Crumble #31 — the solution
The board from October 31, 2026, on the theme “On the map”: 7 words in thirty-six falling letters — a Tricky day.
The board
F G O B E K L T R N L A U H T S D E L A U H R R I T S O O A P A C A L T
At first sight 2 words are in line: CAPITAL and LAKE. The rest come together as letters fall.
The words
| # | Word | Where it starts, and how it runs |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | CAPITAL | row 6, column 3 left, left, up, right, up, left |
| 2 | NORTH | row 2, column 4 left, down, down, right |
| 3 | SOUTH | row 4, column 4 down, left, left, down |
| 4 | BORDER | row 5, column 4 right, up, up, right, down |
| 5 | ATLAS | row 5, column 6 down, left, left, left |
| 6 | GULF | row 6, column 2 left, up, up |
| 7 | LAKE | row 6, column 5 right, up, left |
One order that clears it
Rows are counted from the top and columns from the left, on the board as it stands when the word is taken — the letters have fallen by then. Most boards can be cleared in more than one order; this is the first one the board allows, taking the longest word that is ready.
- CAPITAL. Start at row 6, column 3 of the board as it stands, then left, left, up, right, up, left. Its going brings ATLAS and NORTH together.
- NORTH. Start at row 2, column 4 of the board as it stands, then left, down, down, right. Its going brings SOUTH together.
- SOUTH. Start at row 4, column 4 of the board as it stands, then down, left, left, down. Its going brings BORDER and GULF together.
- BORDER. Start at row 5, column 4 of the board as it stands, then right, up, up, right, down. Nothing new comes together.
- ATLAS. Start at row 5, column 6 of the board as it stands, then down, left, left, left. Its going brings LAKE together.
- GULF. Start at row 6, column 2 of the board as it stands, then left, up, up. That leaves LAKE, the last word.
- LAKE. Start at row 6, column 5 of the board as it stands, then right, up, left. The board is clear.
The decoys
33 common words can be traced at some point and are off the theme — a mistake each: ALTAR, BOAR, BOAT, BOLT, BORN, CATS, DEAL, ELDER, HATS, HOST, KALE, LABOR, LEAK, LORD, LORDS, ORDER, PITS, REAL, REDS, ROAR, ROBE, ROOST, SALT, SCAT, SHOUT, SHUT, SNORT, STROBE, TALE, TALL, THAT, THOU, THROAT.
Refused, free — a fair player could argue for it: AREA.
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About Crumble
Crumble is Noggin’s falling-letters word puzzle, on the second shelf: every word fits the day’s theme, a traced word crumbles and the letters above fall, outside the daily line-up. How to play Crumble, or play today’s.