Career Choices and Changes crossword puzzle with vocabulary clues and word bank.

Let’s solve this crossword puzzle step by step using the clues and the Word Bank.

We’ll go clue by clue, match it to a word from the Word Bank, and make sure the letters fit in the grid (we can check letter counts and intersections as we go).

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Across Clues:

3. Making use of new ideas → progressive (10 letters)
5. Deviating from the usual or more direct route → detour (6 letters)
7. Focused attention on a single object or task → concentration (13 letters)
10. An impediment to progress or achievement → obstacle (8 letters)
11. When the expected result is contrary to the actual result → ironic (6 letters)
12. Certain of your own skills → confident (9 letters)
13. To weaken → debilitate (10 letters)
15. To oppose or challenge → challenge (9 letters)
16. Duty; something that ties someone to a certain course of action → obligation (10 letters)
17. A strong desire to achieve a certain goal → ambition (8 letters)
18. Being in the middle; as many above as below → median (6 letters)

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Down Clues:

1. A skillful or powerful public speaker → orator (6 letters)
2. Great struggling or suffering → affliction (10 letters)
3. The state of having the lower half of the body paralyzed → paraplegic (10 letters)
4. Careful thought → consideration (13 letters)
6. The answer to a problem → solution (8 letters)
8. The student in a graduating class with the highest marks → valedictorian (13 letters)
9. Being peaceful → serenity (8 letters)
14. An outward sign or indication → evidence (8 letters)
15. A difficult task or problem → challenge (already used for Across 15 — but wait! Let’s check: “challenge” fits both? Actually, looking at the Word Bank, “challenge” appears only once. But clue 15 Down says “A difficult task or problem” — that’s also “challenge”. Hmm… maybe it’s reused? Or perhaps I made a mistake.)

Wait — let’s double-check the Word Bank:

Word Bank has:
- Valedictorian
- Orator
- Ambition
- Paraplegic
- Concentration
- obligation (listed twice? Probably typo)
- obstacle
- serenity
- affliction
- evidence
- median
- ironic
- confident
- progressive
- consideration
- challenge
- solution
- debilitate
- detour

So “obligation” is listed twice — probably a mistake. And “challenge” is there once.

But clue 15 Across = “To oppose or challenge” → that’s “challenge”

Clue 15 Down = “A difficult task or problem” → that’s ALSO “challenge”

That means “challenge” must be placed where Across 15 and Down 15 cross — which they do in the grid (look at position 15 — it’s an intersection). So yes, “challenge” fits both clues. That’s okay — sometimes words are used for multiple clues if they intersect.

Now let’s verify all words fit the grid by checking lengths and intersections.

Let’s list all answers with their positions:

Across:
3. progressive (10 letters)
5. detour (6)
7. concentration (13)
10. obstacle (8)
11. ironic (6)
12. confident (9)
13. debilitate (10)
15. challenge (9)
16. obligation (10)
17. ambition (8)
18. median (6)

Down:
1. orator (6)
2. affliction (10)
3. paraplegic (10)
4. consideration (13)
6. solution (8)
8. valedictorian (13)
9. serenity (8)
14. evidence (8)
15. challenge (9) ← same as Across 15

Now, let’s check if any word doesn’t fit due to length or crossing letters.

For example, Down 3: “paraplegic” — 10 letters. It crosses Across 3 (“progressive”) at some point. Let’s see: if Across 3 starts at column X, row Y, and Down 3 starts at same row, different column — we need to ensure shared letters match.

Since we don’t have the exact grid coordinates, we rely on the fact that the Word Bank matches the clues perfectly, and the puzzle is designed so that all words fit when correctly matched.

Also note: “obligation” is listed twice in Word Bank — likely a typo, but we only need one.

Another thing: Clue 12 Across: “Certain of your own skills” → “confident” — correct.

Clue 11 Across: “When the expected result is contrary to the actual result” → “ironic” — perfect.

Clue 18 Across: “Being in the middle; as many above as below” → “median” — yes, that’s the definition.

Clue 17 Across: “A strong desire to achieve a certain goal” → “ambition” — correct.

Clue 16 Across: “Duty; something that ties someone to a certain course of action” → “obligation” — yes.

Clue 15 Across & Down: “challenge” — works for both.

Clue 14 Down: “An outward sign or indication” → “evidence” — yes.

Clue 9 Down: “Being peaceful” → “serenity” — correct.

Clue 8 Down: “The student in a graduating class with the highest marks” → “valedictorian” — yes.

Clue 6 Down: “The answer to a problem” → “solution” — correct.

Clue 4 Down: “Careful thought” → “consideration” — yes.

Clue 2 Down: “Great struggling or suffering” → “affliction” — correct.

Clue 1 Down: “A skillful or powerful public speaker” → “orator” — yes.

All clues match words in the Word Bank, and no extra words are left unused except possibly the duplicate “obligation”.

Unused words? Let’s check:

Word Bank has 19 entries (including duplicate “obligation”). We used:

Used:
- progressive
- detour
- concentration
- obstacle
- ironic
- confident
- debilitate
- challenge
- obligation
- ambition
- median
- orator
- affliction
- paraplegic
- consideration
- solution
- valedictorian
- serenity
- evidence

That’s 19 — but “obligation” was listed twice, so actually 18 unique words, and we used 18 unique words. Perfect.

So all clues are solved.

Final Answer:

Here are the answers filled into the crossword based on the clues:

Across:
3. progressive
5. detour
7. concentration
10. obstacle
11. ironic
12. confident
13. debilitate
15. challenge
16. obligation
17. ambition
18. median

Down:
1. orator
2. affliction
3. paraplegic
4. consideration
6. solution
8. valedictorian
9. serenity
14. evidence
15. challenge

(Note: “challenge” is used for both Across 15 and Down 15 since they intersect.)