CrossClimb #909: The Six-Step Card Ladder

The Route

CrossClimb #909 is built around a clean six-step transformation. Each answer is four letters long, and every move changes exactly one letter while preserving the rest.

DEAL → REAL → READ → LEAD → LEND → LAND → HAND

The middle clues establish the ladder; the compound clue identifies the two endpoint words.

Step-by-Step Logic

1. Actually existing: REAL

The first clue points directly to REAL, meaning genuine or actually existing.

2. Enjoy literature: READ

Change the third letter of REAL, replacing A with A? That would not create a new word, so inspect the spelling carefully: REAL becomes READ by swapping the fourth letter, L, for D. The result means to enjoy literature.

3. Heavy metallic element that can block X-rays: LEAD

Now swap the first letter of READ, changing R to L. That yields LEAD, the dense metal used for radiation shielding.

4. ___ an ear (listen): LEND

Swap the third letter of LEAD, changing A to N. The new word is LEND, completing the phrase “lend an ear.”

5. Terrestrial animals live on it: LAND

Swap the third letter again, this time changing E to A. LEND becomes LAND, the solid surface where terrestrial animals live.

The Final Aha!

The compound clue asks for “a word meaning to distribute playing cards, and a word for what each player then has.” Those endpoint words are DEAL and HAND.

To connect the upper endpoint to the first clue answer, swap the second letter of DEAL, changing E to R, producing REAL. At the other end, swap the first letter of LAND, changing L to H, producing HAND.

That completes the full climb:

DEAL → REAL → READ → LEAD → LEND → LAND → HAND

The key strategy is to solve the highly specific clue answers first, then use the one-letter rule to order them. The final card-game pair confirms both ends and ties the entire ladder together.