Cause of ruin
The crossword clue "Cause of ruin" is answered by BANE, a 4-letter entry. Used 43 times across 27 distinct years; most recently in 2026; first recorded in 1967. It appears in 15 publications in the xd corpus. Every figure on this page comes from the collection data itself.
The answer
BANE
4 letters. See every clue for this answer on the BANE answer page.
Used 43 times across 27 distinct years; most recently in 2026; first recorded in 1967. It appears in 15 publications in the xd corpus. Frequency and last-seen figures come from the xd crossword corpus only.
Other answers for this clue
The same clue has also been answered these ways in the xd corpus. Answers inside this collection link to their own answer page.
- UNDOING (2 uses in xd)
- SCOURGE (1 uses in xd)
Other clues for BANE
Every other clue in this collection answered by BANE, most used first.
- Scourge - used 55 times, most recently in 2025
- Ruination - used 48 times, most recently in 2025
- Thorn in one's side - used 27 times, most recently in 2025
Related clues
Clues in this collection of the same answer length that share a word with this clue, or match its answer pattern when no word is shared. Most used first.
- Bring to ruin - UNDO, used 48 times
- Underlying cause - ROOT, used 33 times
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