Cryptogram Puzzle 917
Answers

Decoded in full, attributed to Nikola Tesla.

Letter frequency for cryptogram 917: T 10, E 8, A 7, H 6, O 5, I 4, N 4, Y 4, D 3, R 3, C 2, F 110T8E7A6H5O4I4N4Y3D3R2C1F
The decoded quote:
“I don’t care that they stole my idea... I care that they don’t have any of their own.”
— Nikola Tesla

Cryptogram Puzzle 917 decodes to a quotation of 18 words attributed to Nikola Tesla. It runs to 89 characters and uses 17 distinct letters.

The chart above shows the real letter frequencies of this quote — T×10, E×8, A×7, H×6, O×5. 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 6 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 901–1,000 block, with puzzle 916 and puzzle 918 linked at the foot of the page, so you can keep moving without returning to the index.

Puzzle 917 at a glance
AuthorNikola Tesla
Characters89
Words18
Distinct letters17
Most frequentT×10 E×8 A×7
Questions

Cryptogram Puzzle 917 FAQ

1What is the answer to Cryptogram Puzzle 917?+
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 916 and puzzle 918, or browse the whole 901–1,000 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 T×10, E×8, A×7. In English E leads by a wide margin, so test that substitution first.

2

It has 6 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 917 In Detail

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

AuthorNikola Tesla
Characters89
Words18
Distinct letters17
Short words6
Puzzle917