You’re sitting there with a coffee, staring at a grid that’s almost finished, but that one stubborn 4-letter or 5-letter gap is mocking you. The clue says stage of the Tour de France crossword, and suddenly, your brain goes blank. You know the race. You know the yellow jersey. But what do they call the actual chunks of the race in crossword-speak? It’s frustrating.
Crossword puzzles, especially the heavy hitters like the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, or The LA Times, love cycling terminology. It’s a goldmine of short, vowel-heavy words that help constructors bridge difficult sections of the board. If you're stuck, don't worry. It's usually one of three or four specific words that constructors recycle constantly.
The Most Likely Answers for Your Grid
Let's cut to the chase. If you are looking for a four-letter word, the answer is almost certainly ETAPE.
Why? Because the Tour de France is a French race, and étape is simply the French word for "stage." It’s the darling of crossword creators because it starts and ends with 'E' and has that handy 'T' and 'P' in the middle. You'll see this word show up in Saturday puzzles more often than you’ll see a flat tire in a cobblestone sector.
If the grid is asking for something longer, say five letters, you might be looking for LEGIT. No, wait—that's not right. It’s usually LAPSE? No. For a five-letter French-flavored stage, you might actually be looking for VOLET, though that's rare. More commonly, if it’s five letters and English, it’s just STAGE.
Sometimes, they get tricky. They might be looking for TRIAL, as in a "Time Trial," which is a specific and crucial kind of stage. Or maybe ALPS if the clue is "Mountainous stage of the Tour de France?" It's all about the context of the intersecting words.
👉 See also: Executive desk with drawers: Why your home office setup is probably failing you
Why "Etape" is the King of Crossword Cycling
Constructors like Will Shortz or Patti Varol have a toolkit. In that toolkit, certain words act as "glue." ETAPE is premium glue.
Think about the vowels. It helps fill those pesky vertical columns when you’ve already committed to a horizontal word that ends in a vowel. It’s also a bit of a "REBUS" light—a word that feels sophisticated but is actually quite simple once you know the translation. Honestly, if you see "Tour de France" and "Stage" in the same clue, and it's four or five letters, just pencil in the vowels of ETAPE and see if the consonants fit.
There's a bit of history here, too. The L'Étape du Tour is an actual event where amateur cyclists ride the exact route of a Tour de France stage. It’s a massive deal in the cycling world. Because this specific event exists, the word has moved from just being a "translation" to being a "proper noun" of sorts in the sporting lexicon. Crossword editors love that kind of crossover.
Other Variants to Watch Out For
Sometimes the clue isn't about the stage itself, but the type of stage. Cycling is weirdly specific. You might run into:
- PROLOGUE: This is usually the opening stage. It's short. It's fast. If your crossword has eight letters and mentions the "start" of the race, this is your winner.
- CRIT: Short for Criterium. While not a standard Tour "stage" in the traditional sense, these short-circuit races often get lumped into cycling clues.
- ITT: Individual Time Trial. If you see a three-letter clue for a "race against the clock," ITT is a frequent flyer.
The Mental Trap of Overthinking the Clue
You might be tempted to think of the names of the towns. "Is it Paris? Is it Pau?" Stop. Crosswords almost never ask for a specific town unless the clue is "Finish of the Tour de France" (which is PARIS or, more recently due to the Olympics, NICE).
✨ Don't miss: Monroe Central High School Ohio: What Local Families Actually Need to Know
The trick is to remember that crossword setters are often more interested in the language of the race than the current standings. They aren't asking who won the stage yesterday. They are asking what the French call the stage itself.
It's also worth checking the "crosses." If you have a 'P' from a vertical word, and it's the fourth letter of your five-letter stage word... well, ETAPE just became your best friend.
How to Memorize These for Next Time
I've found that the best way to stop getting hung up on these is to group them by "Crosswordese" categories. You have your "French words used in English" category. This includes things like ETAPE, ADIEU, ELAN, and ESSE.
If you're a casual solver, these feel like "gotcha" words. But for the pros? They are landmarks. You see "Tour stage" and you don't even think; you just wait to see if the first letter is an 'E'.
Pro-Tip for Sunday Puzzles
On Sundays, the clues get punny. A "Stage of the Tour de France?" might be clued as "A big wheel's job?" or "Where French riders go through a phase?" If there is a question mark at the end of the clue, throw the literal definitions out the window. But 90% of the time, even in the punny clues, the answer remains ETAPE.
🔗 Read more: What Does a Stoner Mean? Why the Answer Is Changing in 2026
Actionable Steps for Your Next Puzzle
To never get stumped by a stage of the Tour de France crossword clue again, keep these specific tactics in your back pocket:
- Count the squares immediately. Four squares? Likely ETAP (unlikely) or something else. Five squares? ETAPE.
- Look for "French" indicators. If the clue mentions "Le Tour" instead of "The Tour," it’s a 100% guarantee they want the French word ETAPE.
- Check for "Time" clues. If the clue mentions a "race against the clock," switch your brain to TRIAL or ITT.
- Keep a "Cycling Cheat Sheet" in your head. Include PELOTON (the main pack), ETAPE (the stage), DERAILLEUR (the gear thingy—rare but it happens), and VELO (the bike).
By recognizing that ETAPE is the industry standard for this clue, you'll save minutes of staring at blank boxes. You'll move through the grid faster, and you'll actually have time to finish that coffee before it gets cold. Next time you see the clue, just smile, write in those five letters, and move on to the next challenge.
Fill in the 'E' at the start and the 'E' at the end. Look at the word intersecting the 'P'. If it's a word like "OPAL" or "TRAP," you've officially cracked the code.
Keep the word ETAPE in your mental "must-know" list for any sports-related crossword clues. It appears on average once every few months in major publications, making it one of the most high-value cycling terms you can memorize.
Check your intersecting vowels first. If you have a 'U' or an 'O' in the middle, you're likely not looking for ETAPE; re-read the clue to see if it's asking for a "mountain" (ALPS) or a "finish" (PARIS).
Watch out for the 'PROLOGUE' trap. If the clue mentions the "Tour opening," don't try to cram ETAPE into a space that clearly needs more letters. Count those squares carefully before you commit ink to paper.