Four by Four hints ·
Hints for the Four by Four puzzle
Open one hint at a time for each group. Hints go from a vague nudge to nearly naming the category, and each group stays hidden until you choose to reveal it. Play this puzzle.
The sixteen words
OSPREY · MOTH · BUZZARD · TOW · MAROON · FRIEND · CORN · SCHOLAR · STRAND · MEMBER · HARRIER · BOTH · KESTREL · FORSAKE · CHAMPION · DITCH
Group 1
Hint 1: A nudge
Shade your eyes and look upward.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
Several of these names have been borrowed for aircraft and for dog breeds.
Hint 3: Nearly there
Feathered hunters with talons, seen wheeling above fields and coastlines.
Group 2
Hint 1: A nudge
Each of these is only part of a longer word.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
Add the same four-letter tail to every one and you get a familiar noun about a state or status.
Hint 3: Nearly there
Think of leadership, ownership and partnership.
Group 3
Hint 1: A nudge
One of these is also a colour, and another is a stretch of beach.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
All four work as verbs, even though you may picture nouns first.
Hint 3: Nearly there
Each can describe leaving a person or a plan behind for good.
Group 4
Hint 1: A nudge
A tiny addition changes everything.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
Two extra characters on the end send each of these somewhere with no connection to the original.
Hint 3: Nearly there
Stick the same short ending on each and you get a parent, a tall structure, a nuisance and a bend in a road.