wordplay

noun

Etymology: From word + play.

1. A humorous play on words; such plays on words collectively.

   “Even this modest wordplay was an outlier: Sagers counted only three backronyms across the ’70s and ’80s.”

2. A witty verbal exchange; such exchanges collectively.
3. The part of a cryptic clue that indicates but does not define the solution.

   “delete the T from another part in the wordplay”

   “However, some clues include words that do not form part of the wordplay or the definition.”