Crossword Clue: World's longest mountain range
Here's the answer to the World's longest mountain range crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: ANDES
"World's longest mountain range" points to ANDES, a 5-letter entry that starts with A and finishes on S and carries 2 vowels. Because every square it occupies also belongs to a down or across answer crossing it, you can often back into ANDES from the letters around it rather than the clue alone.
Origin & meaning
The Andes stretch about 4,300 miles along the western edge of South America. They are the longest continental mountain range and home to many active volcanoes.
Common usage
Compact, vowel-friendly answers such as ANDES are a constructor's staple: they slot into a 5-square space and play nicely in both directions. Solvers who recognize it on sight save real time on the daily puzzle.
Crossword trivia
Andes belongs to the small vocabulary of words that appear constantly in grids. Because it's only 5 letters, editors can drop it almost anywhere, which is why regular solvers know it on sight.
Stuck on this clue?
Stuck on "World's longest mountain range"? Don't force it — solve the clues crossing this slot instead. One or two intersecting letters usually make ANDES obvious. Working from the crossings is the single most useful habit for getting faster.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue ANDES — 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
- "A 5-letter slot and a clue like 'World's longest mountain range'? That's ANDES nine times out of ten."
- "I second-guessed it, but the crossing answers confirmed ANDES was right."
- "I had the crossing letters, so writing ANDES into the grid took no time at all."