The UK Advanced Cryptics Dictionary

                A word list for crossword solvers and setters



                                    by

                              Ross Beresford



                               Version  1.7

                              23 August 2000



                 Copyright (c) J Ross Beresford 1993-2000

                            All Rights Reserved





                    The UK Advanced Cryptics Dictionary
                    is a FREEWARE package: it can be
                    freely copied and distributed under
                    the terms of the licensing agreement
                    at the end of this document.









        The author can be reached in the following ways:

             Internet address    ross@bryson.demon.co.uk

             Postal address      10 Wagtail Close
                                 Twyford
                                 Reading RG10 9ED
                                 United Kingdom

        INTRODUCTION
        ------------

        The UKACD is a word list compiled for the crossword community.

        In particular, it's intended for setters and solvers of
        advanced cryptic crosswords in the UK; for example, the
        Listener Crossword and the barred puzzles in the Sunday
        broadsheets.

        Although there are many word lists in the public domain, none
        is well suited for use with crossword construction and word
        search software.

        This freely distributable list should be more helpful, as it
        is specifically intended for use with crossword software. The
        list will be updated at periodic intervals to correct errors
        and make additions.

        The UKACD is in the ISO 8859-1 character set (compatible with
        the Windows ANSI character set), with a single entry per line.

        EDITORIAL POLICY
        ----------------

        The original basis for the UKACD was a word list of some
        500,000 entries, compiled from public domain sources.

        This was reduced to a list of around 190,000 words by
        eliminating entries that aren't generally allowable in
        UK advanced cryptic puzzles.

        The list continues to be improved as missing entries are
        discovered and added. A new update is issued when several
        thousand entries have been added since the previous one.

        The vocabulary included in the following single volume UK
        English dictionaries is used as a guide to acceptability:

            The Chambers Dictionary
            Collins English Dictionary
            The Concise Oxford Dictionary

        Words are given in all their inflected forms, where
        appropriate. That is, nouns are given in their plural
        form(s); verbs are given as the infinitive, third person
        singular, present and past participle; and the comparative
        and superlative forms of adjectives are included where
        they are reasonably common.

        Common proper names are included, as they are often found
        in crosswords, even though only Collins of the above
        dictionaries has a systematic coverage of them. Some very
        common words not to be found in any of the dictionaries
        are also included.

        To make the list more useful for compiling jumbo grids,
        longer non-dictionary entries are being added. These include:
        well-known quotations and proverbs; fictional characters and
        book titles; films, pieces of music and works of art.

        Some attempt is made to standardise the punctuation and
        capitalisation of entries; in particular, by ensuring all
        proper names start with a capital letter. However, no great
        effort is put into this, as it only marginally affects the
        usefulness of the list to crossworders.

        Dictionary entries only differing in punctuation, accenting or
        capitalisation are folded onto the single most common form.
        This is done to save space and, again makes little difference
        to the value of the UKACD to setters and solvers.

        FEEDBACK
        --------

        If you find any errors, or have suggestions for additions,
        please e-mail or post them to me at the address on the first
        page of this document. Provided they are within the scope of
        the UKACD, as defined under EDITORIAL POLICY, they will be
        included in the next release of the word list.


        LICENSING INFORMATION
        ---------------------

        Copyright (c) J Ross Beresford 1993-2000. All Rights Reserved.

        The following restriction is placed on the use of this
        publication: if The UK Advanced Cryptics Dictionary is used
        in a software package or redistributed in any form, the
        copyright notice must be prominently displayed and the text
        of this document must be included verbatim.

        There are no other restrictions: I would like to see the
        list distributed as widely as possible.