Crossword Clue: Cup-shaped spring bloom
Here's the answer to the Cup-shaped spring bloom crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: TULIP
"Cup-shaped spring bloom" points to TULIP, a 5-letter entry that starts with T and finishes on P and carries 2 vowels. Because every square it occupies also belongs to a down or across answer crossing it, you can often back into TULIP from the letters around it rather than the clue alone.
Origin & meaning
Tulips are spring-blooming bulbs strongly associated with the Netherlands. In the 1630s they sparked 'tulip mania,' often cited as history's first speculative bubble, when single bulbs sold for the price of a house.
Common usage
Compact, vowel-friendly answers such as TULIP 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
Tulip 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 "Cup-shaped spring bloom"? Don't force it — solve the clues crossing this slot instead. One or two intersecting letters usually make TULIP obvious. Working from the crossings is the single most useful habit for getting faster.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue TULIP — 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
- "Tulip is the kind of answer that clicks the moment you spot one letter."
- "Seeing 'Cup-shaped spring bloom' in the clue list, an experienced solver pencils in TULIP almost immediately."
- "Once the T was confirmed by the crossing word, TULIP was the only entry that fit."