Crossword Clue: Venice festival's Golden ___
Here's the answer to the Venice festival's Golden ___ crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: LION
LION solves the clue "Venice festival's Golden ___". Spanning 4 letters (2 vowels, 2 consonants), it begins at L and ends at N. Like most crossword fill, it lives at the intersection of two words, so a single confirmed crossing letter frequently reveals the whole entry.
Origin & meaning
The Golden Lion is the top prize of the Venice Film Festival, the world's oldest film festival, founded in 1932. The lion is a symbol of the city of Venice.
Common usage
Lion turns up often in crosswords because of that letter mix. Words like LION interlock cleanly with longer entries, so constructors reach for them to make a grid fit together without awkward clashes. Given a 4-square slot and a crossing letter or two, it's usually quick to confirm.
Crossword trivia
At 4 letters, LION shows up in daily mini and themed puzzles far more than longer, obscure words. It's the kind of entry worth memorizing — the more common short words you know cold, the faster you solve.
Stuck on this clue?
If this clue won't come, leave it and fill the answers that cross it. Once a couple of LION's letters are locked by neighboring words, the entry tends to reveal itself. Crossings beat staring at a clue every time.
This clue in different puzzles
The clue "Venice festival's Golden ___" is just one way to arrive at LION. Across different puzzles and editors you may see the same answer clued as "So-called king of the jungle". Recognizing that a single answer can wear many clues is one of the fastest ways to level up as a solver.
Example sentences
- "I second-guessed it, but the crossing answers confirmed LION was right."
- "I had the crossing letters, so writing LION into the grid took no time at all."
- "Lion is the kind of answer that clicks the moment you spot one letter."