Bergamot herbal extract for bodybuilder? (6)
Minute Cryptic Answer — July 30, 2026
Bergamot herbal extract for bodybuilder? (6)
First letter shown — tap each tile or show the full answer below
Indicator
extract is the hidden-word indicator here. It tells you to pull the answer out of nearby letters rather than rearranging them.
Fodder
Bergamot herbal is the letter bank for the hidden word. You take a consecutive stretch of those letters to find the answer.
Definition
bodybuilder? is the definition, and the question mark shows it’s a playful, slightly misleading one. It points to a person who gives birth and raises a child, not a gym muscle-builder.
Explainer
Answer
mother
You look inside bergaMOT HERbal and spot MOTHER running straight through the middle. The indicator extract tells you to take that hidden stretch of letters. That gives MOTHER, which fits the cheeky definition bodybuilder? as someone who builds a body, in the sense of bearing and raising a child.
The Minute Cryptic answer to “Bergamot herbal extract for bodybuilder?” (6) is MOTHER — 6 letters. It ran on Thursday, July 30, 2026, a member submission from Ben Stuart, and it turns on hidden word wordplay. Below you'll find the answer on its own, the clue taken apart a piece at a time, and what to look for the next time the same trick shows up.
“Bergamot herbal extract for bodybuilder?” (6) — answer
MOTHER (6)
The letters run M • • • • R, and the tiles above spell the answer out in full. If you only wanted a nudge, the highlighted clue above gives you the indicator, the fodder and the definition one at a time, the same way the game does.
Why the answer is MOTHER
Split the clue in two. “bodybuilder?” is the definition — the plain meaning MOTHER has to satisfy, and it sits at the end of the clue, where definitions always are.
Everything else is wordplay. “extract” is the indicator, flagging a hidden word, and it says to read straight through “Bergamot herbal” and pull out what hides there. Follow that through and you get MOTHER, 6 letters, matching the (6).
Minute Cryptic also films a short explainer for this clue if you'd rather hear it walked through.
How hidden word clues work
A hidden word sits unbroken inside the clue's own words, almost always straddling the gap between two of them. Nothing gets rearranged — you're scanning left to right for a run of letters the right length, which is why the joins between words are the place to look.
Indicators to watch for: some of, part of, in, within, held in, extract, hiding, a bit of. Spot one of those and you know which trick the setter is asking for, which is most of the battle in a cryptic clue.
About Minute Cryptic
Minute Cryptic publishes one cryptic crossword clue a day at minutecryptic.com — no grid, no streak, just the clue, three nudges and a short video explainer. Scoring is golf-style: every clue carries a par counted in hints, and each nudge or revealed letter costs a stroke. Clues come from editor Liam Runnalls and from community setters. This one came from community member Ben Stuart, with a par of 2 hints.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Minute Cryptic answer to “Bergamot herbal extract for bodybuilder?” (6)?
MOTHER — 6 letters. The clue ran on Thursday, July 30, 2026, a member submission from Ben Stuart.
Why is the answer MOTHER?
“bodybuilder?” is the definition. “extract” is the indicator, and it says to read straight through “Bergamot herbal” and pull out what hides there. That gives MOTHER.
How many letters is the answer to “Bergamot herbal extract for bodybuilder?” (6)?
6 letters, running M • • • • R.
What kind of cryptic clue is “Bergamot herbal extract for bodybuilder?” (6)?
A hidden word clue. The indicator is “extract”. A hidden word sits unbroken inside the clue's own words, almost always straddling the gap between two of them.
What was par for “Bergamot herbal extract for bodybuilder?” (6)?
2 hints, and solvers average 1. Par counts nudges rather than guesses, so taking fewer than 2 on this clue puts you under par. 73,025 people have solved it.
Where can I see the rest of the Thursday, July 30, 2026 Minute Cryptic?
The Minute Cryptic answers page for Thursday, July 30, 2026 has the same clue with every nudge highlighted, the hints table and the day's countdown.