Crossword Clues for Temporary Solution: What Actually Fits
You run into this one pretty often. The clue reads "Temporary solution" and you stare at the grid for a solid minute. The answer length matters enormously here, so before I list anything, just note that down. The most common answers across major publications are stopgap (7), interim (7), and workaround (10). Bridge is 6. Plaster is 7 when it's used metaphorically. Band-aid shows up sometimes, though constructors tend to shy away from it because it requires a hyphen or capital B which is messy in a standard grid. I keep a running spreadsheet of these because the same clue gets reused constantly. "Temporary solution" has appeared at least 40 times in the New York Times alone over the past decade, and constructors keep reaching for the same four or five answers. Stopgap is the default go-to. It's short, it fits almost anywhere, and it means exactly what the clue says without being too clever.
Here's a breakdown by letter count so you can match it to your grid: 5 letters: PLANT (rare, usually in a phrase like "stopgap plant"), FIX 6 letters: BRIDGE, BAND-AID (hyphenated, less common), PLACEHOLDER (too long for 6, included for reference)
7 letters: STOPGAP, INTERIM, PLASTER, TEMPARY (archaic, very rare) 8+ letters: WORKAROUND, BRACE, SHORTCUT (depends on crossing letters), MAKE-SHIFT (hyphenated, awkward) The one I mess up most often is stopgap. I'll see "temporary solution" and immediately write down interim because it feels more formal, then the crossings force me back to stopgap. It happens every time I do the Friday puzzle. The crossings always contradict me.
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Another nuance people miss: some constructors use "quick fix" instead of "temporary solution" and the answer is still stopgap. They treat those as interchangeable, which they are, but it throws people off if you're expecting a different word. I learned that the hard way on a Sunday puzzle where every clue except one was leading somewhere else entirely. If you're stuck, check your crossing letters first. Don't guess the answer from the clue alone. The intersections will tell you what you actually have. That's the method that works.
