The Clue
Complicated problem (4 letter answer)
The Answer
KNOT
Tags
Notes
The answer KNOT is seen frequently, appearing about once every 120 puzzles.
Related Clues
Bowline
Cluster
Gnarl
Gordian ___
Granny
Sheepshank, for one
Ball of string?
Board defect
Bow, e.g.
Clove hitch, for one
Gordian attachment
Granny or bowline
Group of toads
Gut feeling?
Intricate problem
Kind of bind
Masseur's target
Muscle malady
Muscle problem
Nautical unit
Scout's achievement
Scout's handiwork
Shoelace problem
Small group
Speed unit
Stomach problem
Stomach woe
Tight tie
Windsor or sheepshank
Cat's-paw, e.g.
Clove hitch, e.g.
Half hitch, e.g.
Nautical unit of speed
Sea-speed limit
Ship's speed unit
Speed unit at sea
Wedlock, so to speak
It may stop a saw
Mariner's unit of speed
Nautical mile per hour
Definition
KNOT as a noun:
1. a tight cluster of people or things; "a small knot of women listened to his sermon"
2. any of various fastenings formed by looping and tying a rope (or cord) upon itself or to another rope or to another object
3. a hard cross-grained round piece of wood in a board where a branch emerged; "the saw buckled when it hit a knot"
4. (knot, gnarl) = something twisted and tight and swollen; "their muscles stood out in knots"; "the old man's fists were two great gnarls"; "his stomach was in knots"
5. (nautical mile, mile, mi, naut mi, knot, international nautical mile, air mile) = a unit of length used in navigation; equivalent to the distance spanned by one minute of arc in latitude; 1,852 meters
6. (slub, knot, burl) = soft lump or unevenness in a yarn; either an imperfection or created by design
7. (knot, greyback, grayback, Calidris canutus) = a sandpiper that breeds in the arctic and winters in the southern hemisphere
KNOT as a verb:
1. make into knots; make knots out of; "She knotted der fingers"
2. tie or fasten into a knot; "knot the shoelaces"
3. (ravel, tangle, knot) = tangle or complicate; "a ravelled story"