Friday, August 31, 2007

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 26): Providing clues in close to realtime

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 26): Providing clues in close to realtime:
Q: Name an event at which food is served (eight letters). Inside this word is the name of a food in four letters. Remove these four letters, and the remaining four letters, in order, will name another food. What words are these?
I'm not sure if I have the intended answer or not. The foods seemed to be right there in the answer without having to look "inside" too hard.

Edit: I'm still not sure if this is the intended answer or not, so we'll see on Sunday. The clue to my answer was in the title "close to realtime" which should have made you think of...
A: MEALTIME --> MEAT + LIME

Edit: Indeed my answer was not the intended answer. 'L' from the comments notes that the intended answer is probably:
A: CLAMBAKE --> LAMB + CAKE

Thursday, August 23, 2007

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 19): Music Is in the Air

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 19): Music Is in the Air:
Rearrange the letters of NITROGEN to get a familiar word everyone knows, that did not exist 10 years ago. What is it?
The title was intended for the on-air puzzle, not the challenge for the week. Or was it?

Edit: I have to think the title was a deliberate hint since there is no mention of air in the on-air puzzle, just musical instruments. And air is 78 percent nitrogen. So the answer is...
A: NITROGEN --> RINGTONE

Saturday, August 11, 2007

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 12): No Help Today

I'll be on vacation this next week, so I won't be able to post clues about the puzzle.

Edit: For completeness, here's last week's puzzle and answer:

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 12): No Help Today

Q: Think of a pair of words that commonly go together. They're part of a larger group, but this pair of words is commonly said together. The first word contains a "W" sound without the letter "W" being in it. And the second word contains a "W" that is silent. (The pronunciation of the word wouldn't be changed if you remove the "W.") Name this pair of words.
The date of the puzzle was August 12, made up of the digits "1" and "2". I wonder if that was a hint?
A: ONE, TWO

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 5): Outdoor Activity Puzzle

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 5): Outdoor Puzzle:
Q: Think of a six-letter word ending in a vowel that names something worn outdoors. Change the vowel to a 'G' and you'll name a popular outdoor activity. What activity is it?
I have the answer to the two pieces of the puzzle, but trying to come up with a good clue is taking a toll on my brain.

Edit: Check the answer and the clues should be obviously (two piece, "a toll" as in Bikini Atoll)
A: BIKINI --> BIKING

Thursday, August 02, 2007

NPR Sunday Puzzle (July 29): A Tale of Two Movies

NPR Sunday Puzzle (July 29): A Tale of Two Movies:
Q: Name a well-known movie in five letters, two syllables. The vowel sound in the first syllable is a short 'i.' Change that vowel to a long 'i' and phonetically, you'll name another famous movie, in six letters. What movies are these?
A couple hints: An older film and a more recent film. Also, the answers don't actually share a lot of letters in common. So there you go, I've kept you in suspense until later in the week...
A: Sicko (2007) and Psycho (1960)