Crossword Clue: Mozambican capital
Here's the answer to the Mozambican capital crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: MAPUTO
The answer to "Mozambican capital" is MAPUTO. Maputo runs 6 letters — 3 vowels and 3 consonants — opening with M and closing on O. In a grid it fills a 6-square slot whose letters are each shared with a crossing word, so the intersections do a lot of the heavy lifting when the clue itself is tough.
Origin & meaning
Maputo is a port city on the Indian Ocean in southern Mozambique. It was known as Lourenco Marques during Portuguese rule. The city is noted for its Mediterranean-style architecture and wide, jacaranda-lined avenues.
Common usage
You'll see MAPUTO in grids regularly — its 6-letter, 3 vowels shape is exactly what setters need to bridge trickier entries. When one intersecting letter is already in place, especially the M or O, MAPUTO tends to fall fast.
Crossword trivia
Short answers like MAPUTO are the connective tissue of a crossword. You'll meet MAPUTO again and again, and recognizing it instantly is one of the quiet skills that separates fast solvers from slow ones.
Stuck on this clue?
The fastest way past a stubborn clue like this one is the grid itself: pencil in the easy crossing answers first, and MAPUTO will often be the only word that fits the letters you already have.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue MAPUTO — sometimes with a straight dictionary definition, sometimes with wordplay, a pun, or a fill-in-the-blank — but the answer itself stays the same. Learning to spot the answer behind the disguise is a core crossword skill.
Example sentences
- "Once the M was confirmed by the crossing word, MAPUTO was the only entry that fit."
- "A 6-letter slot and a clue like 'Mozambican capital'? That's MAPUTO nine times out of ten."
- "I second-guessed it, but the crossing answers confirmed MAPUTO was right."