10 clearance motifs rated between 1000 and 1199, averaging 1130. Each position below is from a real game, with the solution given underneath — so you can check yourself immediately rather than guessing whether you were right.
Clearance vacates a square or line your own pieces need, frequently with tempo so the opponent has no time to occupy it instead. The clearing move often looks like a blunder because it puts a piece where it can be taken.
These are pitched at 1000-rated players. Puzzle ratings work like player ratings: a puzzle rated 1000 is one that players around 1000 solve about half the time, so if you are getting most of these you should move up a band.
Solving from a page is good for pattern recognition but not for tracking progress. The rated puzzle trainer serves puzzles matched to your own rating and adjusts as you solve, and the Mistake Trainer builds puzzles from positions you actually got wrong in your own games.
Nf6+ Bxf6 Qh7#
Ng3+ hxg3 Qh5#
Bxc6+ bxc6 Qb8+ Qc8 Qxc8#
Rf1+ Kg8 b1=Q
Nxf6+ Qxf6 Qh7#
Rg1+ Kh2 a1=Q Qxa1 Rxa1
Nf6+ gxf6 Qh7#
Nxf6+ Bxf6 Qh7#
Ng3+ hxg3 Rh5#
Ng6+ hxg6 Qh4#
Train clearance puzzles at your rating →
Clearance vacates a square or line your own pieces need, frequently with tempo so the opponent has no time to occupy it instead. The clearing move often looks like a blunder because it puts a piece where it can be taken.
Puzzle ratings work like player ratings. A puzzle rated 1000 is one that players rated around 1000 solve roughly half the time. The puzzles on this page average 1130, so they suit 1000-rated players.
Yes. Every puzzle on this page, including its solution, is free to view with no account. The rated trainer that tracks your progress and serves puzzles matched to your rating is part of Chess Ramp Premium.