2020-10-11 NPR puzzle synopsis

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Richard Renner

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Oct 11, 2020, 8:59:20 AM10/11/20
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Synopsis of
NPR Weekend Edition puzzle
with Lulu Garcia-Navarro and Will Shortz
2020-10-11

The listener challenge for this week comes from listener Micah Margolies of Lenexa, Kan. Think of an 8-letter word with three syllables that contains the letter "I" in each syllable — but, strangely, doesn't contain a single "I" sound, either long or short. The answer is not a plural. What word is it? The answer is daiquiri. Lulu asked if daiquiri is really an English word. She claims it is Cuban Spanish, claiming her own culture. Will said it is an English word now noting how we borrow words from everyone. I say it is a word in multiple languages -- as more and more words are nowadays.

Lulu reported over 500 correct entries.

The on-air player is Neal Kern of Salem, Oregon. He has booze of choice that is not a daiquiri. He says he solved this puzzle with brute force from a list of 8 letter words. He and his wife have been doing the NPR puzzle together since they started dating.

Today’s on-air puzzle is called, “PR Problems.” Each answer is a word or phrase in which the only consonants are P and R — repeated as often as necessary. The other letters are all vowels. For example, if the clue is, “more mature, as fruit,” the answer could be RIPER.

CLUES:
1. What beats rock but loses to scissors in a children's game
2. Musician with a flute
3. Partner of salt
4. Fix, as an appliance
5. Brand of bottled water
6. Open grassland, as in Kansas and Nebraska
7. Like reasoning by theoretical deduction (2 words)
8. Come into view again

Answers are near the end of this synopsis.

This week's challenge comes from listener Tyler Lipscomb, of Augusta, Georgia. Name certain fruits — in the plural. Change the second letter to an L and read the result backward. You'll name two things to drink. What are they?

Answers must be received by 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time on THURSDAY.  NPR will no longer receive entries by email.  Be sure to include a telephone number where you can be reached if you are selected as the winner. 

Entries may be submitted at the NPR web page:
You can also get to this page by going to:
and clicking the "Submit Your Answer" link. You may also submit a suggestion for a new puzzle by selecting Puzzle Idea from the "I'd Like to" pulldown, and you may comment about NPR programming at the same site.

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Editor's notes:
 
Puzzles, and contents of Weekend Edition/Sunday puzzle segment are copyrighted 2020, by Will Shortz and NPR. Reprinted here with permission.

Here's our regular monthly puzzle transcription schedule:
1st Sunday Joe
2nd Sunday Richard
3rd Sunday Joe
4th Sunday Richard
5th Sunday Kristy
Our e-mail addresses are:
Richard Renner <rrennerATigc.org>
Joe Wander <jdwandersrATgmail.com>
Kristy Compton <bisonbooksATgmail.com>

No mail this week.
 
Hints:
2. Musician with a flute: change the second letter of paper
5. Brand of bottled water: starts with a P; French
7. Like reasoning by theoretical deduction (2 words): first word is a single letter


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Links of interest:

Audios of past NPR puzzle segments

World Scrabble Championship

American Crossword Puzzle Tournament

Merl Reagle’s article on constructing crossword puzzles, available at

World Puzzle Federation (including Sudoku tournaments):

The US Team page is at:

Register for the USA team at:

Ed Pegg Jr.'s puzzles are available at:

National Puzzlers’ League

Kristy Fowler suggests linguaphiles visit

You can join Kathie Schneider's email list for accessible word and logic puzzles. To subscribe, send a blank email to

Will noted that Matt Jones writes the Jonesin’ Crosswords which appears in over 50 alternative newspapers.

Joseph Young’s Puzzleria is at:

Richard Renner
in Silver Spring, Maryland, for the foreseeable future
rrennerATigc.org
Twitter: @rennerr3

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Clues
Answers
1. What beats rock but loses to scissors in a children's game
paper
2. Musician with a flute
piper
3. Partner of salt
pepper
4. Fix, as an appliance
repair
5. Brand of bottled water
Perrier
6. Open grassland, as in Kansas and Nebraska
prairie
7. Like reasoning by theoretical deduction (2 words)
a priori
8. Come into view again
reappear

A case can be made that a priori is Latin and not English.

End of NPR Puzzle Synopsis.
  
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