Q: Name an animal whose first five letters in order spell a religious figure. And if you change the animal's next-to-last letter, its last five letters in order will spell another religious figure. What animal is this?Is this a joke? So easy!
Edit: A priest, a minister and a rabbit walk into a blood bank. The receptionist asks if they know their blood types.
The priest says, "I believe I'm a Type A."
The minister says, "I believe I'm a Type B."
The rabbit says, "I believe I'm a Type O."
A: RABBIT --> RABBI, ABBOT
I thought it was luck, but I got this one right away. And I think a lot of other people will too
ReplyDeleteMe too and Blaine’s joke immediately came to mind
DeleteWrite down the names of the two religious figures. If a letter repeats, remove all instances of that letter. You are left with a tumult.
ReplyDeleteRob, You are one amazing hint giver! Every Sunday morning you come up with a wordplayfully clever hint almost immediately after Blaine has uploaded his beautiful blog.
DeleteLegoWhoAddsThatWhatThatTellsUsIsThatRobIsAlsoOneAmazinglyQuickPuzzleSolverWhy?BecauseYouCan'tGiveAHintWhenYouDon'tKnowTheAnswerToTheDarnPuzzle!
Jeepers. Such praise from such a source makes me blush.
DeleteAnd isn't Blaine's wonderful? And aren't we lucky to take part?
🎵 Jeepers, creepers, Rob's hints are keepers! 🎶
DeleteReminds me of a famous Chief Justice.
ReplyDelete(A Warren of rabbits.)
DeleteAnd Will turned down the puzzle suggestion I sent him for this?
ReplyDeleteI sympathize, but I have to admit I think it's kind of cute.
DeleteI'm still out in left field on this one.
ReplyDeleteWhy?
DeleteOh, OK, now I get it.
DeleteI guess there's no harm in revealing that my first guess was "angelfish" but I couldn't think of ANY word starting with "lf".
DeleteI had the tee shirt.
DeleteMusical check-in Sunday since this isnt much of a puzzle. Loop and everyone, are you a fan of Trampled by Turtles? Their song, Duluth, is playing now. Just found them through a 20 year old plumber who unclogged my drain. Really enjoying their vibe. Folksy, blue-grassy. And the 20 year old was the first 20- or 30-something I've asked recently who knew James Taylor. He said "Of course, the singer/songwriter who made all of the the following folks possible!"
ReplyDeleteThis made me happy.
The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone. Ever heard o' that?
DeleteWe were recently at an outdoor karaoke event and we struck up a conversation with the couple next to us (30ish) who had a very friendly dog. I jokingly said "you should send him up to the stage to sing Werewolves of London. The guy looked at me kind of puzzled so I said "Have you ever heard of Warren Zevon?" and he said "No, can't say that I have." My husband got the last laugh. He figured they were too young. 😂
DeleteScarlett, right?
Delete"James Taylor? Is he a make-up
artist?"
This cover of Iris Dement's "Our Town"
by Trampled by Turtles is inspired. My 20nyeat plumber says he likes to slow down like a meandering river and let the turtles trample away.
Have a listen to the sweet "Our Town," as you wind your way through Sunday morning. >>>
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ch0J8FtMSA0
^^^20 year old
DeleteOUR TOWN Trampled by Turtles cover of Iris Dement, an Arkansan by birth.
DeleteThanks for sharing this. I had never heard of Trampled by Turtles, but I'm an instant fan as of now.
DeleteWe've seen Iris Dement in concert a couple times, but it's been awhile. She's absolutely top shelf right from the get-go!
I know. Her songwriting skills are sublime. And I love seeing Emmy Lou Harris backing her up.
DeleteMy dentist's receptionist (!) knows Iris and is going to ask her if she would talk to me about growing up in Arkansas, a Stone's throw away from Fifty-Six, AR.
Fifty-Six could be Our Town or many Our Towns.
.
And as for the plumber? He had to drop out of college after one year due to financial issues in his family. He has a great attitude, though, and helped start a fund for kids in his community to get mental health support where the suicide rate is much too high.
DeleteI've put him in contact with folks at the same fund that helped my son get a full ride scholarship to college. He is quite deserving of reaching his goals of going into outer space.
In the meantime, I asked the handyman at the house with the turtle sign (shown in my thumbnail) if it referred to actual turtles or metaphorical turtles?
"Metaphorical turtles, of course."
May you have many turtles and many meanderings in your day, metaphorical, metaphysical, or real ;-).
May you slow down enough today to be Trampled by Turtles.
Who?
ReplyDeleteDr. K, today you've not got a friend . . .
DeleteGot it before the on-air puzzle had been read through. Figuring out a non-TMI clue will take me much longer.
ReplyDeleteReplace each vowel in the animal with a different vowel. Phonetically, you get something associated with laws.
DeleteNot the Dalai llama.
ReplyDeleteNot an Allahgator?
DeleteThe first hint I thought of involved the three answers, but then I read Blaine's and decided I couldn't top it.
ReplyDelete...because, by referring to the joke, Blaine had already raised the bar.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteA comedy duo comes to mind.
ReplyDeleteOn a different topic, many of us are likely familiar with the story from last week that the New York Times Sunday Crossword Puzzle had an error. In a rather strange coincidence, the Saturday paper had an error in the 6x6 KenKen puzzle.
ReplyDeleteI usually knock out the KenKen puzzles in a few minutes. After running into a dead end a few times Saturday morning, I set the puzzle aside, and went on with my day.
This morning, I tried again, and once again hit a dead end, in the same area. So, I tried pulling up an online KenKen solver. After carefully checking that I had entered all of the information correctly, the solver told me there was no solution!
So, I'm looking forward to Monday's paper, to see what the error is.
WE APOLOGISE FOR THE FAULT IN THE PUZZLES. THOSE RESPONSIBLE HAVE BEEN SACKED.
DeleteWE APOLOGISE AGAIN FOR THE FAULT IN THE PUZZLES. THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR SACKING THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE JUST BEEN SACKED, HAVE BEEN SACKED.
DeleteAre those coconuts I hear banging together? Run away!
DeletepjbSays"Nih!"ToTheWholeThing
I solved the 6x6 yesterday. I thought it was possible I made a mistake, but I also just checked an online solver, and I was right. I'm currently in the middle of the 7x7 one in the magazine and feel stuck; is it possible that's the one with the error?
Delete
DeleteThanks for the laugh, Zeno!
Heads up, Blaine, Blogger is playing its "Newer Post" tricks again.
ReplyDeleteI think it's better now. Can you check?
DeleteI think you got it. Thanks!
DeleteReminds me of a comedy team.
ReplyDeleteSilly puzzle.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to picture a full barrel in the hold of a sailing boat.
ReplyDelete(My TMI average is about 50%, I beieve.)
an attempted reference to Watership Down
DeleteI agree with some of the observations above - this is a bit silly for a Sunday challenge, though if it’s going to be offered nonetheless, I’m surprised it wasn’t timed to a more appropriate time of year.
ReplyDeleteBlaine’s hint is one of the best I’ve seen, bar none.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, we couldn't have Lucky Charms, but ....
ReplyDeleteThere are a few reasons I might get this.
ReplyDeleteI used to own a rabbit, and my mom's maiden name is Abbott.
DeleteI understand the wait staff at the White House Correspondents dinner were recommending duck with no cover charge.
ReplyDeleteReally? I thought Trump always chickens out?
DeleteNo one wanted duck a la orange.
DeleteIn the "I guess I chose the wrong week to give up dropping acid" category, here is a clip of Karoline Leavitt telling a Fox News reporter before the event that "there will be shots fired" at the WHCD: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/B2B3KJKNOss.
DeleteDuck tacos... It's a thing!
DeleteNo one else seems to be pointing that out. Bet she could eat her words.
DeleteIt was all carefully scripted.
DeleteBTW, off the subject, but if you haven't seen the recent animated Iranian Lego propaganda videos from Explosive Media, they're pretty cute.
ReplyDeleteFinally, equal time!
ReplyDeleteThe link to this week's Sunday Puzzle takes us instead to one from a month ago. Here's a link to today's: https://www.npr.org/2026/04/26/g-s1-118349/sunday-puzzle-blank-to-blank.
ReplyDeleteThanks for pointing that out. I can't blame the intern; it definitely was my mistake but I've fixed it now.
DeleteBlaine, do you pay your interns well ;-)?
DeleteDoes that make you an internist at heart?
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI have posted below Puzzleria!s current "Schpuzzle of the Week" for the benefit of those of you who have already solved the current NPR challenge and are hankering for an addition challenge:
DeleteName a parlor game. Remove its first letter.
Write down the first four letters of this newly “beheaded” game.
Leave a space, followed by the final five letters of the game. Invert two adjacent letters of these final five.
As a result of these meddlesome lexical
manipulations, the game has now been rendered edible... like a Christmas goose or Thanksgiving turkey! (Has this parlor game perhaps indeed become an entirely different kind of game!?)
What are this game and this grub?
LegoCabLapper
Name an animal whose first five letters in order spell the name of a demon. And the animal's last five letters in order spell the name of a saint.
ReplyDeleteRudolfo is a brilliantly talented puzzle-maker whose puzzles have appeared on NPR; and I have been privileged to post his creativity on Puzzleria!... along with that of scores of other talented contributors.
Delete(Chad Graham's "Conundrumstruck by Chuck" is featured in our current edition, and Mark Scott's "Skydiversions" shall be featured in this Thursday's edition.)
LegoGratefully
I'm pretty sure it's not devil ray, but I'll keep looking.
DeleteAh, think I have it! If so, the "demon" isn't part of any official lists of any religions (so far).
DeleteTortieWhoNotesThisWordAlsoDescribesTheBrassyHerbMentionedInLego'sLastDessertHintOnPuzzleria!
I've got TWO answers to this one.
ReplyDeleteMore on Thursday 3pm.
RABBIT, RABBI, ABBOT
DeleteI was vamping on an old joke -- that if you put two Jews in a room, they have three opinions.
I knew my hint would be removed as TMI—but I couldn’t’ resist.
ReplyDeleteAnd skydiveboy, LOVE your hints/wordplay! VERY clever!
Good clues. The idea I was going to use has been used at least a couple times, so... hm.
ReplyDeleteShakes him, makes him.
I leave a clue for my friends at "What's on Tonight", and it took me more research to clue the first religious figure than to actually solve the puzzle.
ReplyDeleteHmm, now I am thinking this would be a good puzzle for the beginning of a month.
ReplyDeleteWill Shortz is the only person to hold a degree from Indian U for enigmatology. It's a self organized degree in puzzles. He should be ashamed for posting this.
ReplyDeleteEven Blaine agrees. (It's not a joke)
hey, another nice easy one!
ReplyDelete(hey, Abbott!)
DeleteI don't know how to clue this without running afoul of Blaine's moderation.
ReplyDeleteI've been trying to send in a puzzle idea. However when I try as I have in the past all it that happens is a blank page the has one word "change". When I click on "change" it just sends me on a circular path that is no help. Is there a new way to submit a puzzle idea, not a puzzle answer?
ReplyDeleteClark a pseudonym, change is hard. 🌈
DeleteYes, change is much harder than paper money.
DeleteAs discovered the fellow who BitCoin.
DeleteTouché. Why is biting coinage such a thing anyway? (Serious question).
DeleteAnd sorry, Cap, we're not helping one iota. Or even 1/2 iota.
DeleteWhy iota...;-)
Cap, you inspired iota thinking today!
Delete"iota
/īˈōdə/
An iota is the ninth letter of the Greek alphabet (or
), which represents the smallest letter in that alphabet and is frequently used to denote a tiny or negligible amount, especially in the phrase "not one iota". It is derived from the Greek letter symbolizing a "jot" and signifies a minute or microscopic quantity. "
Sorry, still not even a scintilla of help, are we?;-)
Iota jump in here and post something witty and clever, but I can't seem to coin anything today.
DeleteOn biting coins: it was a way to test whether a gold coin was, in fact, gold, since gold is more malleable than other metals. [I feel a bit ridiculous presuming to lecture a scientist on this subject.] Apparently Olympic medalists do the same.
DeleteAnd a propos of metal coins, the Orange Toast, the traditional salute by members of the Orange Order to celebrate their oppression of Irish Catholics, begins with "Here's to the glorious, pious and immortal memory of the great and good King William III, Prince of Orange, who saved us from rogues and roguery, slaves and slavery, knaves and knavery, Popes and Popery, brass money and wooden shoes." "Brass money" refers to the coins that James II minted out of cannons melted down for that purpose.
ZC, sometimes it's just fun to get the conversation going...biting remarks aside ;-)
DeleteI really can't make heads or tails of this conversation.
DeleteA cure for the Agenbite of Inwit.
DeleteI am still amazed at the synchronicity of finding the same rare coin Sid Ently also discovered.
DeletePS the old way seems to not be working
ReplyDeleteFolks, could any of you tell me what you do to submit a puzzle. Puns on iota are just not helpful. Now that you've gotten iota out of your system, can you make any suggestion the would help me to submit a puzzle idea or not.
DeleteFirst I would recommend making up something so simple a child could solve it. It will then have a better chance of being accepted than a clever one.
DeleteThat's not the issue, SBD. Has anyone had difficulty recently when trying to send in a puzzle idea? Please don't play around with my question...It's not helpful
DeleteI submitted a puzzle 6 days ago and received the expected rejection right away, and now Lego will be running it friday.
Deleteskydiveboy is correct that we shall be running his excellent puzzle on this week's edition of Puzzleria!... and it is an unfortunate fact that I do occasionally upload it tardily on a Friday...
DeleteBut I resolve to upload this week's Puzzleria! (replete with skydiveboy's always-entertaining and challenging "Skydiversions" feature) this on Thursday
LegoWhoWelcomeAllToDropByTomorrowForABitOfLively"Skydivery"
I'm guessing that the first religious figure speaks a Quechua or Aymara dialect. Consider this a lagniappe.
ReplyDeleteBe careful when submitting your answer so that you don’t make a mistake.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking of (roughly) the same joke as Blaine.
DeleteIs anyone else having a problem with sending in puzzle ideas through the NPR website? No jokes please, I'd really like to know because I can't seem to avoid a repeat circle of sending me back to the beginning.
ReplyDeleteBlaine, do you have anything helpful to suggest for the difficulty I'm having in submitting puzzle ideas through the NPR website?
ReplyDeleteThe last time I submitted a puzzle, I used the old link. I haven't tried the updated links. I wonder if SDB used the regular link or just sent it directly to WS?
DeleteHe usually sends it directly to Will. I have his email address, but I don't want to bother him at home. I wish other bloggers would respond to my request without their joking about it. I don't think they took my request seriously.
ReplyDeleteI can't help you with your problem, because I've never submitted a puzzle, but I think that the problem you've identified should be brought to Will's attention, even if that means emailing him at his personal address.
DeleteI have sent puzzle ideas to Will's email address, and while he has not accepted any of my submittals, (I'm still trying) his responses have always been prompt and courteous.
DeleteI have had the same experience as SuperZee.
DeleteThanks, SZ, I had been concerned about using Will's Email address because I didn't want to bother him at home. However, since it was the only option ,I've sent my last two ideas to his email and each time Will was prompt and courteous.
DeleteClark, I'm sure that if Will didn't want to be bothered at his personal email address, he wouldn't send out acceptance messages via that email address in the first place. It would be easy enough, I think, to just set up an NPR email address that would just be able to send out acceptance emails and not accept incoming ones.
DeleteScroll down any NPR puzzle page to "help/contact" site and search for submit a puzzle idea. That's all I got.
DeleteYea -I have to bother the Wizard at home.
It's under browse help articles.
Delete16
ReplyDeleteWell every once in a while Final Jeopardy is easier than others. Other times I haven't got a prayer to correctly respond.
ReplyDeleteIt would be useful to have a list of things that commenters are not allowed to joke about.
ReplyDeleteIf it's easier, we could have a list of things commenters *are* allowed to joke about.
IMHO, any subject can be acceptable, as long as discussion remains polite and respectful. People can disagree-without being disagreeable.
DeleteRabbit >>> rabbi & abbot
ReplyDeleteI did not post a hint, but wanted to post this:
Delete"What's Updike writing these days?"
Sounds like "What's up Doc?" Plus Updike is known for Rabbit Run. I knew Blaine would possibly dislocate his index finger in rushing to remove this hint.
RABBIT (—> RABBI, ABBOT)
ReplyDelete“Who?” —> “Who’s on First?” —> Abbott (—> “abbot”) and Costello
RABBIT/RABBI/ABBOT
ReplyDeleteMy comment that this puzzle (?) was a new low on the arc of challenges, was a pointer to the Ark where Torah scrolls are kept in a synagogue.
I thought anything relating to Abbot and Costello’s routine, Who’s on First would be TMI, but when I saw Paul’s comment about being out in left field, I couldn’t resist, and asked, “Why?” Why was the Left Fielder.
A classic version of the routine is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYOUFGfK4bU
My use of the word "tricks" was not an intentional hint.
ReplyDeleteI wrote, “Write down the names of the two religious figures. If a letter repeats, remove all instances of that letter. You are left with a tumult.” That’s RIOT.
ReplyDeleteRABBIT --> RABBI, ABBOT
ReplyDelete> A comedy duo comes to mind.
ABBOTt and Costello
> Growing up, we couldn't have Lucky Charms, but ....
Silly RABBI, Kix are for Yids! (Those marshmallows aren't kosher.)
> 16
Once again, today's NYT Crossword has a hint: 16A: One robed in a kittel, maybe.
Someone ought to write the actual joke, so here goes…
ReplyDeleteA rabbi, an abbot, and a rabbit walk into a bar that advertises half-price for clergy. The rabbi says, “I’ll have a glass of Manischewitz at half price. I’m a rabbi.” The abbot says, “I’ll have a glass of Benedictine at half price. I’m an abbot.” The rabbit says, “I’ll have a glass of Bombay sapphire at half price. I’m a Krishna hare.”
I thought the joke was something more like this:
DeleteA priest, a pastor and a rabbit entered a clinic to donate blood. The nurse asked the rabbit: "what's your blood type?"
Delete"I'm probably a type O", said the rabbit.
That's how I heard it.
DeleteI recall a version as follow:
DeleteA Priest, a Minister and a Rabbit walk into a blood bank. The receptionist asks if they know their blood types.
The Priest says, "I believe I'm a Type A."
The Minister says, "I believe I'm a Type B."
The Rabbit says, "I believe I'm a Type O."
Obviously a classic....
DeleteThat, indeed, is the classic. I wanted to update it to a rabbi, an abbot, and a rabbit.
DeleteIn the same "vein", here's another: A priest, a rabbi and a minister walk into a bar. The bartender looked at them and said, "What is this? Some kind of joke?"
Deleterabbit (rabbi, abbot)
ReplyDeleteThe discounts-for-clergy reminds me of an episode in my life over fifty years ago. I have an ID card that identifies me as a minister of the Universal Life Church; they sent such IDs out to anyone who asked for one. The movie theaters of Jacksonville, Florida, where I lived at the time, had a policy of letting clergy and a guest in free. Just show the card. And so, my girlfriend (now my wife) and I went to plenty of free movies. This included ones I imagine few other clergy attended, like _Flesh Gordon_.
ReplyDeleteRABBIT >>> RABBI, ABBOT
ReplyDeleteBut, of course, all the Trampled by Turtles and "Watch for Turtles" discussion and image refers to "The Tortoise and The Hare."
Moving slowly enough to be trampled by turtles is a meandering delight. I also like that TbT refuses to be pigeon-holed into jazz, Bluegrass, folk. >>> "Anything with Strings."
About the only tricky bit to this puzzle was that it's not a 10 letter animal. But, in my opinion, Lego did it better with his Animals and Habitats a few weeks back.
ReplyDeleteAnimal whose first five letters spell a demon, the last five letters spell the name of a saint:
ReplyDelete(guess) - PETER
A trumpeter swan?
DeleteThat's good!
DeleteYup ... just be sure to say the whole thing ...
DeletePity there isn't a Trumpeter Swine. 45/47 has none of the grace of a swan, but as a swine .....
DeleteMy comment "I'm guessing that the first religious figure speaks a Quechua or Aymara dialect" referred to the fact that 100 percent of the descendants of those who inhabited the altiplano 500 years ago have Type O bloodtype. The rest of the comment "Consider this a lagniappe" refers to my favorite loanword from Quechua ("yapa," meaning to add), which Spanish-speakers turned into "la ñapa," and brought with them to Louisiana, where French-speakers turned it into "lagniappe," that extra beignet they add to the dozen you bought.
ReplyDeletePuzzleria! this week features a superb not-to-be-missed gem-of-a-poser composed by our friend Mark Scott )aka "skydiveboy"). Mark's "Skydiversionary Appetizer" this time is titled “A Tale of Two (U.S.) Cities.” (Geography has always one of Mark's favorite puzzle topics.)
ReplyDeleteWe shall upload this week's Puzzleria! (per usual) as soon as we can, this very afternoon.
Also featured on our menus this week are:
* a Schpuzzle of the Week titled "Muskie scales, music scales, sails on the lake"
* a Doctor’s Prescriptive Hors d’Oeuvre! titled "Fun! Games! Gastroenterology!"
* a “Barbarian vs. Minute-Maid Marian” Slice titled "Machismo vs. modern amenities,"
* a “Heard It Through The Grapevine” Dessert featuring "Creatures & how they communicate," and
* about eight Riffs of this week's NPR Weekend Edition Sunday puzzle, titled "Rabbit, Rabbi, Cabbie, Abbot, Lab Rat!"
So, why not stop by for some Seattle-style-Skydiversionary "stumpification..." then stick around for, and enjoy, the rest of our mysterious "stickler-to-your-ribs" servings of wordplay?
Thank you.
Lego(ProvivingAHintToSkydiveboy'sPuzzle)TheTwoCitiesYouMustFindAreNotParisTexasAndLondonKentucky!
My clue: Shakes him, makes him.
ReplyDeleteTo become a rabbi you have to be ordained by a "Semikhah"... an anagram of "shakes him".
rabbit (rabbi, abbot)
ReplyDeleteMore interesting was Rudolfo's puzzle. My answer was trumpeter (swan; Trump, Peter).
My clue was "Silly puzzle," as in "Silly rabbit, Trix are for kids!"
ReplyDeleteRabbit --> rabbi, abbot
ReplyDeleteLast Sunday I said, “Reminds me of a comedy team.” Abbott and Costello.
My post - “…. this is a bit silly for a Sunday challenge,” - like others, this referred to “silly rabbit, trix are for kids”…..and “I’m surprised it wasn’t timed to a more appropriate time of year.”…was a reference to Easter Sunday for the rabbit (bunny).
ReplyDeleteLatest email from Will : Understanding my problem but asked me to please use the NPR website even though he knew about my problem. So I guess if ignore what he said, he'd probably not accept my puzzle idea . I hope NPR gets their act together
ReplyDeleteNPR is reporting today as being National Honesty Day. I am not at all surprised Trump is not taking credit for it.
ReplyDeleteIn Trump's case the paradox is when he says "I'm telling the truth."
DeleteRABBIT, RABBI, ABBOT
ReplyDeleteRABBIT was the very first animal I thought of as I read through the puzzle on the NPR site. Unbelievably easy puzzle!
pjbAgreesThisWasA"Silly"PuzzleBecauseOfTrixCereal,OfCourse(ForGoodnessSake,LetHimHaveSomeOfTheStuff!)
I had posted the clue: Replace each vowel in the animal with a different vowel. Phonetically, you get something associated with laws.
ReplyDeleteRABBIT => ROBBOT => ROBOT, as in Isaac Asimov's Laws of Robotics
This week's online challenge comes from Chad Graham, of Philadelphia. Name a well-known comic actor whose name is an anagram of two terms in golf (four and five letters, respectively.) Who is it?
ReplyDeleteI think I've got it.
DeleteYeah, I have it.
ReplyDeleteIt's not Adam Sandtrap.
Having the letter count makes it very easy.
ReplyDeleteThe actor makes popular types of movies.
ReplyDeleteI wish sending in a puzzle idea was as simple to do as sending in this answer.
ReplyDeleteThis suited me to a tee (a three lettered golf term...it's not TMI)
ReplyDeletePS. Sorry folks, I still haven't been able to send in a puzzle idea, due to a bug in NPR's system
ReplyDelete