2020-11-08 NPR puzzle synopsis

21 views
Skip to first unread message

Richard Renner

unread,
Nov 8, 2020, 8:56:11 AM11/8/20
to NPR puzzle synopses list
Synopsis of
NPR Weekend Edition puzzle
with Lulu Garcia-Navarro and Will Shortz
2020-11-08

The listener challenge for this week was a spin-off of last week’s on-air puzzle. Name a well-known U.S. city in two words (5,3). Change the first letter of the second word to name a popular rock group. Who is it? The city is Green Bay (Wisconsin), making Green Day.

Lulu reported over 3,500 correct entries.

The on-air player is Ben Blackman from San Francisco, California. He is a professor of biology at the University of California in Berkeley. He studies the evolution of sunflowers. He reports that wild sunflowers are bushy plants and North Americans bred them to have a large single stalk with large flowers and seeds for oil.

Today’s on-air puzzle is called, “The Q-U Quiz.” Each clue consists of five letters, in one or two words. Add the letters Q and U and then anagram to make a familiar word. For example, if the clue is, “ITALY+QU,” then the answer would be QUALITY.

CLUES:
1. CRONE + QU
2. TREAT + QU
3. BEETS + QU
4. A ROBE + QU
5. BIBLE + QU
6. REBUS + QU
7. RECTO + QU
8. INNIE + QU
9. DIALS + QU
10. CLEAR + QU
11. I RULE + QU

Answers are near the end of this synopsis.

This week's challenge comes from listener Eric Berlin of Milford, Connecticut. There are several words that consist of the consonants N, P and R and an assortment of vowels — for example, APRON, PIONEER and EUROPEAN. But there is only one common phrase that contains exactly two N's, two P's and two R's with no other consonants. You can add vowels as needed. What phrase is this?

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.

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

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:
1. CRONE + QU: starts with C, “William the ...”
6. REBUS + QU: not busquer (which is spelled busker)
7. RECTO + QU: a game
8. INNIE + QU: a medicine
10. CLEAR + QU: starts with L
11. I RULE + QU: starts with L, something to drink, after dinner

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

Our group of volunteer co-editors distributes these free weekly synopses of the NPR puzzle segment. You can read more about this free distribution at:
You can subscribe from this page, too.

To unsubscribe from this group, send email to:
For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/nprpuzzle?hl=en

To change the email address of your subscription, remove the old one (from the old email account), and add the new Google subscription (from the new email account).

NPR posts the weekly challenge (and the previous week's answer) on its World Wide Web page:
Option 2: You can also listen to a recording of Weekend Edition Sunday program after 12:00 noon ET each Sunday by going to the first link at the top of this e-mail.

Podcasts are available at:

Podcasts of the Sunday puzzle are available at:

How do I subscribe to this podcast?
Copy the URL [above this paragraph] into your preferred podcasting tool software (e.g. Odeo, iTunes, iPodder). You will automatically receive this podcast each time it is published.
 
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

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

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
  
Clues
Answers
1. CRONE + QU
CONQUER
2. TREAT + QU
QUARTET
3. BEETS + QU
BEQUEST
4. A ROBE + QU
BAROQUE
5. BIBLE + QU
QUIBBLE
6. REBUS + QU
BRUSQUE
7. RECTO + QU
CROQUET
8. INNIE + QU
QUININE
9. DIALS + QU
SQUALID
10. CLEAR + QU
LACQUER
11. I RULE + QU
LIQUEUR

9. DIALS + QU did not air.

End of NPR Puzzle Synopsis.
  
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages