Clue

//kluː//

Origin: "Clue" is an altered spelling of "clew," which means a ball of thread. The connection is the Greek myth of Theseus, who navigated the Minotaur's labyrinth by unspooling a ball of thread (a clew) given to him by Ariadne, then followed it back out after slaying the monster. A "clue" is, etymologically, the thread you follow to find your way through a maze of confusion. The spelling shifted in the 17th century, but the metaphor remains perfect.

Tip: The mythological origin of "clue" makes it one of English's most quietly poetic everyday words. When you write "the data offered a clue," you are invoking Theseus in the labyrinth, following a thread through darkness. This buried metaphor gives "clue" a narrative energy that "indicator" or "data point" simply cannot match. Lean into it when you want your analysis to feel like a story of discovery.

Words that Rhyme with "clue" (190 found)

Unknown190

blue do due brew crew into kangaroo cuckoo chew cue coup flu hitherto jew glue barbecue canoe interview corkscrew boo

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ballyhoo coo goo avenue bamboo hue ewe few emu horseshoe gumshoe ado debut foo guru iq askew hew hullabaloo imbue dew bellevue chu drew flue fu breakthrough beaucoup cockatoo bbq ingenue achoo accrue ju blew adieu hoo grew devalue construe gnu hugh caribou honeydew ensue eschew hindu hu jus doo hairdo iou bugaboo cashew flew anew fairview chou isu fondue grandview fescue ainu bartholomew gu guangzhou barbeque du goto hoopoe jujitsu cebu babu corbu kazoo baku crewe kalamazoo brand-new jammu aircrew feverfew fontainebleau dfw broadview chengdu gue drive-thru hutu choo hou joo isuzu karlsruhe chiu amadou dru glew hewe edu goodhue bleu breaux frew donahue hsu brue katmandu devereux daewoo countersue fitzhugh donohue cmu graue giroux byu hokuriku kaifu abreu karatsu grewe donahoo ballou depew bellew coutu jue frueh belyeu donohoo igou iliescu heroux champoux bukavu badu depardieu interbrew deux glenview abou advalue aeroperu angelou banyu benhamou beu brandnew carilou chaloux chugoku codrescu cortelyou cosatu cou deblois decou depue douwe egnew fauroux fourtou geroux gignoux herscu houx itochu jamu joanou

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.