–Fri) and weekend Prize Cryptics are separate Telegraph puzzles.
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