WASHINGTON: The Washington Post crossword puzzle had special meaning this weekend for one local couple.

With the complicity of the newspaper, 28 year-old Corey Newman from Virginia, proposed to his live-in girlfriend, Marlowe Epstein, 31, through clues buried in a specially-crafted puzzle.

The clue for 37 Across, for example, asked for the name of a role in the movie “Shakespeare in Love.” The answer - Marlowe.

39 Across asked for the name of a “Casablanca” screenwriter.

The answer - Epstein.

The clincher was 51 Across: “Words with a certain ring to them.”

As soon as Epstein came up with the answer - “Will you marry me” - Newman got down on one knee, whipped out a diamond ring and repeated the question, the Post reported.

“Yes, of course!” Epstein said.

“I was sort of blown away,” she told the newspaper. “I was so impressed that he managed to pull that off!”