A cryptic clue consists of a definition part, which needs to be something that at least kinda-defines the actual answer, and a wordplay part, which constructs the answer according to a fairly strict set of rules. Sometimes there's something like "is" or "yields" between the two.
So far as I can see, there is no part of the clue that defines SEASHELLS.
And so far as I can see, you haven't given any explanation for the part of the clue that says "An algorithm to cut off", nor why SHELLS would come after the "underwater stuff".
Also, the sea isn't underwater. The sea is the water.
If you mean what do I think the answer is, I don't know yet. There's a famous sorting algorithm called SHELLSORT but I don't see any way to make the wordplay yield that and it would be a bit inelegant to have SHELLS right there in the clue if that's the answer.
user478740
I'm good at making CC's, but bad at answering them :(
I wonder whether somehow we're taking SHELLSORT and "cutting off" SHELLS to leave ORT, but there doesn't then seem to be enough clue left over to fit in the remaining wordplay and a definition.
@GarethMcCaughan I'll dispute that last point (but agree with the rest). When we refer to something as being "underwater" we mean it's beneath the surface of the water. So — only when needed in a word puzzle and never in real conversation — I think it'd be fair to refer to the water itself as "underwater".
user478740
2:15 PM
I even made 3 different CC's myself if I was next in the CCCC
Here is a simple puzzle, can be challenging as well.
How can you divide the board into exactly $2$ equal-shaped pieces such that it fits the hole?
Bonus: Can you do the same problem in $3$ pieces, such that one of the pieces of the board has the sides of a square? If no, then what is the minimu...
To be honest, I think most of the riddles here are low-quality, simply because people think "ooh, I'm smart with my misdirection" and then it just goes off the rails
even if your spelling is perfectly regular though, there's still a lot of important things to do with a phonology -- it allows you to define phonotactics, the rules for how syllables should be laid out
for instance, in english, we have the rule that /h/ can never be at the end of the word, and /ŋ/ (the "ng" sound) can never be at the beginning of one
other languages do allow words starting with /ŋ/ - to them, it might not seem out of the ordinary. and of course some languages have different sounds altogether - my favorite is the welsh lateral fricatives.
(put your tongue in the position like you're making an "l" sound, but instead breathe out like you're making an "h". the air will flow around your tongue and it'll give a weird hissing sound that kinda sounds like "sh")
@NorthLæraðr it is! that's the ll in welsh, which you might know from the name "lloyd" (which is sometimes transliterated to english as "floyd" -- hopefully you can see why!), or as the first sound of "llanfair pg", the really long welsh town name
but yeah this syllable structure difference is one thing that makes different languages sound different! some languages are a lot more restrictive - spanish, for instance, doesn't allow /sk/ at the start of syllables, which is why "school" (from latin "schola") becomes "escuela". they can't start syllables that way - it's not a natural thing
> (put your tongue in the position like you're making an "l" sound, but instead breathe out like you're making an "h". the air will flow around your tongue and it'll give a weird hissing sound that kinda sounds like "sh")
There was this popular girl in Facebook who had many followers.
One day, she posted this post in her Facebook for fun and engagement:
It's lazy facts day!
Comment one lazy fact down below!
So the lazy facts started pouring in.
There were "The sky is not always blue", "Chocolates are sweet", "I...
My name is Gabbie and I have a question today. Can any triangles be named with three letters?
There was this popular girl in Facebook who had many followers.
One day, she posted this post in her Facebook for fun and engagement:
It's lazy facts day!
Comment one lazy fact down below!
So the lazy facts started pouring in.
There were "The sky is not always blue", "Chocolates are sweet", "I...
