Something spiked spoiled lovely formal dance (10)
The Minute Cryptic clue “Something spiked spoiled lovely formal dance” (10) was set for Saturday, September 19, 2026. Below is the answer — blurred until you tap — followed by the definition, the wordplay and why the letters land where they do.
Something spiked spoiled lovely formal dance
(10)
No spoilers — the answer stays blurred until you tap.
The clue, colour-coded
How this clue works
The definition
Something spiked
Our definition here is 'Something spiked'. Our answer will be something that can be spiked.The wordplay
lovely + formal dance
This clue's fodder is 'lovely' and 'formal dance'. We'll need to find a substitute for one of these and use it with the letters of the other to construct our answer, as guided by the clue's indicator(s).The answer
The clue reads “Something spiked spoiled lovely formal dance” (10). The definition part — “Something spiked” — points straight at VOLLEYBALL, and the rest of the clue builds it with anagram wordplay.
Minute Cryptic publishes a short walkthrough for this clue — watch Cory Calhoun’s own explanation →
This clue’s puzzle day
This clue was the Minute Cryptic for Saturday, September 19, 2026. Open the September 19, 2026 puzzle page for that day’s write-up, or browse the full Minute Cryptic archive.