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
TEAPOT · ECHO · MIRROR · PARROT · DOG · MOTH · LIGHT · MUSEUM · LOCUST · MIMIC · WINDOW · WARE · FARM · HORNET · DIAMOND · WEEVIL
Group 1
Hint 1: A nudge
Small creatures you might meet in a field, a pantry, or a closet.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
One swarms crops, one nests under the eaves, one gets into stored grain.
Hint 3: Nearly there
Every one of these has six legs.
Group 2
Hint 1: A nudge
Each of these works as a verb, even if one or two first bring to mind a bird or a bathroom fixture.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
Two might send your thoughts to an aviary or a canyon, but that is not the link.
Hint 3: Nearly there
All four can mean to repeat or reproduce what someone else says or does.
Group 3
Hint 1: A nudge
Each of these is only half of something bigger.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
Stick the very same word on the end of all four and you get four familiar compounds.
Hint 3: Nearly there
The shared ending is a word for a building people live in.
Group 4
Hint 1: A nudge
Forget what these mean; look at how they are spelled.
Hint 2: Narrowing it down
Pay attention to the two ends of each word.
Hint 3: Nearly there
In each one, the opening letter and the closing letter are the same.