Crossword Clue: Three-toed sloth
Here's the answer to the Three-toed sloth crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: UNAU
The answer to "Three-toed sloth" is UNAU. Unau runs 4 letters — 3 vowels and 1 consonant — opening with U and closing on U. In a grid it fills a 4-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
Confusingly, 'unau' is the name for the two-toed sloth, while 'ai' denotes the three-toed. Its rare U-vowel bookends make U-N-A-U a specialized crossword filler.
Common usage
You'll see UNAU in grids regularly — its 4-letter, 3 vowels shape is exactly what setters need to bridge trickier entries. When one intersecting letter is already in place, especially the U or U, UNAU tends to fall fast.
Crossword trivia
Short answers like UNAU are the connective tissue of a crossword. You'll meet UNAU 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 UNAU will often be the only word that fits the letters you already have.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue UNAU — 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 UNAU into the grid took no time at all."
- "Unau is the kind of answer that clicks the moment you spot one letter."
- "Seeing 'Three-toed sloth' in the clue list, an experienced solver pencils in UNAU almost immediately."