These Form Records were collected by Lucifer when he was our Webmaster. They may be outdated and are in need of editing and updating. In most cases, “I” refers to Lucifer.
Here are some record-setting forms. This list will be extended as new record forms are brought to my attention (or constructed). Please note that this list is generally not definitive; if I am sure that a given form is the record, I say so, but often I simply list the largest example I have been able to find, which may not be very large given my limited ability to research old Enigmas. The heyday of forms construction was the early 1900s, and I have no access to those forms except the ones which were republished in the Sherlock Holmes memorial booklet.
Note that forms will only be included on this page if they have been published in the pages of The Enigma, or another word puzzle magazine with similar or better standards of editing, such as The Former; or if they have not been published in such a magazine, if all the words exist in references to which I have direct access. This is to simplify questions of validity: if the editor of The Enigma has ruled that the form is legitimate, then I am satisfied too. Because this rule generally means that all constructors are (or were) members of the NPL, I will refer to them by their noms, rather than their real names. I also give the date of publication, where I have it; if I don't cite a magazine it is The Enigma. I personally have had access only to issues of The Enigma from Jan 1994 up to the present, so there are doubtless many gaps in this list.
Standards for forms have changed over the years, and the modern standards are significantly looser than the standards of fifty or a hundred years ago. In particular, abbreviations and parts of phrases are now permissible entries; once they would not have been. Since there are still form builders who abide by the old rules, I will (eventually) keep separate track of the forms that stick to the more exacting standards. However, a majority of the forms listed here are legitimate forms even by the strictest of rules.
A note on notation: the terms “left” and “right”, and “inverted” are used a little differently here than they are in The Guide. The normal shape of a form is by default assumed here to be the right version; the left version is reflected left and right. The inverted versions are reflected up and down. This leads to different numbers of possibilities for different forms–some, such as the square, don't change at all when reflected; some others, such as the Cambridge hexagon, have only two basic forms; and yet others, such as the halfsquare, are different in all four possibilities. In addition, each form may be double, but not every form can be single: a left halfsquare, for example, must have two sets of clues. Anyway, when I say “inverted halfsquare”, I specifically mean the inversion of the right-hand form; the other inverted halfsquare I call a “left inverted halfsquare”. The guide refers to both simply as “inverted halfsquare”.
However, it should be pointed out that for many forms, a left-handed version can be converted into an inverted version by reflecting the letter positions in the leading diagonal. For example, the following left halfsquare:
B E T H O P O P E S O L L A S V I O L I N E N T E R E D S E A M S T E R
could also be written out as an inverted halfsquare:
B E H O O V E S T O P L I N E P E L O T A S A L E M S I R S N E T D E R
I have decided to conform to the original presentation of the form when published in determining records, but in halfsquares, pentagons, decagons, enneagons, and several other form types, the left and inverted forms can be freely interchanged. Hence, in a sense, the “real” record is the larger of the two. This is not pointed out below, where it is an issue, since it would become tedious through repetition; I mention it here only.
One more point of possible confusion is that The Enigma does not necessarily conform to these conventions for left and right versions of the forms, though it is not always apparent since the normal version of a form is not prefixed with either “left” or “right”. With Cambridge hexagons, the usual version is apparently the left, since the rarely seen version has been christened the right Cambridge hexagon. I have adhered to this naming decision. However, with enneagons, the version that is named the right enneagon in The Enigma (see F-8 by Jo the Loiterer in the June 1999 Enigma for an example) does not have symmetry across the leading diagonal. This means it cannot be constructed in a single version–it is necessarily double. I prefer a naming convention that makes the right version of a form the one that can be single (as well as the left inverted version) so I am calling June F-8 a left enneagon instead.
Under this heading I include both new shapes, such as the trisquare and the fan, and versions of forms that do not meet standard definitions, such as rectangles and rhomboids that do not have the same relative dimensions as the guide example. I am not including records for non-standard forms, mostly because they are quite rare. The only exceptions I have made so far are for non-standard octagons and hollow diamonds. In the case of octagons the non-standard octagon is better than any of the examples of standard octagons I've seen. For hollow diamonds, the restriction is never explicitly spelled out in the guide, and I think has just been missed by some constructors. As far as I am aware, the guide does not define the issue because there is no formal requirement that the forms meet this specification. However, it is difficult to talk of “records” among the various non-standard ones, so I have avoided them. For a more detailed description of what I mean by non-standard, see the relevant sections: Hollow Diamonds, Octagons, Rectangles, and Rhomboids.
Many of the categories I am tracking have no example forms. This is true more of odd combinations–for example I have no left bigram consonantless pentagons. However, there are some fairly simple forms for which the best example I have is not a very strong candidate for the record. (It should be remembered that there are almost certainly better examples hiding away in old Enigmas that I have not had access to, so it's impossible to say what the real record is.) Anyway, here is a list of some form records which I think are easy to improve upon, with the very softest targets at the top of the list, and some relatively hard ones (but still achievable) at the bottom. I have not listed all combinations of bigram/trigram or vowelless/consonantless since I don't have all that many examples of those in any case. It should be noted that these targets have toughened considerably over the last year or two, as many of the softest records have been picked off by NPL members.
The easiest records to beat, at the moment, would seem to be:
I now have examples in just about every basic (i.e. not bigram, not consonantless or vowelless) category. Exceptions are:
Next, a list of some less basic forms for which I have no example:
Finally, a list of some other records that seem quite beatable, if not as soft as the ones listed above:
I have included here all forms I have had access to up to and including the September 2001 Enigma.
See the Guide re: Straight Rectangles.
I will track straight rectangles separately by the length of their shortest side. Straight rectangles are not a particularly common form, so I have few examples to exhibit, let alone records. The following are unlikely to be record-holders, but are the best I could find.
First, for a rectangle with short side three, here is an 8×3 by Rom Dos, from February 1995:
C U B E S P A R U V U L A R I A P A S S P O R T
For short side four, here is an 8×4 by Gabby & Wrybosh, from April 2000:
D E C I M A T E A V O C A D O S N A M E L E S S E S P R E S S O
For short side five, here is a 7×5 by Nucky, published on the Cruciverb-l web site in 1996:
S A M P L E S C Z A R I S T A T L A N T A B E T W E E N S C A N N E D
For short side six, here is a 7×6 by Nucky, also published on the Cruciverb-l web site in 1996:
A M E R I C A M A R A C A S B U R G E S S I M I T A T E T A N A G E R S U G G E S T
See also the Guide Rectangles
Some non-standard rectangles have been built, which for the moment I am not tracking. The definition of standard I am using is that in a standard rectangle the words proceeding from corners adjacent on a long side will meet on their last/first letters. For example, in the first rectangle below, “RECTANGLE” and “ENHERITED” meet.
The largest rectangles I know of are the guide examples. I don't know the author or publication date for either.
R R E S C A C H E R A T T I N G R E C T A N G L E S H I N G L I N G E N G L I S H E S G L I S T E N E D E N H E R I T E D G E N I T A L S E T A L D E L D P D A G B I R L E R E S L I D E R E C T A N G L E R E C H A N T E D B E C H A N C E D D I S T A N C E D P A R L A N C E S G L I N T E D E D G E D E L D E
I have found no examples of double rectangles.
See also the guide for Rhomboids.
Some non-standard rhomboids have been built, which for the moment I am not tracking. The definition of standard I am using is that in a standard rhomboid exactly one vertical word runs all the way from the top to the bottom of the form. For example, in the first rhomboid below, “SALTINESSES” runs from the top line of the form to the bottom.
The largest right rhomboid I know of is by Sherlock Holmes. It is an 11-rhomboid, and was published in February 1944:
S W E E P S E I N E S B A I R N L I N E S S C A L L Y C A S T L E F A T T I N E S S E S C O N T I N E N T E D L A R G E N E S S E S W A R M E M E S S E R P O R T E R E S S E S N A R R A G A N S E S E A U D E M A N T E S R E P L E T E N E S S
The largest left rhomboid I've found is also by Sherlock Holmes; it's a 10-rhomboid, and was published in February 1950:
C O L L A T E R A L N E U R O S O M E S D E C K T E N N I S S E K E R I N G E S S E M I S I N G L E R E V I L E M E N T S E D I M E N T A L R E T E N D E R E D S E N T E N T I A E S T A R T E R O F F
I know of no bigram rhomboids, nor of any consonantless or vowelless rhomboids.
See aslo the Guide re: Squares.
The largest square ever built is a 9-square. I don't know who constructed the first one, but the most prolific constructor was undoubtedly Sherlock Holmes. The following square is by Eric: it was the first 9-square ever constructed from words which all appear in a single reference (in this case, Webster's New International Dictionary, 2nd edition, or NI2 in NPL parlance).
N E C E S S I S M E X I S T E N C E C I R C U M F E R E S C A R P I N G S T U R N I D A E S E M P I T E R N I N F I D E L I C S C E N A R I Z E M E R G E N C E S
The largest double square ever built is a double 8-square. Here's an example, by Sherlock Holmes, from Nov. 1953:
B A B A M A M A U D A R I V E R N O R I S I N G T E N T M A T E I N S T O R E N N A T I V I S T G R O N E S S E S A N G S T A R
The largest bigram square I know of is by Cubist, from January 1994:
RE SE QU EN CE SE LF IN TE NT QU IN TE RO ON EN TE RO ZO IC CE NT ON IC AL
The largest trigram square I'm aware of is by Ulk. It was published in the March 1989 issue of The Former:
LOO SEN ESS SEN TIM ENT ESS ENT IAL
The only tetragram square I'm aware of is by Form Fiend, and comes from November 1999:
OSSI FRAN GENT FRAN KLIN IANA GENT IANA CEAE
I don't know what the record is for vowelless squares. Here's a vowelless double 7-square by XEIPON, published in July 1998:
T R N S L P N transalpine M N S T R N T ministrant B S T R C T R obstructor L T T C N R G lattice energy D R M T S T N dramatisation R M N R T N G remunerating R S T L S S L restlessly The down words are: tumble dryer rainstorms instatement structural larcenists penetrations intriguingly
The largest example I could find for a single square is an 8-square by Xemu from December 1993:
M S P R N N C S mispronounces S P R S T T N S superstitions P R P R T R S S proprietress R S R C H S T S researchists N T T H R T R N antiauthoritarian N T R S T M N T entrustment C N S T R N T N consternation S S S S N T N G assassinating
For consonantless squares I believe the record to be a 9-square, by Cubist, published in October 1994:
A E I U A I I A E Appendiculariidae E I O A E O I E A Edrioasteroidea I O E I O I O O U dioeciodimorphous U A I A E I A I O quasi appreciation A E O E E I E E I water-power engineering I O I I I I A I O impossibilification I I O A E A E O U chitino-arenaceous A E O I E I O A E adenosine triphosphate E A U O I O U E O Heautontimorumenos
The following is the only bigram consonantless square I know of. It is by Form Fiend, and was published in November 1999:
II AA UU Birmingham Caucus AA OO II galactophoritis UU II EE unquicksilvered
The following consonantless square also deserves mention however, as it is unusual in a different way: it is the largest square I know of where the words are actually consonantless! No letters have been deleted in this square of Xemu's from October 1994:
O I I I A O I O A
As a bonus oddity, the words are all names of birds.
The following square (or squares, depending on how you look at it), by Xemu, is made up of base words that can serve as either a consonantless or vowelless square. It was published in February 1995:
V V N D R I A I E E vivandiere V D V L L A U E I E vaudeville N V D N C I E I E E in evidence D L N V T E I E A I delineavit R L C T N E E E I O reelection
The largest progressive square I know of is a 6-square by Quiz, from the July 1999 issue:
R C H A S T C H A S T E H A S T E R A S T E R N S T E R N O T E R N O S
The largest set of sequential squares I have found is a set of 8-squares built around “TREESONG”. These were by Sherlock Holmes, and were published in 1974. Here are two of them:
A T G H A R I A B A T A T T A S T R E E S O N G A L A H A R M A G E R M A S T E T A G E R E A U H E M B R E E S T H E T H E R S A S A R A L L I A A R H U S I A R O S E L L E D T R E E S O N G I N T E L E N E A M A R I N I E A G E S I D E S S A U S A G E S
However, the others in this sequence have not been published. The largest complete set I am aware of is a set of sequential 6-squares. The following set is the guide example; I don't know the author or date:
M A N G I E A M E E R S D E M U R S A C O R N S M A N G I E E L A N E T N O T I S T E N I G M A M A N G I E G R I Q U A E G G C U P U N G I V E I N S U L T R I M U L A R E I V E D E S T A T E S E A P A Y S T E E D S C A L M E R R A D O M E S C A R U M A N L A G E A G O R A S C A S A B A L L A N O S D O P A N T A S H C A N M A N G I E O R A N G E R A C I N G E G O I S T M A N G I E U B A N G I R E S E T S E S T E E M M A N G I E
Any set of sequential squares automatically provides a pair of connected squares; the first and last square in the set are connected by the common word. Hence the record may be connected 8-squares, from the set of “TREESONG” squares. However, these have not been published. The largest published connected squares are a pair of 7-squares published by Jo the Loiterer in February 2001:
R E S T A M P P R E S A G E E X P O S E R R U N N E R S S P U R T L E E N D O R A S T O R C E L S S N O C O N E A S T E R I A A E R O G U N M E L L I N G G R A N U L E P R E S A G E E S S E N E S
One oddity deserve mention: the inversion square. “Inversion Square” is the name coined for the following form, by Cubist, published in April 1994. It consists of five ten letter words, followed by the same five words, reversed. No other such form has ever been published; it is included here because of its size.
D E T A S S E L E D E X E R C I T A T E T E C T O N I C A L A R T H R O L I T E S C O R P I O N I S S I N O I P R O C S E T I L O R H T R A L A C I N O T C E T E T A T I C R E X E D E L E S S A T E D
Finally, the following is most likely the only letterless square ever published, as well as being the largest. It is by Xemu, from an idea by Shrdlu, and was published in August 1995:
- - - ' Wu-lu-mu-ch'i - ' - - will-o'-the-wisp - - - - what-you-may-call-it (look in 10C at whatchamacallit) ' - - ' Ch'ang-chia-k'ou
See the Guide re: Diamonds
The largest diamond known is a 19-diamond, but I have not located an example yet. The largest diamond I have found so far is a 17-diamond; here is one by Nypho, from the May 1918 issue of Forms:
M M A P M A N I A W A N N E S S P A N N E T I E R W A G N E R I A N E R M A N N E R I S T I C A L M A N N E R I S T I C A L E R M A N N E R I S T I C A L L I E R P I E T I S T I C A L L E S T A S I A T I C A L L E S T S E N I C A L L E S T R E C A L L E S T R A L L E S T L E I S T R E T R
The largest double diamond I have found is a double 11-diamond by Merlin, from December 1994:
N P O S B O S E D G E N O M E S C E N T G E N E R W I N D L E S T R A E S I L E N T I U M L E V E R E T T I S A R S I L S
I know of one bigram diamond; it is a bigram 7-diamond, by Gab-F. It appeared in the January 2000 Enigma:
NO RE VE ST RE TA LI AT OR NO VE LI ST IC AL LY ST AT IC AL LY OR AL LY LY
Two trigram 5-diamonds have been published, however. This one is by Form Fiend; it was published in April 1999.
PUB DUP LIC AND PUB LIC LIB RAR IAN AND RAR CHY IAN
I have not found any consonantless diamonds. This vowelless diamond is a 7-diamond by Newrow from January 1994. Note that each entry is a palindrome:
W Iowa R L R relier R V L V R revolver W L L W L L W Walla Walla WA R V L V R revolver R L R ruler W ewe
The following pair of diamonds are made of base words that can serve as either a consonantless or vowelless diamond. This 7-diamond pair is by Form Fiend, and was published in September 1999:
P I pi R G T I O U rig out R H N L L I O A I A rhinolalia P G N R T T S I O A I I O U pignoratitious T L T M N U I I Y A utility man L T N A O A Latona S U us
See also the Guide Hollow Diamonds
A regular hollow diamond is constructed so that exactly one set of four words forms a square around the centre: see MUNDIFICATION and NIMBLE-TONGUED in Form Fiend's example below.
I have only found two hollow diamonds with 7-letter words. The first is, unusually for a hollow diamond, single. It is a 25-diamond by Form Fiend,and was published in June 1999:
R M A O S O U R S B A R R O O M C O N T I N U E R T O R T I C O L L A R M U N D I F I C A T I O N T U R N E R Y O C E L O I D C O N N E R S K R I M M E R B O R D E R S S N I B B E D S A N T I R S G E L A T O S M O R T I F Y R E S A W E D R A U R I C I T E R N I O N O R O N O C O D O D D I N G S O U L A C K P I N N U L E M E L T E R S V E R G E R Y R A I L I N G P E R T U S E R O O M I E R D I R T I E S N I M B L E T O N G U E D D E B A S E D N E S S R E T A R D U R E D O W N I L Y S E I N E D O G NThe other is a double hollow diamond which was published in Word Ways in May 1971. It is by Sherlock Holmes, and is also a 25-diamond:
P T A S W E R P S C A R V E N E T O R N A R I A N P E L M A T O G R A M W A N D E R I N G S T A R M A S T E R Y S L A T T E R C A S T O R S E N L A C E D F A C T O R S D E R A T E D F I S H E R Y D A P I C O S C O S S I D S S I N A G O G S A L T I N E T A N S I E S P L U M A T E M U L A T T O E L E M E N T M U L I T A S E R E C T O R B E C A T E R E N T E L A M V A N I T E S T O R A N A S S O R A G E S R E N A L A R T E R I E S R E R A D I A T I O N S I G N A T I O N A M E L I A S A S T O N S O N S
See also the Guide re : Pentagons
The largest pentagon I have found is a 7-pentagon by Sherlock Holmes. It was published in August 1960:
M L E M C A S E R Z O N U L E S C O N T R A T A S L A N T H A N I T E S M E S U R A D O R I V E R M E L A N O C E R I T E R E T I R E M E N T S S A T I R E T T E S S E V I N T E N E S E T T E N O N R E S S E N T
The largest left inverted pentagon I know of is also by Sherlock Holmes. It is a 6-pentagon, and was published in June 1942:
A F F R A P F A R E L L I F R I D L A N D R E D H A N D E D A L L A N T O D E S P L A N T A G E N E T I N D O G E N I D D E D E N D A D E N I A S E D T
The largest bigram pentagon I have found is a 4-pentagon by Jo the Loiterer, from October 2000:
HE CH AD AN CH RO MI TI TE HE AD MI ST RE SS AN TI RE NT ER TE SS ER AE
See also the Guide re: Hexagons
The largest hexagons I have found are 4-hexagons. Here is an example by Kray, from June 1999:
S T A R S C E N E S S H A N G H A I T R A N S I E N C E O R D I N A T E P A L A T E L E S S
See also the Guide re: Cambridge Hexagons
I don't know what the record is for Cambridge hexagons. The largest left hexagon I have found is by Sherlock Holmes; it is a 6-hexagon, published in June 1961:
S N E E T H N A B A R O H E B O D U R U M E A D N E S S E S T R U E N E S S E S H O R S E C A S S I A H U S S A K I T E S M E S S I N E S S S E S T E T T O S I E S T E R A S S O R T
The only double left Cambridge hexagon I have found is a double left 4-hexagon by Loki-5, from the March 2000 Enigma:
C R A M A U R A L G I M L E T E N L I V E N S E N A R Y T E N S E S T E T
I know of only one single right Cambridge hexagon. It is a 5-hexagon by Gab-F, and was published in June 1999:
H A S P S W A L L E T K O N T I K I W O R K E D I N H A N K E R I N G A L T E R I N G S L I D I N G P E K I N G S T I N G
The only double right Cambridge hexagon I have found is a double right 5-hexagon by Gab-F. It appeared in the February 1999 Enigma:
L E P T A H E L I O S R E V E R T S D E R I V A T E H E S I T A T E S E V I T A T E D S E N A T E S S I E G E D E N D E D
Dart wrote the following bigram right 3-hexagon, which was published in November 1995:
EU RI TE BE DA BB LE EU DA EM ON IA RI BB ON RY TE LE IA
Meki wrote the following bigram left 3-hexagon. This appeared in March 2000:
AC CO ST CO ND EN SE ST EN TO RI AN SE RI AT IM AN IM US
See the Guide re: Octagons
Octagons are typically built with the same number of letters on each side, including the diagonal sides. However, some non-standard ones have been published; for these, as with rectangles, I shall keep track of the record by the shortest side, as well as recording the largest “pure” octagon.
The largest single octagon I have found is a 3-octagon. Here is one by Maya, from April 1995:
A G E S T A Y S A T H L E T E G A L I L E O E Y E L I D S S T E D E E O S
At least one non-standard octagon with a short side of 3 has been printed; here is one by Lunch Boy from July 1998:
D A S H M O N T E L D O C T O R E D A N T I P O D E S T O P S I G N H E R O I N E S L E D G E R D E N S
I have only found one double octagon. It is a 3-octagon by Newrow from February 2001.
O P A S P I C E S E A P O R T A L L E L I C C L O T H E S S I T U S D E A
I know of only one vowelless octagon; it is a 3-octagon by Newrow, and it was published in The Former in January 1989:
N N N unnun C N S N T consent N N V R S R S anniversaries N S R R C T N insurrection N N S C T R N nonsectarian T R T R N tartarin S N N asinine
See also the Guide re: Enneagons
The largest enneagon I have found is a 4-enneagon. Here is an example by Jo the Loiterer, from July 2000:
M L A O L U C R E M A C H I N E M E N O R I E N T A T E E N N E A G O N E T A M I N E M A G I E T O N N E N E
I have found no double enneagons or inverted enneagons. The largest left inverted enneagon and the largest double left inverted enneagon that I know of are both 5-enneagons by Sherlock Holmes. They were published in January 1940 and December 1952 respectively:
M U C E S A N O N E U M A T A M A S E S M A U M E N T R I U N M A N H O O D S C O A S T O F L E A N E N T E R O L O B I U M S E A S I D E B A L S A M S A I L O U R N U S U B M A R M G R A N D R U B O R O N O N E T E R R S T W O N E S S E S H O N E S T E T E S A N T I C A M E R A S U T E R O V E N T R A L F O R E S E N T E N C E S S T I N T E D S O D A S N E L R
The only left enneagon I have found is by Jo the Loiterer. It is a 4-enneagon, and was published in June 1999:
R P E D C A P H S P E T R O L E O U S A L I E N A T O R R A K E V E I N S N I D E S T I N T I E E R O R E A N
I have only found one vowelless enneagon. It is a 5-enneagon by Form Fiend, from the July 1999 Enigma:
G yoga S R D surd D P S C C Dipsacaceae S P R S M R T supersmart G R S S H P P R S P R R W grasshopper sparrow D C M P S T N P T N T L decomposition potential C R P T S T R T C H R carpet stretcher T R N T R C L L L S trinitrocellulose S P R C L S N S S superciliousness P T T L S pottles R N C L N reincline R T H L S ratholes W L R S S walruses
See also the Guide re: Halfsquares
The largest halfsquare known is a 15-halfsquare. Here is an example by Sherlock Holmes, published in May 1963:
H F I M O N S E R D F E N C E M A L T I N T I L L A B L M E S S A L L A T E N T E R D E N M I S T E N D I N G F A L S E N E S S E S S E L L A R D S T E S T M E N T A L D I S E A S E F O R C I B L E N E S S E S H I N D E N L A N G S T E S T
The largest double halfsquare known is a 14-halfsquare, also by Sherlock Holmes. Here is one from Dec. 1967:
R F E D A P H I T E S E S H A D A U P E T W I L L E R S T U S L A N G O H A R P E N D E N F A R R E N D I N E B A R R A N D I T E S D I S P E N D I T U R E M A S T E R G E N E R A L F A T H E R S O N E S E L F
The largest inverted halfsquare I have been able to find is an 11-halfsquare from March 1998, by Meki. It is necessarily double.
P E R I S T A L S E S S U S C I P I E N T C O A N I M A T E P R E E N T E R F A C E U R N R E T R O S S I T C H S L E E E L E E T S
The following left 10-halfsquare, by Jo the Loiterer, is the largest I have found. It was published in July 2000.
P R A O R S G R E W R E X E S E S T A T E S T O N I N G S I L E N T L Y E V E R G R E E N S E T S E Y E S O N
The largest inverted left halfsquare I'm aware of is a 13-halfsquare by Sherlock Holmes. Here is one from Apr. 1935:
T O S H A M A B R A H A M O B T E N E B R A T E S S T R A I T L A C E D H E A D S H A K E S A N I S O A T E S M E T H A N O L A B L A T O R B R A K E L R A C E S A T E S H E D A S M
For bigram halfsquares the record appears to be a 7-halfsquare. This example is by Form Fiend, and appeared in November 1999:
IN SA TE AB LA RE PO LE MA ST AB LE MI ND ED SA LA MA ND RI NE IN TE RE ST ED NE SS
The largest left inverted bigram halfsquare I have found so far is a 6-halfsquare by Gab-F, published in October 1999:
SI DE RE AL TI ME DE FO LI AT ES RE LI EV ES AL AT ES TI ES ME
I have no examples of double left inverted halfsquares, trigram halfsquares, or consonantless or vowelless halfsquares. I'll post them here when I find examples.
The following pair of halfsquares are made of base words that can serve as either a consonantless or vowelless halfsquare. This 8-halfsquare is by Form Fiend, and was published in June 1999:
C O oc N N A A anna C T S O I U coitus S L C N U A O I sualocin S B L N G U I U A E sublinguae C L L D T N O A U A I O collaudation N T C N T G S A I O A I O U anticontagious C N S N G N S L O A U I E O U Y consanguineously
One unique halfsquare I include here because it is unlikely ever to be improved upon: the following is a letterless halfsquare by Shrdlu and Xemu, from February 1996. The solution was printed at the time as if it were a left halfsquare, but that would have required two sets of clues–though that's debatable, as you can see:
- kiss-me - - kiss-me-quick - - - kiss-in-the-ring - - - - kiss-me-at-the-gate - - - - - kiss-me-over-the-garden-gate
See also the Guide re: Lattices
The only right lattice I have found is the guide example, a 9-lattice. I don't know the author or publication date:
T E A M S T E R S E H A V O C A O K A P I M R E D E S S H O R T N E S S T A K E N O E V A D E R R O P E S E S C I S S O R E D
I have found no left lattices larger than an 11-lattice. Here is an example by Gabby, from February 2000:
A P P O R T I O N E R P O O R E R E P O L I C E A O R I S O N D R E C O R D D T R E N D S E T T E R I E X H U M E O T H E B E S N T U B E R S E E M E R G E R E A D D R E S S E S
See also the Guide re: Pygmy Hourglasses
I believe the largest Pygmy hourglass is a 21-hourglass by Sherlock Holmes, from January 1954:
C A S T A N H A N U T S I N T E R D E B A T E S T E R E O B A T E T E R R A L I N E E R E A R I N G R I O L I T E N O M I N E A R E N G I N R E N A S T S B E A F I R L C E C C A C A T A R R C A R T R U T C E L A M I R E P A R A V A N A R N A M A S A G A L I W A D I T E L E T I E H O P E L E S S N E S S
See also the Guide re: Pyramids
I am keeping track of pyramids and truncated pyramids separately, although they could be regarded as the same basic form.
The largest known pyramid is a 19-pyramid; the largest truncated pyramid is an 18-pyramid. Here are examples of each, both by Sherlock Holmes: the first was published in Dec. 1943, the second in June 1956:
P C O F T Y R U S S E T T L O R V E R R O L L E S P E R M I L L A G E S S A R D I N I A N I T E S B U R N I N G O N E S T A I L V I R G I N I A N D A T E P L U M K E E P I N G O N E S E Y E S O P E N G A P O D S C A L N E H S A R D A N A S C U I R A S S I E R M A R C E S C E N C E S T E R C E N T E N A R I A N C O N V E N I E N T N E S S E S C O F F E E A N D T E A T A S T E R
The largest inverted pyramid I have been able to locate is a 17-pyramid by Cubist. It appeared in September 1994:
N O N S A N C T I F I C A T I O N S A C R A R O M A N A R O T A B A T T E R P U D D I N G M A T A E O L O G U E R E T A T T L E S R E D E F E R S O N U S R C L E
The largest inverted truncated pyramid I have found is a 16-pyramid by Jo the Loiterer that appeared in October 1999. As you will see below, this pyramid was also part of a connected pair, making it even more notable:
W E N D Y W A S S E R S T E I N M O R E O F M O R E H A L L B E A N F E A S T E R S T E T R A P T O T E D O O R L E S S N I S E I S S O E N N S
The largest connected pyramids I have found are a pair of 17-pyramids by Sherlock Holmes, from November 1965. This pair is even more remarkable because these pyramids were contained in a Rokeby star, a compound form containing four rhomboids and four pyramids, and so were heavily constrained:
M L O H L O N A D G A N T R E L M A N G R A T E S J O S T L E M E N T S V O L T A E L E C T R I C P A R A A N A E S T H E S I A A S L E E P A T T H E S W I T C H H Y D R O C O R A L L I N E S L A R D E R E L L I T E S T E R N E P L A T E S S E T C H I S E L S E R I N E S S U N G E E E S SThe record for connected truncated pyramids appears to be a pair of 16-pyramids by Jo the Loiterer. These appeared in the October 1999 Enigma:
E M T R A E B R O M A S G U I T A R E S B A R G E C A N A L T A U R O M A C H I E S H O L D O N E S H O R S E S W E N D Y W A S S E R S T E I N M O R E O F M O R E H A L L B E A N F E A S T E R S T E T R A P T O T E D O O R L E S S N I S E I S S O E N N S
I have found no consonantless pyramids. I do have examples of vowelless pyramids, however. The largest vowelless pyramid I know of is the following 17-pyramid by Form Fiend, from the December 1999 Enigma:
C ace B N W Baniwa M T T L L mattulla S N T R L C T senator-elect C L T R R S T R S Cultrirostres S L F N T R P R T T V self-interpretative T H N D R S T R M C R R S thunderstorm cirrus N S T R M N T T R N S F R M R instrument transformer K N G H T S G R N D C M M N D R S knights grand commanders The down words are: ukiyoye ennui Tsuga sheath colinearity selfdoms mountaineering battery tester counterirritation well-spurred alectryomancy triticism Styrofoam overrun Samoyed rare yes
The record for an inverted vowelless pyramid is held by the inverted half of the following pair of connected 13-pyramids, which are themselves the largest connected vowelless pyramids I have located. They are by Ai, and were published in December 1996:
P Poi K L P kelpie C L N L S colonials T M P T T N S temptations C R P T G R P H R cryptographer P R F R M N C R T S T performance artist G R F F T N T H S P H N X Graffiti on the Sphinx The down words are: gooey au pair Corfu tariff comport kleptomania Plantagenet Plutarch snipers shut up Irish Taney oxeye G R F F T N T H S P H N X Graffiti on the Sphinx C R S S W R D P Z Z L crossword puzzle C H S B L N T Z S cheese blintzes S T R B S M S strabismus R T L T S retaliates N Z C Anzac R euro The down words are: Gaea Eric Africa fishes tessitura New Britain Trailblazer hedonistic Septimius pizzas Hoozoos only oxeye
Ai is also the author of the following two vowelless truncated 12-pyramids, which also form a connected pair. These were published in September 1996:
R S Eurasia H M T M home team W G N R N S Wagnerians N G H T L G H T night-light C N T R C T B R D G contract bridge N T N L P Z Z L R S L G National Puzzlers' League The down words are: yuan coyote nanny wagtail higher-up romanticize Austerlitz manageable sherry tedious eagle Goya N T N L P Z Z L R S L G National Puzzlers' League S T R L N G S L V R sterling silver G R N D G G N L Grand Guignol P N F R T S pianofortes D N T S Donatus S S Sousa The down words are: Ionia Oates Antigua larrup planned zone defense ziggurats Los Gatos orleans saveloy layer yogi
However, the inverted half of this connected pair has been bettered, also by Ai, with the following 14-pyramid which was published in August 2001:
L L M M S W R T H B R G V S "All mimsy were the borogoves" T H M M R T H S T G R B "the mome raths outgrabe" T R S T N N D S L D <I>Tristan und Isolde</I> S P N L C R D S spinal cords D G S R B S dog's-ribs S T C L stoical S S essay The down words are: Elia Eliot mahout memoirs Sam Spade writings rationalists ethnocracies Hadrubal boatsides Regulus agreed vibe ayes
The largest left windmill I am aware of is by Sherlock Holmes. It is built on a 15-letter base word, and was published in October 1974:
K H A Z A R E S H Y P E R O P E A P H R A S I A Z E R O S E T S A R A S U A H I R O S E A T E D E P I T H E M E S E A S I D E R A D I S H E S A V E N T I N E D E S S E N T E I N S E R T E D S T E R N E R S H I N T E D A T E N T E R A T E S E E D S T E R
The largest right windmill I know of is an 11-windmill by Form Fiend, published in March 1999:
U L U J U Z N O N A N E P A L I E R A N I L A O R I V O S E U N P A R T N E R E D L O A N I N U N L I V E J A I L O R U N E A S E Z E R O E D
I know of only one double left windmill. It's by Jo the Loiterer, and was published in December 1999:
R I F F E D U N R A R E S C O U R S S A N N A S E S T A T E T E S S A R A G L O T T R O U P E W I N C E D I N N I N G N E E D L E E S S A Y S
The largest double right windmill I know of is by Jo the Loiterer, from the August 1999 Enigma:
M U S S E L I N C O M E S C H L E P E L O I S E E A R N E R L E S S A N D L E S S A N T O N S A Z O N I C G Y R A S E E M E T I N R E S A L E
I have found no consonantless windmills, and no vowelless windmills larger than 11-windmills. The following example is by Ai; it's from May 2001:
D V N F F C divine office V L D C T R valedictory N D S T R S industrious F C T R G S factorages F T R G L W afterglow C R S S W R D P Z Z L crossword puzzle D S T N C D distanced P T T S F R petits four Z N F N D L zinfandel Z C R D N T z-coordinate L D S L T S old salts
See also the Guide re: Pyramidal Windmills
The largest left pyramills I know of are 21-pyramills. Here is an example from November 1993, by Cubist:
T J E E J O U L E S I C C A N T Z O N U R I D A E B U C K M I N S T E R F U L L E R E N E S B R O A D A X E S O R B I T E D A O T E S R E D D
The largest right pyramill I have found is a 25-pyramill by Meki, from May 1998:
R E E D I N D O L R O O F T O P R A D I O I R O N A C T I N O S C O P Y H O R M O N E R E P L A C E M E N T T H E R A P Y U N I L A M E L L A R A C E R A C E A E H A I N A U T N A U N T L E E L
The largest truncated left pyramill I know of is a 23-pyramill by Trazom, published in February 1995:
B E P E A L F E R R I L F O R A N N I E B A C K P E D A L S M I N I S T R Y O F A L L T H E T A L E N T S E N A M E L O M A S T I M E K E E P T E V I S S R E D S E S
The largest truncated right pyramill I have seen is a 19-pyramill by Gabby and Wrybosh. It was published in December 2000:
S H I C E D L A I N E S B E G O N I A S U L T R A S E N S A T I O N A L I S T G A U N T L E T J E W E L S S A V E R E
See also the Guide re: Stars
Here are a single and double right star, both by Sherlock Holmes. The single star is from May 1967; the double star is from March 1931:
G R E U G O G R U G R U G R U B E G R E T R A N A O U T S E N D S G R E A V E S R A N V E R S E U N D E R S T E P B A S S S T R A I T E E A P I T C H A A B U S E A M O N S T E R N A P O L E O N E S A L I E R E S C O N T O R T O N G I N G O L L I E N T E R I A S A N G A T A N G A L I T C O R
Here are some left stars. The first, a single star, is by Jo the Loiterer and is from June 1997; the second is a double left 7-star, by Rain Man, from March 1995. I believe the record for a double left star is a 10-star, but I have not found any examples.
C C U J A R S C A R A B A E A N C O R E L A T E D A R M H O L E S R E H A U L S J A L O U S I E C A B A L L I N G C U R A T E S E G G E E S A D N Z C I S O D A P O P W R E N C H I G L O O S M I L E D L I M E A D E E S R
I am not aware of any bigram, vowelless or consonantless stars.
Forms in three dimensions can have single, double, or triple form. The following set of squares forms a Single Cube; it was written by Cubist.
P R E S T O R U S H E S E S C O R T S H O V E L T E R E T E O S T L E R R U S H E S U N T A M E S T A L E R H A L I T E E M E T I N S E R E N E E S C O R T S T A L E R C A G I L Y O L I V E S R E L E N T T R Y S T S S H O V E L H A L I T E O L I V E S V I V E R S E T E R N E L E S S E E T E R E T E E M E T I N R E L E N T E T E R N E T I N N E R E N T E R A O S T L E R S E R E N E T R Y S T S L E S S E E E N T E R A R E S E A L
The following set of squares form a Double Cube; it was written by Jabberwock (as Grendel) as an example for a paper on 3 and 4 dimensional forms, and can certainly be improved upon.
E D E N B E M A E M I T N O L O D A D A E V I L M I C A O V E N E D I T M I R E I C O N L E N T N A T E A L E C T A N H O N T O
The following set of squares form a Triple Cube; it was written by Jabberwock (as Grendel) for the 2006 NPL Convention.
C U B E A B A T T A R A S O T S A B A S B A L E E L A N E D I T D A C E E R O S A G I N R O L E I N K S D E E T L A N A E R S T
The four-dimensional equivalent of a Cube is a Tesseract. It has Single, Double(3,1), Double(2,2), Triple, and Quadruple forms (see Grendel's paper (link coming) for details on the different types).
The biggest Single Tesseract constructed was by Jabberwock (as Grendel) for the 2006 NPL Convention in San Antonio, Texas.
A L A M O L O G I C A G E N T M I N C E O C T E T L O G I C O B O L I G O N I O I L I A N C I O N S A G E N T G O N I O E N D E D N I E C E T O D E A M I N C E I L I A N N I E C E C A C T I E N E I D O C T E T C I O N S T O D E A E N E I D T S A D E L O G I C O B O L I G O N I O I L I A N C I O N S O B O L I B U R I N O R A N T L I N G O I N T O W G O N I O O R A N T N A I V E I N V A R O T E R I I L I A N L I N G O I N V A R A G A R S N O R S E C I O N S I N T O W O T E R I N O R S E S W I E S A G E N T G O N I O E N D E D N I E C E T O D E A G O N I O O R A N T N A I V E I N V A R O T E R I E N D E D N A I V E D I X O N E V O L A D E N A R N I E C E I N V A R E V O L A C A L O S E R A S E T O D E A O T E R I D E N A R E R A S E A I R E S M I N C E I L I A N N I E C E C A C T I E N E I D I L I A N L I N G O I N V A R A G A R S N O R S E N I E C E I N V A R E V O L A C A L O S E R A S E C A C T I A G A R S C A L O S T R O N A I S S A R E N E I D N O R S E E R A S E I S S A R D E E R E O C T E T C I O N S T O D E A E N E I D T S A D E C I O N S I N T O W O T E R I N O R S E S W I E S T O D E A O T E R I D E N A R E R A S E A I R E S E N E I D N O R S E E R A S E I S S A R D E E R E T S A D E S W I E S A I R E S D E E R E E S S E X
The biggest 5-dimensional Cube (Single Penteract) was also constructed by Jabberwock (as Grendel) for the 2006 NPL Convention (which was, incidentally, hosted by Rebel).
Tesseract 1 R E B E L E L A T E B A T H E E T H E R L E E R Y E L A T E L U R E S A R R A S T E A S E E S S E E B A T H E A R R A S T R E S S H A S T E E S S E S E T H E R T E A S E H A S T E E S T E S R E E S E L E E R Y E S S E E E S S E S R E E S E Y E S E S E L A T E L U R E S A R R A S T E A S E E S S E E L U R E S U A U P E R U E S T E P S C O S E T O N A R R A S R U E S T R E A S E A S S U R S T E R T T E A S E E P S C O A S S U R S C U L L E O R L S E S S E E S E T O N S T E R T E O R L S E N T S Y B A T H E A R R A S T R E S S H A S T E E S S E S A R R A S R U E S T R E A S E A S S U R S T E R T T R E S S R E A S E E A D I E S S I N G S E E G E H A S T E A S S U R S S I N G T U N C A E R G A L E S S E S S T E R T S E E G E E R G A L S T E L E E T H E R T E A S E H A S T E E S T E S R E E S E T E A S E E P S C O A S S U R S C U L L E O R L S H A S T E A S S U R S S I N G T U N C A E R G A L E S T E S S C U L L T U N C A E L C I D S L A D E R E E S E E O R L S E R G A L S L A D E E S L E R L E E R Y E S S E E E S S E S R E E S E Y E S E S E S S E E S E T O N S T E R T E O R L S E N T S Y E S S E S S T E R T S E E G E E R G A L S T E L E R E E S E E O R L S E R G A L S L A D E E S L E R Y E S E S E N T S Y S T E L E E S L E R S Y E R S Tesseract 2 E L A T E L U R E S A R R A S T E A S E E S S E E L U R E S U A U P E R U E S T E P S C O S E T O N A R R A S R U E S T R E A S E A S S U R S T E R T T E A S E E P S C O A S S U R S C U L L E O R L S E S S E E S E T O N S T E R T E O R L S E N T S Y L U R E S U A U P E R U E S T E P S C O S E T O N U A U P E A B R I L U R I T E P I T O N E L E N A R U E S T U R I T E E I L A T S T A L E T E T E R E P S C O P I T O N S T A L E C O L A O O N E O K S E T O N E L E N A T E T E R O N E O K N A R K A A R R A S R U E S T R E A S E A S S U R S T E R T R U E S T U R I T E E I L A T S T A L E T E T E R R E A S E E I L A T A L E R T S A R A I E T T I E A S S U R S T A L E S A R A I U L A N S R E I S E S T E R T T E T E R E T T I E R E I S E T R E E D T E A S E E P S C O A S S U R S C U L L E O R L S E P S C O P I T O N S T A L E C O L A O O N E O K A S S U R S T A L E S A R A I U L A N S R E I S E S C U L L C O L A O U L A N S L A N C E L O S E R E O R L S O N E O K R E I S E L O S E R S K E R E E S S E E S E T O N S T E R T E O R L S E N T S Y S E T O N E L E N A T E T E R O N E O K N A R K A S T E R T T E T E R E T T I E R E I S E T R E E D E O R L S O N E O K R E I S E L O S E R S K E R E E N T S Y N A R K A T R E E D S K E R E Y A D E N Tesseract 3 B A T H E A R R A S T R E S S H A S T E E S S E S A R R A S R U E S T R E A S E A S S U R S T E R T T R E S S R E A S E E A D I E S S I N G S E E G E H A S T E A S S U R S S I N G T U N C A E R G A L E S S E S S T E R T S E E G E E R G A L S T E L E A R R A S R U E S T R E A S E A S S U R S T E R T R U E S T U R I T E E I L A T S T A L E T E T E R R E A S E E I L A T A L E R T S A R A I E T T I E A S S U R S T A L E S A R A I U L A N S R E I S E S T E R T T E T E R E T T I E R E I S E T R E E D T R E S S R E A S E E A D I E S S I N G S E E G E R E A S E E I L A T A L E R T S A R A I E T T I E E A D I E A L E R T D E R A H I R A T E E T H E L S S I N G S A R A I I R A T E N A T O S G I E S E S E E G E E T T I E E T H E L G I E S E E E L E R H A S T E A S S U R S S I N G T U N C A E R G A L A S S U R S T A L E S A R A I U L A N S R E I S E S S I N G S A R A I I R A T E N A T O S G I E S E T U N C A U L A N S N A T O S C N O T E A S S E T E R G A L R E I S E G I E S E A S S E T L E E T E E S S E S S T E R T S E E G E E R G A L S T E L E S T E R T T E T E R E T T I E R E I S E T R E E D S E E G E E T T I E E T H E L G I E S E E E L E R E R G A L R E I S E G I E S E A S S E T L E E T E S T E L E T R E E D E E L E R L E E T E E D R E A Tesseract 4 E T H E R T E A S E H A S T E E S T E S R E E S E T E A S E E P S C O A S S U R S C U L L E O R L S H A S T E A S S U R S S I N G T U N C A E R G A L E S T E S S C U L L T U N C A E L C I D S L A D E R E E S E E O R L S E R G A L S L A D E E S L E R T E A S E E P S C O A S S U R S C U L L E O R L S E P S C O P I T O N S T A L E C O L A O O N E O K A S S U R S T A L E S A R A I U L A N S R E I S E S C U L L C O L A O U L A N S L A N C E L O S E R E O R L S O N E O K R E I S E L O S E R S K E R E H A S T E A S S U R S S I N G T U N C A E R G A L A S S U R S T A L E S A R A I U L A N S R E I S E S S I N G S A R A I I R A T E N A T O S G I E S E T U N C A U L A N S N A T O S C N O T E A S S E T E R G A L R E I S E G I E S E A S S E T L E E T E E S T E S S C U L L T U N C A E L C I D S L A D E S C U L L C O L A O U L A N S L A N C E L O S E R T U N C A U L A N S N A T O S C N O T E A S S E T E L C I D L A N C E C N O T E I C T U S D E E S E S L A D E L O S E R A S S E T D E E S E E R T E L R E E S E E O R L S E R G A L S L A D E E S L E R E O R L S O N E O K R E I S E L O S E R S K E R E E R G A L R E I S E G I E S E A S S E T L E E T E S L A D E L O S E R A S S E T D E E S E E R T E L E S L E R S K E R E L E E T E E R T E L R E E L S Tesseract 5 L E E R Y E S S E E E S S E S R E E S E Y E S E S E S S E E S E T O N S T E R T E O R L S E N T S Y E S S E S S T E R T S E E G E E R G A L S T E L E R E E S E E O R L S E R G A L S L A D E E S L E R Y E S E S E N T S Y S T E L E E S L E R S Y E R S E S S E E S E T O N S T E R T E O R L S E N T S Y S E T O N E L E N A T E T E R O N E O K N A R K A S T E R T T E T E R E T T I E R E I S E T R E E D E O R L S O N E O K R E I S E L O S E R S K E R E E N T S Y N A R K A T R E E D S K E R E Y A D E N E S S E S S T E R T S E E G E E R G A L S T E L E S T E R T T E T E R E T T I E R E I S E T R E E D S E E G E E T T I E E T H E L G I E S E E E L E R E R G A L R E I S E G I E S E A S S E T L E E T E S T E L E T R E E D E E L E R L E E T E E D R E A R E E S E E O R L S E R G A L S L A D E E S L E R E O R L S O N E O K R E I S E L O S E R S K E R E E R G A L R E I S E G I E S E A S S E T L E E T E S L A D E L O S E R A S S E T D E E S E E R T E L E S L E R S K E R E L E E T E E R T E L R E E L S Y E S E S E N T S Y S T E L E E S L E R S Y E R S E N T S Y N A R K A T R E E D S K E R E Y A D E N S T E L E T R E E D E E L E R L E E T E E D R E A E S L E R S K E R E L E E T E E R T E L R E E L S S Y E R S Y A D E N E D R E A R E E L S S N A S H