Q: A muffler is part of an automobile. It's also the name of something you can wear. Think of two other parts of automobiles that are also things you can wear. These two words have the same number of letters and the same first two letters in the same order.I wanted to wear a belt, but couldn't find anything to go with it. As for the answers, I wear one part much less frequently than the other.
Edit: I occassionally wear a hood (with a jacket), but the other much less frequently.
A: HOOD, HOSE
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ReplyDeleteOne more time, please.
DeleteOh, rats. I was being so coy. Sorry.
DeleteRob, if you keep incurring the wrath of the administrator, you’ll develop a reputation as “The Bad Boy of Blaine’s Blog.”
DeleteA kind of seasonal answer. (Vauxhall drivers might think of a different answer, except the two words don’t have the same number of letters.)
ReplyDeleteYes, Wolfgang. I thought of this pair, too.
DeleteI think there's a pair that fits your alternative clue and the two words *do* have the same number of letters. Don't dash off just because you found one pair!
DeleteI think I found this pair as well. 6 letters each?
DeleteHm, just found a pair that is 6 letters each ... one of them is seasonal ...
DeleteGot it quickly. Maybe I'll go for a walk, or do some yard work.
ReplyDeleteAs in, go for a walk in the neighborhood, aka hood, or work in the yard, with a hose.
DeleteThe two car parts also name things that are found in houses and in their yards. One of the car parts also anagrams into something else you can wear that is also a car part.
ReplyDeleteOn last week’s thread, Jan described this puzzle as the alpha and omega of dumb puzzles. I’d call it a sham.
ReplyDeleteI have more than one answer that works, but I also know which is the intended one. Not a good puzzle.
ReplyDeleteWe live in a world. Of birds surrounded by an ocean of poop, SDB. Don't set your sights too high
DeleteI have a second answer as well.
DeleteI can think of a third car part with the same number of letters and the same first two letters in the same order that names something you can wear . . . on Halloween?
ReplyDelete
DeleteYour third word fits well with Nodd's. (This may be an easy puzzle, but it has the pleasant effect of allowing lots of whimsical comments that are not TMI.)
A SHOE (Nodd's third word) fits well with a shoe HORN.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteA third word with the same criteria can be added to the two answers to name something a car might do.
ReplyDeleteHONK.
DeleteI have it also...
ReplyDeleteBob and Doug
ReplyDeleteTake off, eh
DeleteTwo weeks of low numbers meant we were due for a super easy puzzle to get those numbers up.
ReplyDeleteI.e. >>> a loss leader puzzle
DeleteI wonder if the low numbers indicated a disgust with easy puzzles. Neither was difficult.
Deletein patois: proximity.
ReplyDelete(in the 'hood.)
DeleteFunny that we had rear seat, which was preceded a few months earlier by butt cheek. I’d ask NPR to keep it cleaner, but then I realized the phonetic pronunciation for one of this week’s answers!
ReplyDeleteA car usually has only one of one of the things but a number of the other thing. Similarly, a person would use one of the things in the singular and the other in the plural.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteWell, it's a beautiful day, and I think we all have this one covered
ReplyDeleteCurtis, hello snowy neighbor!
DeleteHey neighborino…
DeleteI awoke amid darkling marine snowfall in the middle twilight zone. Ayesha',s clarion voice warned me of birds overhead. People were speaking a strange language where places like Terre Haute and Decatur were all spelt wrong. I grabbed onto the Sunday Puzzle as something comfortably easy and familiar.
ReplyDeleteRecently discovered the "skirt" and "skin" of a vehicle. However, my spidey senses are leading me in another direction.
ReplyDeleteBesides, the words have the same number of letters.
DeleteThose are terms more common to auto designers, and I doubt would have been simple enough to warrant Shortz's attention. Good on you for the observation. I like your answer better than the intended.
DeleteDoes anyone ever wear one of the two items anymore? I quit that nonsense years ago.
ReplyDeleteSure, with a broader definition.
DeleteOn August 13, Ayesha' reported a story about nuisance Florida wildlife. Not gators or Burmese pythons. Peacocks in Pinecrest, soon to be vasectomized. Hmm.
ReplyDeleteFirst thing I thought of was a spare tire.
ReplyDeleteInsert a letter in one of the words, and you will get something that there are a lot of in the other word.
ReplyDeletePut a U in hose to get house. There are a lot of houses in a hood, short for neighborhood.
DeleteLisa Lisa and Cult Jam
ReplyDeleteWith or without Full Force?
DeleteWithout.
DeleteBy which I mean "Head to Toe"
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51Iq8JmmfxY
One of my words originated in another country
ReplyDeleteIf you say the intended words in the phrase, "We've got a lot of _____ in the ______." you get a totally different context.
ReplyDeleteLOL
DeleteI discovered that there exists a song for that.
DeleteIf this were the UK, not the US, there would be two other answers that both fit all criteria of the puzzle, EXCEPT one has two more letters than the other.
ReplyDeletepjbDoesn'tFindEitherOneMentionedAsOftenAsOneMightThinkInTheirCrypticCrosswords,Surprisingly
See Wolfgang's 5:53 AM comment and thread above.
DeleteJust now looked up "Vauxhall", had totally glossed over the original comment while scrolling through them all yesterday afternoon. Still, that point about the British terminology for car parts does bear repeating, IMHO.
DeletepjbHasNeverFoundTheName"Vauxhall"MentionedInCrypticCrosswordsEither,ComeToThinkOfIt
Tailpipe seems wrong on so many levels.
ReplyDeleteI would mention Axel Foley's use of a banana almost 40 years ago, but it wouldn't be tasteful here.
DeletepjbCan'tBelieveThere'llBeAFourth"BHC"ComingOutSoon!
Anyone here heard of this fake news story?
ReplyDeleteYesterday I was talking on the phone with a guy who lives across Puget Sound from Seattle that I never met who was selling an old Coleman lantern on Craigslist. It looked almost like it had not been used and I was giving him some advice on it. He turned out to be a conspiracy theorist.
He told me Justin Trudeau, at the beginning of the pandemic, forbid Canadian citizens to travel to other Canadian cities. I told him I had not heard that before, and he told me they refused to obey. Hard to tell him he is wrong when you are blindsided with such nonsense. Then he went on to tell me Anthony Fauci will be tried and convicted for lying about the vaccines and bla, bla, bla. I told him he was wrong about that and hung up.
I tried to Google this with zero results as I suspected. I would like to know if anyone else has heard of the Canadian travel story???
Well here we are again, I say to myself. I picked up a DVD of a movie starring Meryl Streep and Lucas Hedges, I had not heard of before, at the library today. I am watching it now. The name is, Let Them All Talk, and it seems a little thin. MS is a well known author who is afraid to fly, and refuses to go to Europe to accept a prestigious prize. It is suggested to her that she go on the Queen Mary 2. So there we are, all of us, actors, crew, and we too, trapped on this waterborne vehicle and a plot line begging me to know why I am watching this boring crap. I know of course, it is because these 2 stars are usually in good films. Not this time. I have just now paused the film where 2 of the other actors are sitting with a chess board in front of them with many of the pieces in play. So I had to pause and backup just a bit to examine the way the pieces are laid out on the board. Black is facing the actors. Most of the black pawns in view of the left side of the board are in visible play, with one white pawn in position of checking the black king which is positioned where the queen would start, and the queen is positioned where the king would start. Anyone who plays chess even just a little would know this is not at all realistic. Why does it cost so much to make a film and yet so little attention is payed to such an easy scene to set up?
ReplyDeleteMB93
ReplyDeleteRobin Hood: Men in Tights [Mel Brooks, 1993]
DeleteSDB: Great that you spotted the error. A relative of mine is set producer for movies and consults as many experts as needed yet still there are errors that I have noticed.
ReplyDeleteYou can fit the wearable items in the glove compartment, but not the car parts.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteNo clue, but a history joke (?), from a book I mentioned a few weeks back:
ReplyDeleteA Roman walks into a bar, hold up two fingers, and says, "Five beers, please!"
Maybe he was a centurion celebrating a victory.
DeleteOr an ancient astronaut, visiting from Vulcan.
DeleteOh, you mean Paul Allen?
DeleteActually, Paul Alien, from Cercano.
DeleteI think it is the other way around.
DeleteDr. K - yes to the Fred reference last week. The YouTube video I saw showed six girl puppets in the back seat not seven. Wonder where that other one was.
ReplyDeleteI have no idea what the puppet thing is about, but perhaps she was on the floor, waiting for someone to give her a hand.
DeleteNow that most everyone has solved this week's Sunday Puzzle, here's one to think about. Just post the answer - don't wait.
ReplyDeleteFrom where do we know Ted Statesma?
The United States Marines?
DeletepjbHasWhatMustBeTheBestAlternativeAnswer,IfNotTheIntendedOne!
Good work, Cranberry. It’s in the last line of every verse of the United States Marines’ Hymn: Uni - TED STATES MA – rines,
DeleteWhy are there no polar bears in the Antarctic?
ReplyDeletehttps://www.livescience.com/why-no-polar-bears-antarctica
DeleteSDB: Great question. I think I found the answer.
DeleteThey can't bear each other.
DeleteAnd besides that, polar bears are dangerous enough as it is. So I don't think it would work well if we had bipolar bears.
Deletecute SDB I like
DeleteThis puzzle wouldn't be too hard for Santa Claus.
ReplyDeleteWell I'm not wearing my tachometer and taillights at the moment, but I could ...
ReplyDeleteSomethings a juvenile delinquent wouldn't have opted for ?
ReplyDeletejuvenile delinquent = hood
Deleteopted = c(hose)
I have an alternate answer that involves a term from welding that you can see on a car.
ReplyDeleteSometimes, when I'm cruising the city in a $200K vehicle, I lean back and think, "If the bus driver doesn't speed up I'll be late for work."
ReplyDeleteLast week's puzzle about road signs got me thinking about DEER CROSSING signs. Why do they post them when we all know deer cannot read?
ReplyDeleteDo they need to?
Deletehttps://www.thesignstorenm.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Deer-30x30-1.jpg
What did one mathematician say to the other?
DeleteSine, sine, everywhere a sine.
Then there's this.
Deletehttps://assets.wfcdn.com/im/98517607/resize-h700-w700%5Ecompr-r85/5986/59864428/Deer+Reading+Newspaper+by+Coco+De+Paris+Print.jpg
ReplyDeleteThanks for correcting my ignorant error. I shouldn't jump to conclusions.
DeleteHOOD, HOSE
ReplyDelete"I.e. >>> a loss leader puzzle" points to LEDERHOSEN.
"Curis, hello snowy neighbor!" >>> In our neighborHOOD.
Horn and hose
ReplyDeleteThat was a mistake on my part. I meant HOOD, not HORN. I was rushed and sending from my cell phone while stopped at the side of the road and did not catch my error. I had to drive across town and pick up a free Coleman lantern and cooler free that should sell for $250 after I rebuild the lantern.
DeleteHOOD, HOSE
ReplyDeleteHint: “On last week’s thread, Jan described this puzzle as the alpha and omega of dumb puzzles. I’d call it a sham.”
I was casting no aspersions on Will’s puzzle selection but rather hinting at Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs’ 1966 song, “Lil’ Red Riding Hood.”
HOOD, HOSE
ReplyDelete> The alpha and omega of dumb puzzles.
You wear a HOOD on your head, HOSE on your feet.
> I can think of a third car part with the same number of letters and the same first two letters in the same order that names something you can wear . . . on Halloween?
HORN
HOOD → HOSE
ReplyDeleteI might wear a HORN on Halloween!
Our friend Tortitude is treating us to a sextet of excellent word puzzles (titled "Sitcoms, Sajak, Singers, Synonyms, States") on this week's Puzzleria! They appear in her recurrent "Tortie's Slow But Sure Puzzles" feature. The centerpiece puzzle (titled “Is there an ‘S’, Pat?”) is a Wheel of Fortune-themed puzzle that challenges you to solve ten song-category puzzle-boards in which Vanna has turned over only the esses!
ReplyDeleteTortitude's other five puzzles are titled:
“Unique, consecutive, leftover letters,”
“Brit band’s big hit,”
“Product creation clones”
“Singular synonyms,” and
“Sister cities.”
We upload Puzzleria! between Thursday and Friday around Midnight PST, or perhaps even earlier.
Our menus this week also include:
* a Schpuzzle of the Week titled “Red-letter lessons from the Maestro,”
* a Professional Hors d’Oeuvre titled “Beanbag, horseshoe, ring toss?”
* a Vowelless Slice titled “FHLMNQRSX and always Y,”
* a Hall Of Fame Dessert titled “Hitter ROT10 = Pitcher,” and
* fourteen Riffing Off Shortz Slices titled “Little Red Riding Hood in Hose.”
That adds up to 24 puzzles.
Drop by, join Vanna and Pat and Tortie, and give Puzzleria! a spin.
LegoWithGratitudeToTortitudeForHerPuzzleyPlentitude
Thank you, Lego. That's a lot of puzzles, but at least I've already solved the Apps!
DeleteMy hint was, “Take those two starting letters of both words and say them together. Make up your own hint from there, because I am not going to specify.” I really did think I was being coy in not specifying that this was seasonal, but Blaine, quite rightly, took this one out. Apologies again.
ReplyDeleteI don't really see how that would give away the answer to anyone who hadn't already figured out the two words. But what do I know?
DeleteI agree with Nodd. It's gracious of you, but I don't think you need to apologize. My Sun 8:23 AM "Bad Boy" comment was of course in jest.
DeleteSorry, only certain repeated syllables make words (MAMA, PAPA, YOYO, ...) and if you go through them, you probably realize that HOHO might be something you'd want to not mention as being TMI this time of year.
DeleteExactly so. I didn't mention any seasonality, but it could have been paired with other remarks here. Thanks.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI meant Hood Hood and hose I'm in the car having trouble with the phone anyway I made a mistake but I had the right answer how do I post this
ReplyDeleteHOSE, HOOD. "The two car parts also name things that are found in houses and in their yards. One of the car parts also anagrams into something else you can wear that is also a car part." (Garden HOSE, kitchen HOOD; brake SHOE.)
ReplyDeletehood, hose
ReplyDeleteOf course. My "Vauxhall" clue was an allusion to the British, and how they might think of "boot" and "bonnet." (Yes, I know, not the same number of letters—as I said.)
DeleteChatgpt got the answer after I explained the puzzle.
ReplyDeleteYeah, ChatGPT needs a lot of prompting to get to the right answer. I tried patiently to get ChatGPT to solve the Frank Sinatra / franks in a tray puzzle, but only had success once I mentioned that the singer's daughter also had hits.
DeleteI believe there is a way to train ChatGPT on custom data sets, so all of the NPR puzzles could be fed into it. Don't know if it requires the paid version. I'm guessing that would yield better results.
Tortitude: That would be interesting to train ChatGPT to solve NPR puzzles. I could have gotten the answer from Chat's initial solutions just by rephrasing the question. I had already solved the puzzle though.
DeleteNo Nonsense is a hosiery company. I mentioned: "I quit that nonsense years ago." Worst part about Sunday was having to wear tights to church when I was a kid. HOOD/HOSE
ReplyDeleteMy clue "Bob and Doug" was about the McKenzie brothers from The Great White North. They frequently called each other hosers, which I finally learned means a foolish or uncultivated person.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's from my growing up nestled against Canada but I am shocked that entry stayed up. I got it immediately, you hoser!
Deletehood, hose
ReplyDeleteLast Sunday I said, “A car usually has only one of one of the things but a number of the other thing. Similarly, a person would use one of the things in the singular and the other in the plural.” One hood – many hoses. One hood – a pair of hose.
I got hood and hose, but initially thought either bonnet or clutch could be word #1.
ReplyDeleteYes, BONNET works ... with BOWTIE. Bowtie is the familiar Chevrolet emblem, which I believe is still physically present on most Chevy cars.
ReplyDeleteA fine six-letter alternative answer, Rudolfo.
DeleteLegoWhoFoundAABonnetWithABowTiedOnItAndABonnetWithA"Bowtie"OnIt
How can i stop having emails sent to me with every new entry on the blog, please? Thanks. steve
ReplyDeleteLeave the Notify Me box unchecked.
ReplyDeleteSteveB, uncheck the "Notify me" box that pops up when you start to leave a comment. That should do the trick. And welcome!
ReplyDeleteThanks, WW
ReplyDeleteSo no one else thought "coat" as in "coat of paint" and "cowl" made a valid answer? I shoulda known.
ReplyDelete"Coat and cowl" is a wonderful alternative answer in my opinion, Bob Kerfuffle. Congrats!
DeleteLegoWhoHasNeverSeenAPurpleCowlWornMyAMonkAndNeverHopesToSeeOne(MostAreBrownOrBlackAndBoring)
HOSE and HOOD
ReplyDeleteThe British terms are BONNET(their term for HOOD), and BOOT(their term for TRUNK).
pjbSaysIfYouSpendEnoughTimeDoingCrypticCrosswordsLikeHeHas,YouImmediatelyRealizeTheyDoTalkRealFunnyOverThere!
I had the probable answer early on but while searching for it, I came across a 'new to me', automotive term. On the Ford F-150 Lightning electric truck, there is now an area called the "Frunk". It is a combination of 'front and trunk'. It is the area that used to contain the engine on the gasoline powered Ford F-150. Not a bad storage size, too.
ReplyDeleteI tried for a little while to get this to work on this week's puzzle, but no luck!
The VW Beetle famously had a frunk, except in the UK, where it had a froot. So, instead of doing donuts, they did froot loops?
DeleteSince a horn may be worn on either a bracelet or a thong around the neck as a lucky charm, my answer was horn and hood. Oh well.
ReplyDeleteI thought of that one too, but I doubted WS would know that buttons are used, although not well known.
ReplyDeleteNEED TECHNICAL HELP: I am still getting every new entry to the blog emailed to me, cluttering up my inbox. i've unchecked notify me. How can i stop this from happening? thanks. sb
ReplyDeleteIn the email itself is an unsubscribe link. Have you clicked that?
DeleteAll set, thanks, Blaine! Keep up the good work!
DeleteMy clue - asking NPR to keep it cleaner after recent buttcheek/rear seat puzzles - was a reference in this case to one of the answers phonetically not being so clean either - HOSE, as in “ho’s” (slang for whores). Looks like Buck Bard was on the same wave length with “hose in the hood”.
ReplyDeleteWord.
DeleteI submitted BUCKLE, BUTTON when I realized that my car had plenty of buttons. I don't see anything wrong with it as an answer, nor with the other solutions that people have mentioned. I'll be disappointed if any of them aren't mentioned as valid.
ReplyDeleteGiven the multiple viable answers, I'm a bit surprised how much agreement we've seen on HOOD, HOSE. Does anyone have an idea why so many people were drawn to that solution?
I wonder why the British drive on the left even though they joust on the right. They also have their horse racing tracks going counter clockwise, whereas the Italians Sienna point in that and instead ride their race horses clockwise.
ReplyDeleteThis week's challenge comes from listener Steve Baggish, of Arlington, Mass. Take the phrase WINTER SEASON. Add a letter of your choosing. Then rearrange all 13 letters to spell three related words. What are they?
ReplyDeleteGot it. Clever. Waiting for Blaine...
ReplyDeleteApparently the intended answer was HOOD, HOSE and there's no evidence that any alternatives were accepted. Pretty disappointing.
ReplyDelete