13 October 2026 — 10 clues, easiest first. Answers overleaf.
Marginal ledge after first cut (4)
4 · Deletion · difficulty 2/5
Fluent cash flow in liquidity crisis? (6)
6 · Hidden word · difficulty 2/5
Writing tool for words (3)
3 · Double definition · difficulty 2/5
Count with C changed to M — financial backing (5)
5 · Substitution · difficulty 2/5
Folded paper from ballet with a change from B to W (6)
6 · Substitution · difficulty 2/5
To begin with, some customers really expect a meal — cry (6)
6 · Letter selection · difficulty 2/5
Vain to employ the lower gear now (7)
7 · Charade · difficulty 3/5
Initially, beer on old zinc yields drunken state (5)
5 · Letter selection · difficulty 3/5
Guests enjoy nice interesting afternoon lunch at first — friendly (6)
6 · Letter selection · difficulty 3/5
Jive after second backstage (5)
5 · Letter as symbol · difficulty 3/5
Answers & explanations
EDGE(4)
Cliff path when the sheep still nudge the verge. Marginal is the edge, the brink. First cut docks the L from ledge, giving EDGE. Soft mist and a bent gate sell the chop as walkers' caution rather than a shelf tip.
LIQUID(6)
City desk after a scramble for overnight funds. In liquidity yields LIQUID-ity from the opening. Fluent is the liquid sense — free-flowing cash — so the crisis headline cloaks the letters without meddling with the host spelling.
PEN(3)
Desk drawer: a pen as implement, and to pen thoughts in words — PEN. Instrument and the verbal act of writing.
MOUNT(5)
Boardroom when the projector still hums. Backing is the mount of support; count with a change — C to M — and COUNT becomes MOUNT. Soft carpet and a lukewarm coffee dress the rename as investor chatter.
WALLET(6)
Purse money. Paper here is a wallet; ballet with a change puts W where B sat, giving WALLET.
SCREAM(6)
Cry here is a loud yell. To begin with harvests the first letters of some customers really expect a meal, spelling S-C-R-E-A-M. Picture a packed café where the queue is losing patience — the dining-room joke sits in front of a clean acrostic.
USELESS(7)
Hill climb when the engine still complains. Employ yields USE, lower LESS — vain is useless, no good at all. Petrol smell and a misted windscreen sell the join as roadside weather instead of a bald adjective peel.
BOOZY(5)
Pub counter chemistry: ale sat on a battered zinc top. 'Initially' pulls B-O-O-Z-Y from beer on old zinc yields. Drunken is the definition — well oiled — and 'state' pads the surface so the sentence reads like a barman's observation rather than a formula.
GENIAL(6)
Host's report: guests enjoy nice interesting afternoon lunch. 'At first' lifts G-E-N-I-A-L from guests enjoy nice interesting afternoon lunch. Friendly is the definition — genial company — so the weekend invite hides a neat acrostic.
SWING(5)
Dance hall when the band still tunes. Second yields S; backstage is WING — S+WING makes SWING. Jive is the lively dance sense. Soft velvet and a humming amp cloak the join as stage-door chatter.
About this page
Last updated 2026-10-13
Source Daily cryptic-clue column published by TappyPotato. The clue bank and its schedule are generated deterministically and never change once a set is published.
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Covers The 10 clues for 13 October 2026 with their device and difficulty, plus links to the previous and next published sets
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