Selection Clue Practice
Eight original selection clues arranged from easy to hard. In a selection clue, the answer is formed by taking specific letters from other words — first letters, last letters, or middle letters. The key is to spot the selection indicator (words like “initially”, “heads of”, “first letters”, or “heart of”), pick out the right letters, and match them to the definition. Try to solve each one before revealing the solution.
“Grand Unified Theory initially = instinct (3)”
Reveal answer
Answer: GUT
- Selection type: Initial letters
- Indicator: “initially”
- Source words: Grand, Unified, Theory
- Letters used: G + U + T = GUT
- Definition: “instinct”
"Initially" tells you to take the first letters. G from Grand, U from Unified, T from Theory gives GUT. The definition is "instinct" — a gut feeling is an instinct.
“North Atlantic Treaty Organisation first letters = military alliance (4)”
Reveal answer
Answer: NATO
- Selection type: Initial letters
- Indicator: “first letters”
- Source words: North, Atlantic, Treaty, Organisation
- Letters used: N + A + T + O = NATO
- Definition: “military alliance”
"First letters" tells you to take the opening letters. N from North, A from Atlantic, T from Treaty, O from Organisation gives NATO. The definition is "military alliance".
“Personal Identification Number at first = fastener (3)”
Reveal answer
Answer: PIN
- Selection type: Initial letters
- Indicator: “at first”
- Source words: Personal, Identification, Number
- Letters used: P + I + N = PIN
- Definition: “fastener”
"At first" tells you to take the first letters. P from Personal, I from Identification, N from Number gives PIN. The definition is "fastener" — a pin is a fastener.
“Heads of really ample trout = rodent (3)”
Reveal answer
Answer: RAT
- Selection type: Initial letters
- Indicator: “Heads of”
- Source words: really, ample, trout
- Letters used: R + A + T = RAT
- Definition: “rodent”
"Heads of" tells you to take the first letters. R from really, A from ample, T from trout gives RAT. The definition is "rodent" — a rat is a rodent.
“Leaders of bald uniform start = transport (3)”
Reveal answer
Answer: BUS
- Selection type: Initial letters
- Indicator: “Leaders of”
- Source words: bald, uniform, start
- Letters used: B + U + S = BUS
- Definition: “transport”
"Leaders of" tells you to take the first letters. B from bald, U from uniform, S from start gives BUS. The definition is "transport" — a bus is a form of transport.
“First of central area region = automobile (3)”
Reveal answer
Answer: CAR
- Selection type: Initial letters
- Indicator: “First of”
- Source words: central, area, region
- Letters used: C + A + R = CAR
- Definition: “automobile”
"First of" tells you to take the first letters. C from central, A from area, R from region gives CAR. The definition is "automobile" — a car is an automobile.
“Starts of happy energetic active talk = warmth (4)”
Reveal answer
Answer: HEAT
- Selection type: Initial letters
- Indicator: “Starts of”
- Source words: happy, energetic, active, talk
- Letters used: H + E + A + T = HEAT
- Definition: “warmth”
"Starts of" tells you to take the first letters. H from happy, E from energetic, A from active, T from talk gives HEAT. The definition is "warmth" — heat is warmth.
“Heart of stone = vowel (1)”
Reveal answer
Answer: O
- Selection type: Middle letter
- Indicator: “Heart of”
- Source words: stone
- Letters used: O = O
- Definition: “vowel”
"Heart of" tells you to take the middle letter. STONE has five letters (S-T-O-N-E), so the middle letter is O. The definition is "vowel" — O is a vowel.
Learn more about selection clues
If you want to understand selection clues in depth, see the full teaching page. It covers how to spot selection indicators, common patterns, and worked examples from real Parseword puzzles.
Selection clues — full guide