Cryptogram Puzzle 1,172
Answers
Decoded in full, attributed to Mark Twain.
“If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And If it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.”
— Mark Twain
Cryptogram Puzzle 1,172 decodes to a quotation of 35 words attributed to Mark Twain. It runs to 165 characters and uses 18 distinct letters.
The chart above shows the real letter frequencies of this quote — T×21, O×14, I×13, S×10, E×9. That is the pattern that cracks it: in ordinary English E is the commonest letter by a wide margin, so whichever cipher symbol appears most in the puzzle is the first substitution worth testing. We publish the decoded quote and its author; the game generates its own substitution alphabet per player, so no fixed cipher is shown here.
This quote contains 24 short words of three letters or fewer, which are the other obvious way in — one-letter words are always A or I, and the commonest three-letter word by a wide margin is THE. Fixing one of those typically reveals enough of the text to read the rest.
Cryptogram Puzzle 1,172 FAQ
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How Cryptogram Works
The same three moves solve most Cryptogram puzzles, including this one.
Count the letters
The most frequent symbol is usually E, then T, A, O and N. Frequency beats guessing every time.
Attack the short words
One-letter words are A or I. Common three-letter words are THE and AND, and they unlock the most letters at once.
Use the apostrophes
A letter after an apostrophe is almost always S, T, D, M, LL, RE or VE — a very short list to test.
Cryptogram Tips & Strategy
Starting with what this particular puzzle teaches you.
Most frequent letter here
In this quote the commonest letters are T×21, O×14, I×13. In English E leads by a wide margin, so test that substitution first.
It has 24 short words
Short words are the fastest way in — one-letter words are always A or I, and the commonest three-letter word is THE.
Frequency first
Count which cipher letter appears most. In English text it is E far more often than not, and fixing E alone usually reveals two or three short words.
One-letter words are A or I
There are no others in ordinary English. Two free letters from a single glance at the text.
THE is the giveaway
The commonest three-letter word by a wide margin. Finding one THE gives you T, H and E in a single move.
Apostrophes narrow sharply
A letter directly after an apostrophe is nearly always S, T, D or M, or the pairs LL, RE and VE. Very few options to test.
Cryptogram Puzzle 1,172 In Detail
Everything recorded for this puzzle, counted from its source record.
| Author | Mark Twain |
|---|---|
| Characters | 165 |
| Words | 35 |
| Distinct letters | 18 |
| Short words | 24 |
| Puzzle | 1,172 |
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