Editing Cryptic crossword (section)

=== Double definition ===
A clue may, rather than having a definition part and a wordplay part, have two definition parts.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=GAMES–World of Puzzles |date=October 2021 |issn=1074-4355 |volume=45 |number=8 |last=Parr |first=Andrew|title=Cryptic Classroom #2: Double Definitions |page=33}}</ref> Thus:

: ''Not seeing window covering (5)''

would have the answer {{sc2|BLIND}}, because ''blind'' can mean both "not seeing" and "window covering". Note that since these definitions come from the same root word, an American magazine might not allow this clue. American double definitions tend to require both parts to come from different roots, as in this clue:

: ''Eastern European buff (6)''

This takes advantage of the two very different meanings (and pronunciations) of {{sc2|POLISH}}, the one with the long ''o'' sound meaning 'someone from Poland', and the one with the short ''o'' sound meaning 'make shiny'.

These clues tend to be short; in particular, two-word clues are almost always double-definition clues.

In the UK, multiple definitions are occasionally used; e.g.:

: ''Blue swallow feathers fell from above (4)''

is a quintuple definition of {{sc2|DOWN}} ("blue" (sad), "swallow" (drink), "feathers" (plumage), "fell" (cut down) and "from above"),<ref>Arachne (30 January 2014), [https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/26170 Cryptic crossword No 26,170] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240703124941/https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/26170 |date=3 July 2024 }}, ''The Guardian''</ref> but in the US this would be considered unsound.

Some British newspapers have an affection for quirky clues of this kind where the two definitions are similar:

: ''Let in or let on (5)'' – {{sc2|ADMIT}}

Note that these clues do not have clear indicator words.