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A Christmas Carol Cryptogram

Decode 5 famous lines from Dickens's 1843 classic

Five lines from Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol, each in a letter-substitution code. The book was published in London on December 19, 1843, and tells how the miser Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his old partner, Jacob Marley, and by three Spirits, and wakes on Christmas morning a changed man. The lines come from Marley, from Tiny Tim, from Scrooge himself and from the book's last page, and every one was checked word for word against the book; only the punctuation was dropped for the code. The medium level suits middle school, high school and adult readers.

Free printable PDF with a full answer key, sized for US Letter and free for classroom use. Want your own title or words? Open it in the cryptogram editor with everything already filled in.

CryptogramPreview

A Christmas Carol Cryptogram

Decode 5 famous lines from Dickens's 1843 classic

Phrase 1

L
M
K
Q
X
K
F
H
M
Z
L
W
Y
B
Z
X
K
T
Z
Z
I
N
T
V
U
L
L
U
K
H
T
R
A
M
D
T
H
M
Z
L
W
Y
B
Z
X
K
T
Z
Z

Hint: T = E

Phrase 2

J
U
F
Y
R
T
Z
Z
B
Z
T
E
T
D
W
U
K
T
Z
M
X
F
I
X
K
W
I
X
L
I
N
T
R
M
Z
I
U
A
M
R
R

Hint: F = D

+ 3 more phrases in the PDF

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What is a Cryptogram?

A cryptogram is a substitution cipher puzzle where each letter has been replaced by a different letter. Your goal is to decode the hidden quote by figuring out which cipher letter maps to which original letter.

How to solve it

Start by looking for single-letter words (likely A or I), then short common words. Use letter frequency: E, T, A, and O appear most often in English. Once you crack a few letters, the rest fall into place.

Who is this for?

Cryptograms work especially well for middle school through adult solvers. They build pattern recognition, logical reasoning, and vocabulary. Seniors find them a satisfying daily brain exercise.

About this puzzle

Free printable A Christmas Carol quotes cryptogram: decode 5 exact lines from Dickens's 1843 classic, from Marley to Tiny Tim. Answer key. Instant PDF.

  • Difficulty: Medium
  • Format: US Letter PDF with answer key
  • Free to download, print, and use
  • Commercial use allowed for KDP publishers

Step-by-step: solving the A Christmas Carol Cryptogram

  1. Print the puzzle. Download and print the free cryptogram PDF. The cipher uses one consistent letter substitution throughout.
  2. Find single-letter words. Look for any single-letter words in the cipher. In English these are almost always A or I.
  3. Spot common short words. Short words like THE, AND, IS, OF, and TO appear frequently. Plug them in once their letter pattern matches.
  4. Apply letter frequency. The most common English letters are E, T, A, O, I, N, S, H, R. The most common cipher letters likely map to these.
  5. Verify with the answer key. Once decoded, check your full plaintext against the answer key on the second page.

Frequently asked questions

What are the most famous quotes from A Christmas Carol?›
Favorites include Tiny Tim's "God bless us every one!", Marley's Ghost's "Mankind was my business," Scrooge's promise "I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year," and his joyful "I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel." All four are in this puzzle, along with the book's closing praise that Scrooge "knew how to keep Christmas well."
Where in the book is each line?›
Dickens divided the book into five chapters he called staves. "Mankind was my business" is Marley's Ghost in Stave 1. "God bless us every one" is Tiny Tim at the Cratchits' Christmas dinner in Stave 3. "I will honour Christmas in my heart" is Scrooge's promise in Stave 4. "Light as a feather" and "keep Christmas well" are in Stave 5. The spelling honour is Dickens's own. It is the medium level, with the answer key on its own page.
Is there a bigger A Christmas Carol puzzle pack?›
Yes. The $2.99 A Christmas Carol Puzzle Pack adds a crossword about the book's characters, two new cryptograms with more of Dickens's best-loved lines, a word search and a word scramble.
Is the cipher a simple letter substitution?›
Yes. One letter consistently substitutes for another throughout the whole quote. Once you decode a few letters, the rest typically fall into place.
Are the spaces between words kept?›
Yes. The spaces between words are kept, so you can use word length and shape as clues. The quotes are printed in capital letters without apostrophes or other punctuation, so WHATS stands for what's.
What age is a cryptogram appropriate for?›
With a few letters given to start, kids from about grade 2 can crack short, familiar phrases, and longer quotes challenge middle schoolers and adults. Cryptograms build pattern recognition, letter-frequency reasoning and vocabulary. The page above names the grades this one was written for.
Can I customize this puzzle?›
Yes. Open it in the free Cryptogram editor with the words already filled in, then change the title, edit or add words and pick a difficulty. Downloads are free with your email, and Premium removes the PuzzlePage credit.

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