CrossClimb #757 Clues: POKES to CARDS

CrossClimb #757: Start to Finish

This ladder is all about single-letter swaps. Each step keeps four letters in place and changes just one to turn the clue answer into the next clue answer.

Step 1: POKES to PORES

Clue 1: “Jabs with one’s finger” = POKES.

Clue 2: “Holes in the skin” = PORES.

The swap is K → R. That changes POKES into PORES.

This works because pokes means jabs or prods, while pores are tiny holes in the skin.

Step 2: PORES to BORES

Clue 3: “Makes someone yawn, possibly by giving an overly long presentation” = BORES.

The swap is P → B. That changes PORES into BORES.

The clue points to the verb bores, meaning causes dullness or yawning.

Step 3: BORES to BARES

Clue 4: “Exposes, as one’s emotions or teeth” = BARES.

The swap is O → A. That changes BORES into BARES.

This is the classic verb bares, as in to reveal or expose.

Step 4: BARES to CARES

Clue 5: “Is interested” = CARES.

The swap is B → C. That changes BARES into CARES.

The clue uses the sense of being concerned or interested.

How the final compound pair fits

The last prompt asks for two words: one for a game played in a casino, and one for what is dealt out to play.

That points to POKER and CARDS.

The ladder’s ending at CARES helps signal the final shape of the puzzle, but the compound clue is the real finish line: POKER is the casino game, and CARDS are what you are dealt to play it.

Climb in order

POKES → PORES (K → R)

PORES → BORES (P → B)

BORES → BARES (O → A)

BARES → CARES (B → C)

Then the compound finale resolves to POKER and CARDS.