Leaves Inca ruins in Western Hemisphere (7) Minute Cryptic Crossword Clue
Searching for the answer to “Leaves Inca ruins in Western Hemisphere (7)” in today’s Minute Cryptic Crossword? Look no further! We’ve provided the solution to help you finish the puzzle and make the most of your crossword-solving experience.
Hints
'Ruins', 'in', 'Western', and 'Hemi' are our indicators. 'ruins' signals an anagram of some neighbouring fodder, 'in' tells us to insert some fodder in other fodder, and 'Western' + 'Hemi' together instruct us to select a certain part of some fodder.
Our fodder is 'Inca' and 'sphere' — we'll use these letters (or some of them) to construct our answer, as directed by the indicator(s).
The definition is 'Leaves', and our answer will correspond directly with this word.
The answer to "Leaves Inca ruins in Western Hemisphere (7)" is SPINACH.
In this clue the definition is the surface word “Leaves,” pointing to a leafy green vegetable: spinach. The rest of the clue — “Inca ruins in Western Hemisphere” — works as a playful surface (and possibly an &lit-style cryptic surface) that evokes the Americas and ancient sites while not changing the straight definition: spinach are edible leaves.
I wasn’t able to find a clean letter-for-letter construction from the phrase “Inca ruins in Western Hemisphere” (some setters simply use an evocative surface rather than tight letterplay), but the answer is straightforward: spinach = leaves, and it fits the enumeration (7).
Minute Cryptic
A Minute Cryptic is a type of crossword puzzle that focuses on very short, often tricky clues that require quick and sharp thinking. These puzzles typically feature concise clues that challenge solvers to think outside the box and consider alternative meanings, wordplay, or indirect references.
Unlike traditional cryptic clues, which may have more detailed explanations, Minute Cryptics are designed to be solved in a very short amount of time, often making them ideal for quick bursts of mental exercise. They tend to require both a good understanding of wordplay and a high level of familiarity with common crossword conventions, but their brevity makes them a fun and engaging challenge for puzzle enthusiasts.
