Clue or Clew....

[Anna Morris]

Of course, we never hear about the Irish Theseus who knitted himself a jersey and was trapped for ever.

And I am sure there was not one clew left in sight.

[Robert Linford]

Of course, we never hear about the Irish Theseus who knitted himself a jersey and was trapped for ever.

[Sam Flynn]

Interesting. I'd have guessed that it came from the Latin "clavis" or French "clef" (key), but evidently (k)not!

[Anna Morris]

We encounter both spellings, clew and clue in old mysteries. I thought it was just a matter of spelling which standardized around the mid-twentieth century. Actually, "clew" is an interesting and appropriate word for crime investigations.

I recently obtained the book, "The Man From the Train" by Bill James and Rachel McCarthy James. On page 85 is this: "(It is unclear whether Prettyman knew that a 'clew' was in fact a ball of twine. The modern word CLUE evolved from the word clew, which meant a ball of string or twine.)

Of course that interested me so I looked up the etymology of both words and I will let the "Online Etymology Dictionary" say the rest.