The Crossword & Anagram Solver

October 30, 2023

I've fixed a problem that caused the app to be very slow for a few users. I've also improved the diagnostic information available if you need to report a problem, to help me fix future issues more quickly.

October 16, 2023

Make sure the letters in the Anagram Shuffler don't disappear behind the notch / Dynamic Island on iPhones in landscape orientation. Fixed a problem that stopped version 4.3 running on iOS 12 and iOS 13.

October 13, 2023

A slight change if you're using the free version (which shows adverts from Google): Google will now ask for consent to show personalised adverts. You should only be asked once. Sorry about the annoying pop-ups - I hate them as much as anyone, but sadly I have to show them. (Of course if you've subscribed to the upgraded version of the app then you won't see any adverts or annoying pop-ups.) I've also made a few small fixes, including allowing you to report a problem by email if you're using a mail app other than the default Apple Mail app.

September 20, 2023

Minor bug fix: the word list took a couple of seconds to appear on iOS 17 rather than being almost instant. This version now requires iOS 12. You should still be able to install the previous version of the app on older devices. I've tried to support older devices as long as possible, but now iOS 12 is the minimum version that I'm allowed to support.

June 30, 2022

This should fix the problem where upgrades didn't activate properly. (You may need to tap the "I've already paid" button to re-activate your purchases.) I'm so sorry that the last update broke things so badly. I did test it thorough but something went wrong when it went live on the App Store.

June 27, 2022

I've added two new optional upgrades for when you want a bit of help with a crossword clue, but don't necessarily want the answer handed to you on a plate: • Anagram Shuffler This allows you to try to solve anagrams yourself, by having each letter on a "tile" that you can drag around, or by tapping the "shuffle" button to randomise all the letters. You can also tap letters to lock them in place, if you know (or suspect) those letters must be in a specific place. If you just want the answer, you can tap the "solve" button. This will find all possible known anagrams of those letters, bearing in mind the "locked" letters. • Thesaurus This has been the most requested upgrade after the anagram solver. The thesaurus module can show you a traditional thesaurus entry (with a hierarchy of definitions and alternative words). Or you can look up the straight definition of a word. Or you can get a simple list of synonyms, ordered by number of letters. A slider at the top (or the "fewer" and "more" buttons) let you choose to show fewer words (very closely related to the base word), or more words (with looser associations). The final step on the slider adds in "examples" to the list if they are found in the thesaurus. For example "president" or "lake" might include the names of notable examples in the list. Other minor changes: • When my built-in dictionary can't find the definition for a word, I now use DuckDuckGo to look for a definition instead of Google. That's because Google started requiring people to agree to a privacy policy before showing them the results, which was awkward and unnecessary. • You can now tap a found word to get straight to its definition without having to use a menu. (If you still want the "copy" feature on the menu, tap-and-hold the word to show the menu.) • If you exit the app and come back again later, it will now remember the last word you searched for in each section. (Both anagram sections remember the same letters you searched for, so you can switch between the two sections easily while searching for the same anagram.) • I think I've also fixed a few bugs along the way. It's difficult to remember exactly as I've been working on this update for about 9 months!

November 12, 2019

A new major version, with three of the most requested changes you asked for: • More words and phrases The existing word list (UK Advanced Cryptics Dictionary) had about 220,000 words and 30,000 phrases. But the compiler of that word list seems to have moved on to other pursuits, and hasn't updated it since 2009. So I've taken the WordNet® dictionary from Princeton University, and merged it into my word list, to add approximately 20,000 new words and 50,000 more phrases. • Partial anagrams The Anagram Solver now gives you the option to view partial anagrams - i.e. anagrams that don't use all of the letters you enter. This can help with finding multi-word anagrams (where the phrase isn't a common one listed in the app's word list). It can also help for word games other than crosswords. The new behaviour is an option using a switch at the top of the Anagrams page. But if you don't like it, you can leave it turned off :-) To give everyone a chance to try the new Anagrams mode, even if you haven't yet bought the upgrade, the free trial will be re-activated for 14 days each time I release an update. You'll see a little badge on the Anagrams tab to show you how many days are left in the trial. The badge will disappear at the end of the trial (or if you buy the upgrade). • Built-in definitions I now have definitions built into the app! The old word list (UK Advanced Cryptics Dictionary) didn't include definitions, so previously I used Apple's dictionary built into iOS to show definitions. But Apple's dictionary missed a lot of words, and required re-installing whenever they updated iOS, and then became incredibly slow in iOS 13. The new WordNet® dictionary includes definitions, so I can display them directly in the app without using Apple's dictionary. A bonus is I can now detect if the WordNet® dictionary has a definition before you look it up. So if there is no definition, I can take you straight to a Google dictionary search (if you're connected to the internet). So there is now just one button ("Definition") which will get you the best definition available. I hope you like the new dictionary. Other minor changes: • I've fixed a bug where the app would prompt you multiple times to leave a review. That must have been so annoying - I'm really sorry. It should now only prompt again if you install an update (after you've had time to check out the new version). • I've fixed a problem for those of you running iOS 9 or 10 on iPhones. The text boxes would sometimes scroll off the screen. (I'd fixed this bug before for later devices, but it needed a separate fix for older devices.) • I've added an option to send me a "Technical Report" if you have problems with the app, to help me investigate. You only need to use this option if I ask you for it! • I've added a button called "I've already paid" to make it more obvious how to download upgrades that you bought on a different device. This used to be called "Restore previous purchases" and was only visible after you tapped "Buy now", which was confusing.

September 27, 2019

• I now support the new Dark Mode in iOS 13. Previously if you used Dark Mode the text wasn't visible in text entry boxes as it became white-on-white. Sorry about the problem! • I've fixed a problem where some text was obscured by the 'notch' on the iPhone X and 11 when holding the phone in landscape orientation. • Various other minor bug fixes.

September 13, 2019

I've hopefully fixed a bug where the text entry boxes would sometimes disappear off the screen. I tried to fix this before, but it was still broken for a few people - thank you for your patience. If it still isn't working properly, please let me know!

April 30, 2019

I've made a few small improvements to the app: • I've optimised the app to look better on larger screen devices. • The "Rate this app" button now works again. If you previously tried to give me a rating and couldn't, why not rate it now? I read every review, and I really appreciate them :-) • The Crossword & Anagrams pages looked similar, making it difficult to tell which page you were on. I've added different borders to the text entry boxes as a quick visual way to distinguish them. • I now support "Dynamic Type" for the word lists. You can change the size of the text in the 'Settings' app, under 'Display & Brightness' -> Text Size.

Hide adverts

Remove all adverts displayed in the list of found words.

Anagram solver

Unlimited access to the anagram solver.

All upgrades

Get both the upgrades at a bargain price.