A target word, usually five letters, is chosen. A player finds an answer word/phrase containing the letters of the target word in order. The player presents a crossword-style clue for the answer and a number of blanks representing the enumeration (spaces between words are usually omitted). The target word's letters are shown in their correct positions. So for the target word KREWE, a player might clue
*** Literary critic _ _ _ K R E _ _ _ W E _.
Players then have to come up with the answer BOOK REVIEWER.