Crossword Clue: Tennis great Federer
Here's the answer to the Tennis great Federer crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: ROGER
The answer to "Tennis great Federer" is ROGER. Roger runs 5 letters — 2 vowels and 3 consonants — opening with R and closing on R. In a grid it fills a 5-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
Roger Federer is a Swiss tennis legend with 20 Grand Slam titles. He was known for his elegant playing style.
Common usage
You'll see ROGER in grids regularly — its 5-letter, 2 vowels shape is exactly what setters need to bridge trickier entries. When one intersecting letter is already in place, especially the R or R, ROGER tends to fall fast.
Crossword trivia
Short answers like ROGER are the connective tissue of a crossword. You'll meet ROGER 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 ROGER will often be the only word that fits the letters you already have.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue ROGER — 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
- "I had the crossing letters, so writing ROGER into the grid took no time at all."
- "Roger is the kind of answer that clicks the moment you spot one letter."
- "Seeing 'Tennis great Federer' in the clue list, an experienced solver pencils in ROGER almost immediately."