Cryptogram Puzzle 2,873
Answers

Decoded in full, attributed to an unknown author.

Letter frequency for cryptogram 2873: E 22, O 18, T 18, A 14, N 14, L 11, D 10, I 9, H 8, R 8, S 8, U 822E18O18T14A14N11L10D9I8H8R8S8U
The decoded quote:
“You know, Mac, Cadmus said still looking out the window. ‘We may have to work on the way we tell our story… apparently it’s not amusing enough.’ ‘I’ll try to include a joke between ‘he bled to death’ and ‘the city burned’,’ Machaon responded tersely.”
— Unknown

Cryptogram Puzzle 2,873 decodes to a quotation of 45 words attributed to an unknown author. It runs to 272 characters and uses 22 distinct letters.

The chart above shows the real letter frequencies of this quote — E×22, O×18, T×18, A×14, N×14. 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 22 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.

This puzzle sits in the 2,801–2,900 block, with puzzle 2,872 and puzzle 2,874 linked at the foot of the page, so you can keep moving without returning to the index.

Puzzle 2,873 at a glance
AuthorUnknown
Characters272
Words45
Distinct letters22
Most frequentE×22 O×18 T×18
Questions

Cryptogram Puzzle 2,873 FAQ

1What is the answer to Cryptogram Puzzle 2,873?+
The decoded quotation is shown in full above, together with the author it is attributed to.
2How many answers does this level have?+
0, all listed on this page.
3Where do I go next?+
Use the links at the foot of the page for puzzle 2,872 and puzzle 2,874, or browse the whole 2,801–2,900 block.
4Are these answers verified?+
Yes. This puzzle was imported from a structured source record and validated on build. See the method page for exactly what is checked.
How to play

How Cryptogram Works

The same three moves solve most Cryptogram puzzles, including this one.

1

Count the letters

The most frequent symbol is usually E, then T, A, O and N. Frequency beats guessing every time.

2

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.

3

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.

Play smarter

Cryptogram Tips & Strategy

Starting with what this particular puzzle teaches you.

1

Most frequent letter here

In this quote the commonest letters are E×22, O×18, T×18. In English E leads by a wide margin, so test that substitution first.

2

It has 22 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.

3

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.

4

One-letter words are A or I

There are no others in ordinary English. Two free letters from a single glance at the text.

5

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.

6

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.

By the numbers

Cryptogram Puzzle 2,873 In Detail

Everything recorded for this puzzle, counted from its source record.

AuthorUnknown
Characters272
Words45
Distinct letters22
Short words22
Puzzle2,873