Crossword Clue: Physicist Planck
Here's the answer to the Physicist Planck crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: MAX
The answer to "Physicist Planck" is MAX. Max runs 3 letters — 1 vowel and 2 consonants — opening with M and closing on X. In a grid it fills a 3-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
Max Planck was a German physicist who originated quantum theory. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918.
Common usage
You'll see MAX in grids regularly — its 3-letter, 1 vowel shape is exactly what setters need to bridge trickier entries. When one intersecting letter is already in place, especially the M or X, MAX tends to fall fast.
Crossword trivia
Short answers like MAX are the connective tissue of a crossword. You'll meet MAX 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 MAX will often be the only word that fits the letters you already have.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue MAX — 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, MAX was the only entry that fit."
- "A 3-letter slot and a clue like 'Physicist Planck'? That's MAX nine times out of ten."
- "I second-guessed it, but the crossing answers confirmed MAX was right."