Patois Crossword

Grand · Medium · No. 10:00

Patois Crossword: Grand · Medium · No. 1

A medium grand Patois crossword with 45 clues. Every answer is a real Jamaican Patois word from the dictionary, and each links to its entry when you finish. Medium: A wider vocabulary. Clues are the meaning, and you can have wrong letters marked but never shown the answer.

Across

  1. 1 A loud commotion, uproar, or disturbance — chaos, a noisy quarrel, or a great fuss (9)
  2. 4 Fresh, clean, brand new, and looking sharp (5)
  3. 5 A small amount of money (6)
  4. 6 To steal — and, as a noun, a ____ (4)
  5. 8 Abroad — any country outside Jamaica, and above all the United States, Britain, and Canada (6)
  6. 9 One's group of friends, running partners, or ____ — the people you move with (4)
  7. 10 Wind of any strength (6)
  8. 11 To walk, journey, or make one's way through life (4)
  9. 16 Somebody, someone — the Patois pronunciation of 'somebody' (6)
  10. 18 A sweet steamed pudding of grated sweet potato or cornmeal mixed with coconut (6)
  11. 19 A man's sleeveless vest or singlet worn as an undershirt (6)
  12. 20 Here, this place — the everyday word for 'here', as in 'come ____' (3)
  13. 21 Afro-Jamaican folk magic (5)
  14. 22 Healthy, robust, and in good vigour — strong and well in body (6)
  15. 26 Food, victuals — cooked food to eat, provisions for a meal (6)
  16. 27 A rotating savings club (4)
  17. 29 On a sound system, the art of mixing and blending riddims and tunes to keep a dance going (8)
  18. 31 A method of cooking meat (4)
  19. 32 The tall, jointed, fast-growing cane that grows in dense clumps along Jamaican rivers and roadsides (6)
  20. 34 A masquerade tradition performed at Christmas (8)
  21. 35 A term of respect and endearment for a woman — hailing her as royalty and dignity (5)
  22. 36 A starchy edible tuber (3)
  23. 37 A fused contraction of '____' (5)
  24. 38 To be romantically interested in someone, or to pursue them (5)
  25. 39 A large parish in south-central Jamaica, with its capital at May Pen — known for its farming (9)

Down

  1. 2 To go along, go away, or carry on — a versatile word (6)
  2. 3 The warm, aromatic spice grated fresh into porridges, drinks, puddings, and 'sea moss' (6)
  3. 4 Shoes with soft ____ (raw-rubber) soles (5)
  4. 5 A public communal water tap on a post, set in a yard, lane, or street corner (9)
  5. 7 To worry, fuss, or be anxious — to trouble your mind over something (4)
  6. 10 A flat, round flatbread made from grated cassava (5)
  7. 12 A discussion — especially a deep or spiritual one — a session (9)
  8. 13 Culture — heritage, roots, and identity — but in reggae it carries a special, weighted sense (6)
  9. 14 Thunder — the Patois pronunciation of 'thunder', with the 'th' hardened to 't' (5)
  10. 15 A ghost or malevolent spirit of the dead (5)
  11. 17 The demonstrative 'that' or 'this', pointing to a specific thing — most often paired with 'deh' (3)
  12. 18 A large root of the taro family, with dark-flecked, dense, greyish flesh (7)
  13. 23 A public statement in church of what God has done for you (9)
  14. 24 Fungus in its everyday forms — mushroom, mould, or mildew (5)
  15. 25 The small freshwater crayfish or shrimp found in Jamaica's rivers (5)
  16. 27 To ____ down, calm down, or relax — to come to rest and be at peace (6)
  17. 28 A man who has affairs with other men's partners (8)
  18. 30 Little or small — in size, amount, or degree (6)
  19. 32 Wild, uncultivated land (4)
  20. 33 To break — but reaching far beyond the plain sense (4)

Where the words come from

Every answer is an entry in the Patois dictionary. This puzzle draws on: Actions & Verbs, Affection, Love & Romance, Animals, Plants & Nature, Body, Health & Appearance, Caribbean & Diaspora Usage, Clothing & Style, Culture, Heritage & History, Descriptions & Emotions, Food & Drink, Grammar & Function Words, Money, Work & Business, Music, Reggae & Dancehall, People & Relationships, Places & Directions, Rastafari & Iyaric, Superstition, Folklore & Spirituality. When you finish, each answer shows its meaning, its pronunciation and an example sentence.

The number in brackets after a clue is the length of the answer, and (3,5) means two words of three and five letters, typed with no space. Patois has no single spelling, so if you type another spelling the dictionary records, it counts.

More to play

Back to all Patois crosswords, try the daily word game Guess Di Word, or take a Patois quiz. You can print this puzzle from your browser's print menu.