2020-12-13 NPR puzzle synopsis

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Richard Renner

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Dec 13, 2020, 8:59:30 AM12/13/20
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Synopsis of
NPR Weekend Edition puzzle
with Lulu Garcia-Navarro and Will Shortz
2020-12-13

The listener challenge last week was from listener Jared Harvey, of Santa Cruz, California: Think of a common word in six letters. Write it in lowercase. If you hold up a mirror at its side, the reflection will show the same word. What is it? The answer is tidbit. Will did not accept ballad because the lower case a is not symmetrical.

Lulu reported over 1,200 correct entries.

The on-air player is Gloria Rear from Eugene, Oregon. She is a senior in high school and plans to study nursing in college. Her family has played the NPR puzzle as long as she can remember. Her sister was the first in her family to blurt out tidbit, and Gloria determined that it worked. She appreciates that the NPR puzzle gets her family to talk and have fun.

Today’s on-air puzzle is called, “Word Sandwiches.” Each answer is a familiar phrase in the form "___ and ___," in which the first two letters of the first word plus the first two letters of the last word themselves spell a word. Each clue is the word formed from the first two letters of the first and last words of the phrase, as well as a definition of the phrase. For example, if the clues are SODA and “combination performance,” then the answer would be SONG AND DANCE.

CLUES:
1. BOAR — Native American weapon
2. CAMO — cunning game that a feline and rodent might play
3. EVAN — old-fashioned phrase meaning "occasionally"
4. ABBE — more than could possibly be expected
5. LASE — amphibious
6. SHAW — overwhelm through a show of force
7. BACH — heavy restraint to keep a prisoner from escaping
8. HOVE — like the positions of the x and y axes on a graph

Answers are near the end of this synopsis.

This week's challenge comes from listener Steve Baggish, of Arlington, Massachusetts. Using only the letters in the phrase RIDE ON — repeating them as often as necessary — you can spell 1) the one-word proper name of a famous fictional animal, and 2) a word for what kind of animal it is. What's the name of the animal, and what's the word?

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>

I apologize that last week’s synopsis was late due to last minute unexpected circumstances.

No mail this week.

Hints:
3. EVAN — old-fashioned phrase meaning "occasionally": this phrase does not come up much in teen conversation, it is hard
4. ABBE — more than could possibly be expected: someone who does more than you can possibly expect
5. LASE — amphibious: kind of like surf and turf; if a vehicle can go in two terrains, the first word starts with LA and has 4 letters, the second has 3 letters
6. SHAW — overwhelm through a show of force: it was a phrase used as a phrase in the Iraq war; the AW word has 3 letters
8. HOVE — like the positions of the x and y axes on a graph: the second word is the opposite of the first word


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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. BOAR — Native American weapon
bow and arrow
2. CAMO — cunning game that a feline and rodent might play
cat and mouse
3. EVAN — old-fashioned phrase meaning "occasionally"
ever and anon
4. ABBE — more than could possibly be expected
above and beyond
5. LASE — amphibious
land and sea
6. SHAW — overwhelm through a show of force
shock and awe
7. BACH — heavy restraint to keep a prisoner from escaping
ball and chain
8. HOVE — like the positions of the x and y axes on a graph
horizontal and vertical


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