New Word Sudoku (Paraprosdokian Sudoku!) Puzzles for Saturday, 10/24/2026

Sea captains … don’t like crew cuts.

A paraprosdokian is wordplay where the latter part of a statement forces you to reinterpret the first part. The phrase intentionally leads you in one direction—misleads you into thinking one way—and then abruptly changes direction, ending with the unexpected twist. The origin of the word is Greek, meaning "against expectation."

Most of the statements in these weekly blog posts are actual paraprosdokians; you might possibly dispute a few. But since they’re still fun plays on words, I’m sharing them anyway.

Because paraprosdokians come in two parts, I present each part as a separate quote, each revealed by solving its own set of word Sudoku puzzles.

METHOD
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

PUNS
4x4 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x2 square and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

PRAY
4x4 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x2 square and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once
Copy circled letters to the corresponding numbered cells in the quote grid to spell out the quote

UNSAID
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

WORTHY
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once
Copy circled letters to the corresponding numbered cells in the quote grid to spell out the quote

Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to Friday's Word Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday's 5x5 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in ET + SIX (SIXTE) and the 7x7 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in TEACH + SX (HEXACTS).

The Saturday paraprosdokian in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 10/23/2026: YIRTH

Today's keyword is YIRTH.
Drop "Y" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "S" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

One or both of today’s hidden words may be less familiar; your Sudoku skills will reveal all!

-Y

YIRTH

+S

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: PYXIS
4x4 (PYXIS - X): YIPS
6x6 (PYXIS + E): PYXIES

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzles for Friday, 10/23/2026

ET + SIX
5x5 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and enclosed shape contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells out in the shaded cells

TEACH + SX
7x7 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and enclosed shape contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells out in the shaded cells

Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solution to Thursday's Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday's 10x10 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in PROLATE + SIX (SEXTIPOLAR).

Another set of puzzles in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 10/22/2026: PYXIS

Today's keyword is PYXIS.
Drop "X" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "E" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

One or both of today’s hidden words may be less familiar; your Sudoku skills will reveal all!

-X

PYXIS

+E

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: POUTY
4x4 (POUTY - U): TYPO
6x6 (POUTY + A): PAYOUT

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Thursday, 10/22/2026

PROLATE + SIX
10x10 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x5 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal

Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solution to Wednesday's Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday's 8x8 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in RECTO + SIX (EXORCIST).

A new puzzle in a bit.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 10/21/2026: POUTY

Today's keyword is POUTY.
Drop "U" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "A" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

Today’s hidden words should be familiar to most players.

-U

POUTY

+A

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: MUSHY
4x4 (MUSHY - Y): HUMS
6x6 (MUSHY + T): THYMUS

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Wednesday, 10/21/2026

RECTO + SIX
8x8 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x4 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal

Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solution to Tuesday's Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday's 9x9 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in RAG ELM + SIX (LEXIGRAMS).

A new puzzle in just a bit.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 10/20/2026: MUSHY

Today's keyword is MUSHY.
Drop "Y" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "T" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

Today’s hidden words should be familiar to most players.

-Y

MUSHY

+T

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: BOGEY
4x4 (BOGEY - G): OBEY
6x6 (BOGEY + S): BOGEYS

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Tuesday, 10/20/2026

RAG ELM + SIX
9x9 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 3x3 square contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal

Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

9x9,Hidden Word Sudoku

 

Solutions to Monday's Word Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday's 4x4 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in AN + IX (XIAN) and the 6x6 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in ROBE + SX (BOXERS).

More puzzles in a bit.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Spy Sudoku for 10/19/2026: BOGEY

Spy Sudoku is my new word game based on Word Sudoku. Each day, you're given a 5-letter word, and told which letter to take away or add, to solve a 4x4 and 6x6 Word Sudoku puzzle.

Fair warning! These puzzles use more than just the common words you undoubtedly know; they also include rare, obsolete, and archaic words, scientific terms, and even names—of people and places. This is because the rules of Sudoku don't require you to know the word to solve the puzzle. Most of the week, the hidden words are ones you'll probably recognize—common and familiar. Some days, especially Fridays and Sundays, you may encounter unfamiliar words. But the logic of Sudoku will always lead you to the answers, and you might learn some new words!

On Sundays, you'll also be challenged to solve a 5x5 puzzle spelling out an anagram of the 5-letter word.

I'd love your feedback! Please use the blog comment feature to let me know what works for you, and what doesn't.

Today’s keyword is BOGEY.
Drop "G" and use the remaining letters to solve the 4x4 puzzle.
Add "S" to the keyword to supply the letters to solve the 6x6 puzzle.

Today’s hidden words should be familiar to most players.

-G

BOGEY

+S

Solutions tomorrow morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to yesterday's Spy Sudoku puzzles

Yesterday's Spy Sudoku keyword: FOULS
4x4 (FOULS - O): FLUS
6x6 (FOULS + B): SOBFUL
5x5: SULFO

Thanks,
--Dave

 

New Word Sudoku Puzzles for Monday, 10/19/2026

AN + IX
4x4 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x2 square contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells out in the shaded cells

ROBE + SX
6x6 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x3 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal

Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to the Sunday [Did You Hear?] Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday’s Qudoku puzzle set spelled out a Did you hear? joke.

DID YOU HEAR ABOUT…

New puzzles in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave