Summary: Criss Cross — also called Kriss Kross — is an intersecting word-fit. Write one letter in each empty white square so each Across or Down clue has its word. Words share a letter where they cross. This guide uses a small board whose first word is CAT.
Overview
A Criss Cross puzzle is a crossword-style grid of empty white squares plus an Across and Down list. Some squares carry a small number in the top-left corner. That number starts a word running Across (left to right) or Down (top to bottom). The list under the grid — or beside it in a book — gives you the answers to write in.
Left is the puzzle. Right is the finished solution. Treat the left-hand grid as the worksheet; check the right-hand grid after the last fill. Count rows down from the top and columns left to right. The first fills are walked below.
The Goal
Fill every empty letter square so each Across clue and each Down clue has its word. Where two words cross, they share that one letter.
The Rules
- Write one letter per empty letter square. A small top-left number sits in that first letter square — write the letter there. A full-size number badge is its own square and is not filled; write the letters in the empty squares that follow it. Gaps between words stay empty.
- Across runs left to right. Down runs top to bottom. A word sits in a straight line of touching squares. It does not bend.
- A number marks the first letter of a word. The same number can be both Across and Down when that first square starts two words. On this board, 1 starts CAT across and CAR down.
- Words share a letter where they cross. The C of CAT is the C of CAR. The T of CAT is the T of TOP. That shared letter has to work for both words.
- Letter squares start empty. The numbers stay. You write the letters. The solution page prints the finished words.
How to Play Criss Cross
Work the left-hand board. The clues sit under the grid.
Across
1. Feline pet
3. Baked dessert
Down
1. Road vehicle
2. Spinning toy
- Start with 1 Across. “Feline pet” is three empty squares across the top row, starting at the square numbered 1 (row 1, column 1). Write C, A, T.
- Use that same numbered square for 1 Down. The C you just wrote is also the first letter of 1 Down. “Road vehicle” runs down column 1. Write A in row 2 and R in row 3. That is CAR.
- Then take 2 Down from a letter you already have. 2 Down starts at the T of CAT (row 1, column 3). “Spinning toy” runs down that column. Write O in row 2 and P in row 3. That is TOP.
- Your turn — finish 3 Across the same way. 3 Across starts at that P (row 3, column 3). “Baked dessert” is three squares across. Write the two missing letters in row 3, columns 4 and 5. Then check the right-hand grid — those squares should read PIE.
Those first fills are 1 Across = CAT, 1 Down = CAR, and 2 Down = TOP. The last word shares the P you already placed.
If you want to make these for a book or a class sheet, Puzzle Maker Pro generates Regular Criss Cross. Start with How to create Criss Cross puzzles with Puzzle Maker Pro – Criss Cross, or see the Regular Criss Cross product page.
Word Fill and Scramble Pages
The crossing rule stays when the list under the grid is not written clues. What changes is how you pick the next word.
- Word Fill banks the words by length. You match a bank word to a slot of that length by testing shared letters, not by following a number.
- Scramble still uses Across and Down numbers. Each clue is the answer with its letters mixed.
On this Word Fill page the bank is one group — 3 Letters — and start marks are not printed. All four words are three letters, so nothing is unique until you test a crossing. Try CAT on the top three squares. From that C, CAR is the only bank word that still fits down the first column. From that T, TOP fits down the third column. PIE then sits across from the P of TOP.
A printed book page is usually larger than this teaching board. Some pages print Across and Down on the puzzle. Others keep the list in the book, next to a clean crossing. Small top-left numbers are the usual start marks — those sit in the first letter square, and you write the letter there. Some pages use a full-size number badge instead; that badge itself is not filled. Write the letters in the empty squares next to it. The crossing rule does not change.
Outcome
You can fill a numbered crossing from Across and Down, treat a shared letter as a legal crossing, and — on a Word Fill page — fit a length-grouped bank the same way. Want to make a set? Try the free demo, open the Regular Criss Cross product page, or continue with How to create Criss Cross puzzles with Puzzle Maker Pro – Criss Cross. The Crossword Tutorials hub links this how-to-play page with the Criss Cross create tutorial.
FAQ
How do you play Criss Cross?
Fill every white letter square from the Across and Down list. A number marks where a word starts. Each clue is one word. Where two words meet, they share that letter.
What is a Criss Cross puzzle?
An intersecting word-fit page — the same shape shoppers call Kriss Kross. You write letters into empty squares so the Across and Down words cross at shared letters.
Can two words share a letter?
Yes. That is the whole page. On the board above, CAT and CAR share the C, CAT and TOP share the T, and TOP and PIE share the P.
Can the same number be Across and Down?
Yes, when one square starts both a horizontal word and a vertical word. On this board, 1 is 1 Across (CAT) and 1 Down (CAR).
What is Word Fill?
A Criss Cross page that lists the words by length instead of writing a clue for each number. You still fit the words so crossings match. Scramble keeps the numbers and mixes the letters of each answer.
Do I write letters in the gaps between words?
No. Only the white letter squares are part of the puzzle. The gaps stay empty.