Crossword Clue: River meeting the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois
Here's the answer to the River meeting the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: OHIO
OHIO solves the clue "River meeting the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois". Spanning 4 letters (3 vowels, 1 consonant), it begins at O and ends at O. Like most crossword fill, it lives at the intersection of two words, so a single confirmed crossing letter frequently reveals the whole entry.
Origin & meaning
The Ohio River flows about 981 miles and is the largest tributary of the Mississippi by volume. It formed a historic boundary between free and slave states.
Common usage
Ohio turns up often in crosswords because of that letter mix. Words like OHIO interlock cleanly with longer entries, so constructors reach for them to make a grid fit together without awkward clashes. Given a 4-square slot and a crossing letter or two, it's usually quick to confirm.
Crossword trivia
At 4 letters, OHIO shows up in daily mini and themed puzzles far more than longer, obscure words. It's the kind of entry worth memorizing — the more common short words you know cold, the faster you solve.
Stuck on this clue?
If this clue won't come, leave it and fill the answers that cross it. Once a couple of OHIO's letters are locked by neighboring words, the entry tends to reveal itself. Crossings beat staring at a clue every time.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue OHIO — 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
- "Seeing 'River meeting the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois' in the clue list, an experienced solver pencils in OHIO almost immediately."
- "Once the O was confirmed by the crossing word, OHIO was the only entry that fit."
- "A 4-letter slot and a clue like 'River meeting the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois'? That's OHIO nine times out of ten."