Q: Take a body part. Add one letter at the beginning and another at the end to get a different body part. Then again add a letter at the beginning and another at the end to get something designed to affect that body part.I can tell you it isn't a knee.
I used the same hint last time this puzzle was used. Knee was a hint to NEA which is the National Endowment For The Arts. My image could be considered "art" and she has a heart painted on her side.
A: EAR --> HEART --> THE ARTS
Rearrange the letters of the thing designed to affect the body part and you get a word for a source of something for another body part.
ReplyDeleteHow do you come up with these consistently elegant clues every week, Rob? :) (And thanks for confirming that we have the same answer!)
DeleteGee, thanks. I will say that coming up with clues is usually harder than solving the puzzle.
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ReplyDeleteThat hint should have read...
DeleteTake the second answer and the third answer, rearrange the letters, and get something associated with the third answer and something you’d not want to see there
Oh, good, I was not coming up with anything that worked with what you first posted! Now I've got it.
DeleteSorry about that, JAWS. Mea culpa.
DeleteNo worries, Dr. K! For a while there, I was wondering if one of us had an alternate answer.
DeleteSome regular Wordlers will have had an advantage.
ReplyDeleteCute puzzle. The real enigma this week, though, is where in the world did Blaine find that creepy picture?
ReplyDeleteBeauty is in the eye of the beholder. 😉
Delete"Rainbow Nude with Swirly Cone Gets Acupuncture"
DeleteBlaine, the figure is striking in it's dynamic expressionism. It reminded me of Gunther von Hagens' "Body Worlds" and the strange craft of plastination.
DeleteWill used this one some years ago. I think this is not a spoiler, but it would be if I said exactly when! Also -- when the puzzle is recycled like this, do we really need a rule against spoilers? I guess we do. I'll behave myself.
ReplyDeleteSomewhat of a spoiler, but I guess historically I've allowed that if it wasn't specific.
DeleteIf I have the correct answer, the list of body parts I consulted was no help ... but not much of a hindrance.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that’s designed to affect the body part - would that be the first or second body part?
DeleteAs stated, it's the second.
DeleteBut then again, it might depend on the body attached to the part. (Don't you hate "agains")!
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DeleteSimple puzzle. Next, please.
ReplyDeleteTranspose two letters in the third answer to get something that New Yorkers talk about.
ReplyDeleteThanks. I wasn't too satisfied with the only answer I could come up with, but this clue fits it strongly and several other clues fit in their own ways. I guess what I have is all there is.
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DeleteJaws, Transposing confirms correct answer. Thanks.
DeleteSimple but not unsavory.
ReplyDeleteSimply reheated leftovers
Delete(a reference to Thomas Savery and thus to STEAM, which is the arts-enriched version of STEM.)
DeleteThis puzzle is appropriate for today. If you replace the last letter of the third thing with a different letter and rearrange the last 3 letters, then you will get something related to why the puzzle is appropriate for today.
ReplyDeleteThis puzzle was on the day of the Oscars, which celebrate the arts of cinema. Replace the S in "the arts" with E and rearrange to get "theater" or "theatre".
DeleteThanks for refining the puzzle prompt Blaine. It’s borderline unreadable on the NPR site: I guess the Chief of Articles was off today.
ReplyDeleteI've now listened to the audio recording and used that specific wording instead. They need better interns transcribing the puzzle. 😜
DeleteQuestion: The puzzle states "add a letter," which indicates to me that it's the Same letter at the beginning and end of the body part. Am I right? Or is that for me figure out?
ReplyDeleteIt's poor wording but the intended meaning was "add a letter at the beginning and add a letter at the end" but they shortened it and that causes the confusion. So I'd say it doesn't have to be the same letter at both positions (though it could be).
DeleteI've gone back to the puzzle as presented by Greg Pliska and I'm now using his more precise wording instead of the intern's transcription.
DeleteHuh, that's interesting. I feel like the wording "add another letter at the beginning and end *should* mean what Scarlett interpreted it to mean, or at least be ambiguous with Scarlett's reading pretty strongly favored. But I didn't read it that way at all.
DeleteAnd I read that version (which Jan pasted in at the end of last week's comments) before I heard Greg say it aloud, so it's not that I already knew what was intended.
Ok, thanks. I finally got the answer. Had to fly solo....my hubby was no help.
DeleteThe puzzle as stated is imprecise.. WS would have been more careful
ReplyDeleteI think you can blame the website intern. The wording presented on the air was more precise and I'm using that wording now. Hope that helps.
DeleteThere was not the usual question at the end
DeleteWhen got to the third thing, I realized how often in life I need my space.
ReplyDeleteOutstanding clue Clark. A little space really helps.
DeleteSounds like you guys got it together, Clark and RG
DeleteAs the poet Gibran wrote, "let there be space amid your togetherness."
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ReplyDeleteIs this puzzle a pilot project?
ReplyDeleteI just got your hint. Make sure to submit your answer before noon in the Pacific Time Zone.
DeleteI would like to see more clues to see if my answer is correct.
ReplyDeleteGreetings All! As the lucky winner of this week's random phone call, I very much enjoyed playing the puzzle on the air. Unfortunately six clues were edited out of the broadcast. So for your quite mild amusement, here are the four clues that are not the answer to this week's question. Enjoy! 1. Hanks' Oscar winning role. 2. Cut side of a gemstone. 3. Chauffeur's uniform insignia. 4. Short-legged lizard.
ReplyDeleteCongrats! You did very well!
DeleteCongrats! What is answer to insignia? Can wait for this until others solve.
DeleteI'm stuck on that one, too...
DeleteThom G., you did a super job on air. One of the best I've heard.
DeleteJayB and Natasha, here is a hint for the chauffeur's uniform insignia: Add a letter to the front of the body part to get a man's name.
DeleteCongrats, Thom G!
DeleteExcellent!
DeleteThom, Any more hints for Chauffeur?
DeleteNodd and Thom G got me there eventually. Thanks!
DeleteRe: Nodd's clue. Not just a name, also another Oscar winner!
ReplyDeleteOh god! I got it!
DeleteIt seems to me there is one too many words in the question. I will refrain from indicating which word at this time. I doubt almost no one would have come up with the answer while being recorded for broadcast. Just not enough time to think it through. This is making this week's puzzle worthwhile; not the puzzle itself, but this online challenge bit.
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DeleteClever puzzle even though the last part of the challenge is a bit of a liberal interpretation. Nice job on air Thom G!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about the last part of the challenge. In some sense almost anything in life could qualify.
Delete"Something designed to affect that body part" is a bit tricky, but I have the answer...
ReplyDeleteLike some stuff you buy at the hardware store. The puzzle is simple enough, but the instructions are confusing or worse.
ReplyDeleteI’m sorry, but – IMHO – this is a stupid puzzle.
ReplyDeleteTo clear up any possible confusion, I was referring to this week's solve-at-home puzzle, not the on-air puzzle that Thom G aced.
DeleteHmmm. . . . Something seems to be missing from the archive here.
ReplyDeleteI noticed that also.
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ReplyDeleteThe third answer, minus one letter, is something 007 once used.
ReplyDeleteIsn't there an eclipse coming up? It it total, or partial?
ReplyDeleteYou are right. However, that was before The Federal Communications Commission decided to black it out.
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DeleteOhhhhh.
DeleteI see why that was removed! Sorry I just didn't notice that it was any kind of clue at all, let alone a tmi one!
It also took me a while to understand why it was removed. Blaine, you are subtle.
DeleteI didn't see Crito's original comment; I'm guessing Bonnie Tyler was involved>
DeleteSpace, the final frontier...
ReplyDeleteHinting at the space in the final part of the answer
Deletehttps://www.wikihow.com/Memorize-Pi
ReplyDeleteHere's another wrinkle: a connection between the two body parts? To be frank, I have my doubts.
ReplyDeleteYears had gone by before Gerald could bring himself to take his mother's advice and finally attend his first 12 step procrastinators anonymous meeting, and then, only to find himself the only one who showed up.
ReplyDeleteEAR, HEART; THE ARTS
ReplyDeleteI thought better of posting a reference to Amelia Earhart.
Great connection!
DeleteHere's an alternate chauffeur clue, if you still need it. Central Park eco-transport supplier. Also, the other two questions that were edited out are, 1, a lower level nobleman and 2, raised brickwork around a fireplace. I'm sure you all can see why they were not broadcast. Cheers!
DeleteWhat is the Chauffeur answer?
DeleteNatasha:
DeleteLIVER LIVERY
Sdb, Thank you so much. Never would have gotten it. Glad I solved the puzzle. Could not find the old one. Now I know why. The space trick was not expected.
DeleteEAR → HEART → THE ARTS.
ReplyDeleteEAR >>> HEART >>> THE ARTS
ReplyDeleteMy Hint: "Is this puzzle a pilot project?"
Hinting at Amelia EARHART STAR female aviator who became a down to Earth gal eventually.
EAR, HEART, THE ARTS
ReplyDeleteHint: “Take the second answer and the third answer, rearrange the letters, and get something associated with the third answer and something you’d not want to see there.”
HEART + THE ARTS —> THEATER + TRASH
Ear/Heart/The Arts
ReplyDeleteReady to be blown away by some puzzle-making mastery? Drift on over to Puzzleria! later today (no later than Midnight, Pacific Daylight Time). Our friend Plantsmith has conjured a whole mess-o'-Blown-to-Plantsmithereens "perplexlosive" puzzles with titles like “College Campus Caption,” “Competitive puzzling,” and “Navigating two isles.” You'll find them in his ever-popular "Garden of Puzzley Delights" feature.
ReplyDeleteAlso on this week's menus:
* a Schpuzzle of the Week titled Eed-nay? Int-pray? Oost-bay? Utton-glay? Umper-stay?
* a Container-Containee Hors d’Oeuvre titled “Workaday world” vs. “wordplay world,”
* a Venerating Vintage Vehicles Puzzle Slice titled "Our Lady of Lamborghini Church,"
* a Benevolence Breeds Malevolence Dessert titled “The ‘bloodhound’ leading the blind,” and
* a baker's-dozen Riffing Off Shortz Slices puzzles titled "Ear hears the arts, affecting the heart," (including five baked-up by our friend Nodd).
Join us... you'll be "Delightfully Puzzleyed!"
LegoWhoAsks"DidSomeoneSay'Umper-Stay?' "
I wrote, “Rearrange the letters of the thing designed to affect the body part and you get a word for a source of something for another body part.” That’s HATTERS.
ReplyDeleteEAR / HEART / THE ARTS (?)
ReplyDeleteNeither EAR nor HEART appear in this list:
Deletehttps://www.britannica.com/dictionary/eb/3000-words/topic/human-body-parts-external/1
I don't consider the "heart" that is affected by "the arts" to be a "body part".
When I think of "the arts" I think of Tisch School Of The Arts; then I think of "tsk", which often appears in the Andy Capp comic strip. A handicap is a hindrance, and that was my hint.
ear --> heart --> the arts
ReplyDeleteEarlier this week I said, “I’m sorry, but – IMHO – this is a stupid puzzle.” I usually keep my opinions to myself, but if my answer is correct, then this puzzle is – maybe not stupid – but certainly not in the top tier of Sunday Puzzles. (If my answer is _not_ correct, then it’s me that deserves the adjective, not the puzzle.)
All puzzle writers write some good ones and some not so hot so no offense to anyone intended. Personally, I think it’s harder to write a good puzzle than to solve one. This week, the “something designed to affect that body part” language is too nebulous to make a first-rate puzzle. Better to leave it out altogether or come up with something more specific and accurate.
Happy Pi Day to all.
EAR -> HEART -> THE ARTS
ReplyDelete> "Something"? No.
"Something" is singular. "THE ARTS" is plural.
> Hmmm. . . . Something seems to be missing from the archive here.
Specifically, the blog post from June 18, 2017, when the puzzle was the same, in reverse. Sneaky, Blaine! Though, Car Talk does the same thing with their recycled puzzles.
> Here's another wrinkle: a connection between the two body parts? To be frank, I have my doubts.
Frank's sign, a diagonal wrinkle or crease in the EARlobe, may or may not point to HEART disease.
>> Is this puzzle a pilot project?
> I just got your hint. Make sure to submit your answer before noon in the Pacific Time Zone.
Fred Noonan was Amelia EAR-HEART's navigator. They ended up in the Pacific.
Blaine has restored the 6/18/2017 blog post to the archive.
DeleteI said: "I finally got the answer. Had to fly solo....my hubby was no help." That was my nod to Amelia Earhart (ear-heart).
ReplyDeleteI stopped sending in answers a long time ago, and here is an example of why:
ReplyDeleteMy submission for this puzzle would have been
EAR - HEART - I (HEART) U
Doesn't that sentiment affect your heart?
Wow, that is so much better than the intended answer!
DeleteAgreed!
DeleteHow about: EAR → BEARD → A BEAR Dr. who would affect a beard...
DeleteAs is often the case with my limited brain power, I still don't understand Blaine's clue. I'm sure it's clever, but I'm not seeing it. 😕
ReplyDelete....nevermind. I see his explanation now.
DeleteEAR -> HEART -> THE ARTS
ReplyDeleteCan't remember if I clued it or not.
Well, as Meatloaf would say....2 out of 3 ain't bad. I had the first 2 (easy, I know) But couldn't get the last one. So the arts are supposed to affect a heart? I may be too left brained for that reach. Cheers to everyone who figured out this week's puzzle !
ReplyDeleteear, heart, the arts
ReplyDeleteLike Vandal in Seattle, I only got as far as EAR and HEART. Like jan, I have a problem with THE ARTS (plural) being referred to as "something."
ReplyDeleteI wasn't playing the puzzle in 2017, so I wouldn't have known that this was a "reverse-engineered" prior puzzle. Therefore, Blaine's clue was lost on me.
Congrats to everyone who wasn't misled by the way the directions were worded.
Oh, and IMHO, the arts stimulate the mind/imagination just as much as the heart. Perhaps that association was just too "narrow" for me. :)
DeleteEAR --> HEART --> THE ARTS. My hint: The third answer, minus one letter, is something 007 once used. (In Goldfinger, James Bond used a Penfold Hearts ball in his golf game with Goldfinger.)
ReplyDeleteOh, I got this right! I haven't done that in multiple weeks, except for Vin Diesel. Maybe being an actor helps. I've been super stressed and busy since NYE that I've barely been able to work on the puzzle each week. Hoping for the time when that can change...
ReplyDeleteI should have sent this one in when I had the chance. I had everything up until THE ARTS, but I questioned that part.
ReplyDeletepjbKnowsTheWord[EAR]IsEasilyMadeInto[HEART]BecauseYouCan'tReallyDoThatWithAnyOtherBodyPartThatShort!
EAR/HEART/THE ARTS
ReplyDeleteI deleted a comment that was TMI earlier this week, but I had said that The Arts really can affect both body parts.
ReplyDeleteI had commented, "Transpose two letters in the third answer to get something that New Yorkers talk about." That would be THE RATS.
ReplyDeleteMy mention of the 3rd step in the puzzle being a liberal interpretation was a reference to “The Liberal Arts”.
ReplyDelete"A post-flight inspection revealed a missing panel on an older Boeing 737-800 that had just arrived at its destination in southern Oregon on Friday after flying from San Francisco, officials said."
ReplyDeleteI suspect the FAA will now convene a panel of panel experts to explore this disturbing issue. Too bad What's My Line is now defunct, because I believe they could figure this one out much sooner than a Boeing panel of idiots.
This week's challenge: Our challenge comes from Emma Meersman of Seattle, Washington: Take two three-letter tree names and combine them phonetically to get a clue for a type of fabric, then change one letter in that word to get something related to trees. Your answer should be the two tree names you started with.
ReplyDeleteGot the first part easily enough. But the second...
DeleteI've had the second answer almost since the beginning, but I don't like it.
DeleteI think I have the answer. But, there's a step in the puzzle that's ambiguous. To get my answer, you combine the trees phonetically to get a clue for a type of fabric, then change one letter in the word for the clued fabric to get something related to trees.
ReplyDeleteSo, this is really two puzzles for the price of one.
DeleteYes. Given the fact that the requested answer is only the two trees, the second part is not really integral.
DeleteAgreed on the ambiguity. See my comment above.
ReplyDeleteAbout 900 correct entries this week.
ReplyDelete