NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 3, 2025): What's on TV?

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 3, 2025): What's on TV?

Q: "I turned on the TV and saw anger, evil, slander, and ruin. It was all pleasant news. What channel was I watching and what specifically was on the screen?"

I remember watching this channel back in the days of standard definition CRTs. Anyone else?

Edit: CRTs often exhibit overscan where part of the TV signal is outside the visible region of the screen. Broadcasters had to be careful not to put titles in these areas or else they might get cutoff, like in this puzzle. "Anyone" (NE-one) was a clue to the states being in the North East.

A: They were watching ice hockey (NHL Eastern division) probably on ESPN. The particular teams are the New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders and the Boston Bruins.

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 9, 2025): Happy Valentine's Day!

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 9, 2025): Happy Valentine's Day!

Q: Name a well-known cartoon character in eight letters. Change the last letter to a U and rearrange the result to make a phrase you might see on a Valentine's Day card.

The cartoon starring this character had a different name for quite awhile.

Olive Oyl was one of the cast of characters in the strip "Thimble Theater". It would be almost a decade later before the character Popeye appeared.

A: OLIVE OYL --> I LOVE YOU

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Dec 29, 2024): Punctual Singer

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Dec 29, 2024): Punctual Singer

Q: Think of a famous singer -- first and last names. Use all of the first name, plus the first three letters and the last letter of the last name. The result, reading left to right, will spell a phrase meaning "punctual." What singer is this?

The unused letters anagram to the start of a fun video game.

Edit: The video game is KERBAL Space Program

A: JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE --> JUST IN TIME

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 25, 2024): Here to Grant Three Wishes

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 25, 2024): Here to Grant Three Wishes

Q: Take the word SETS. You can add a three-letter word to this twice to get a common phrase: SPARE PARTS. Can you now do this with the word GENIE, add a three-letter word to it twice to get a common phrase?

Hey you!

Edit: Sounds like "Au" = Gold

A: GOLDEN OLDIE

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jan 21, 2024): There Is No Time Like The Present

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jan 21, 2024): There Is No Time Like The Present

Q: Think of a familiar saying in seven words. The initial letters of the first three words in order spell a type of container. And the initials of the last four words in order spell something edible that might be found in this container. What's the saying?

No comment.

Edit: The title starts TIN... I thought giving it as a joke answer would lead people astray, but in retrospect it was too close so I deleted the hint. Unfortunately the title is in the URL which I couldn't change without deleting the whole post and comments.

A: There Is Nothing New Under The Sun --> TIN of NUTS

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 27, 2023): A Seriously Bad Effect

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Aug 27, 2023): A Seriously Bad Effect

Q: Think of a noun in six letters. It sounds like a two-word phrase (2,6). And the thing named by the noun can have a seriously bad effect on what's named by the phrase. What is it?

I would not eat them here or there. I would not eat them anywhere.

Edit: I would not eat green eggs and ham. I do not like them, Sam-I-Am. That anagrams into the answer.

A: MIASMA --> MY ASTHMA

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 30, 2022): (Blank) of my (Blank)

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 30, 2022): (Blank) of my (Blank)

Q: Think of a common phrase in the form "___ of my ___." The word that goes in the first blank is the name of a well-known company. And the word that goes in the second blank sounds like part of the names of many of that company's products. What phrase is it?

The puzzle is easy -- a clue, not so much.

A: Easy as (apple) pie.

A: APPLE of my EYE (I in iMac, iPhone, iPod, iPad, etc.)

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 15, 2022): Merci Beaucoup

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 15, 2022): Merci Beaucoup

Q: Name a famous living movie star. Insert an R in the middle of the first name, and drop the last two letters of the last name. You'll get a familiar French phrase. What is it?

Déjà vu, for the third time

Edit: Variations of the puzzle appeared in April 2014 and November 2015. I also mentioned the actor in another puzzle from February 2022.

A: CATE BLANCHETT --> CARTE BLANCHE

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Mar 13, 2022): A Walk in the Park

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Mar 13, 2022): A Walk in the Park

Q: Think of two four-letter words that complete the phrase "___ in the ___." Move the first letter of the second word to the start of the first word. You'll get two synonyms. What are they?

I thought it would be easy to complete the phrase, but after looking through every list I can think of... oh wait, I have it.

Edit: Hints: 'complete' and 'every' are synonyms for 'whole' and 'all'.

A: HOLE in the WALL --> WHOLE, ALL

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jan 30, 2022): Square Off and Exchange Punches

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jan 30, 2022): Square Off and Exchange Punches

Q: Think of a familiar two-word phrase meaning "to fight." Change the third letter of each word to get two new words that are opposites of each other. What words are these?

I have one answer, but won't have the other until around Wednesday.

Edit: We have a waning crescent heading into the new moon (around Tuesday) followed by a waxing crescent.

A: WAGE WAR --> WANE, WAX

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 24, 2021): A Pair of Menus

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 24, 2021): A Pair of Menus

Q: Think of a two-word phrase you might see on a laptop computer menu. Remove five letters. What remains, in order, is a three-word phrase you might see on a restaurant menu. What phrases are these?

I'm going to have to chew on this one for awhile.

Edit: "À la mode" translates literally to "in the fashion". Chew sounds like (Jimmy) Choo who is known for his fashionable shoes. And "choo choo" is the sound a train makes which leads to Planes, Trains and Automobiles.

A: A(irp)LA(ne) MODE --> À LA MODE

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Nov 8, 2020): Paranoia Opener

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Nov 8, 2020): Paranoia Opener

Q: 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?

Here you go --> NPR NPR (AEIOUY)*

Edit: NPR could be considered one.

A: PROPER NOUN

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 19, 2020): Not A Wear

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 19, 2020): Not A Wear

Q: Think of a six-letter word for something you might wear. Insert an "O" in the exact middle, and you'll get a phrase meaning "Not aware." What is it?

A Rubik's Cube

A Rubik's Cube is 3 x 3 x 3 which is 27. The 27th president was TAFT who shares the same 3 consonants (in order) as the answer.

A: OUTFIT --> OUT OF IT

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 24, 2020): Win the Race

NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 24, 2020): Win the Race:

Q: Think of a well-known European city in seven letters. If you remove the third letter, you'll get a two-word phrase describing what you must do to win a race. If instead you remove the fourth letter, you'll get a two-word phrase describing what you can't do to win a race. What's the city?

Or change the penultimate letter and rearrange to get a car part. Or change it to a different letter to get a type of truck.

Edit: FANBELT or FLATBED.

A: BELFAST --> BE FAST, BE LAST

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jan 26, 2020): What's My Job

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jan 26, 2020): What's My Job:

Q: Write down the letter C. Beneath that write ENT. And beneath that write a G. What profession do these letters represent? Here's a hint: It's a two-word phrase — 10 letters in the first word, 5 letters in the second.

I believe the operative word is "write".

Edit: Actually the operative word is "operative" :)

A: Under C, Over a G, ENT --> UNDERCOVER AGENT

P.S. If anyone is interested, an almost identical version of the puzzle was played on-air about 10 years ago.

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jan 12, 2020): Three Word Phrases

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jan 12, 2020): Three Word Phrases:

Q: Think of a familiar three-word phrase that has the following property: The first word is a number. Let X be that number. Then the last X letters of the second word form, in order, a common abbreviation for the third word.

I might have heard my wife utter this in the last couple weeks.

Dancing on New Year's Eve?

A: TWO LEFT FEET --> FT., FEET

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Dec 29, 2019): World Leader Turns to Martial Arts

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Dec 29, 2019): World Leader Turns to Martial Arts:

Q: Everyone knows what a spoonerism is, right? That's where you switch the initial consonant sounds of one phrase to get another — like "light rain" for "right lane." Here's the puzzle: Name a well-known world leader, first and last names. Spoonerize this, and you'll get a phrase that means "to have confidence in one of the martial arts." Who's the leader, and what's the phrase?

I guess there's no need to craft an enigmatic clue when the puzzle is this easy.

The clue was "craft" as in Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. Canada has the highest per capita consumption of Mac & Cheese.

A: JUSTIN TRUDEAU --> TRUST IN JUDO

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Dec 15, 2019): Took a Risk

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Dec 15, 2019): Took a Risk:

Q: Write down eight different letters of the alphabet. Add an apostrophe. Then write the same eight letters in a different order. With proper spacing, you now have a four-word phrase meaning "took a risk." What is it?

If this puzzle has left you flummoxed, you're closer than you think.

Edit: In other words, if you are STUCK...

A: STUCK ONE'S NECK OUT

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 27, 2019): Dear...

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 27, 2019): Dear...:

Q: Think of a familiar two-word phrase — 5 letters in each word — that might be something you'd write in a letter. The first and last letters are the same. The 3rd and 8th letters are the same. The 4th and 7th letters are the same. And the middle two letters are consecutive in the alphabet. What phrase is it?

Here's a bonus puzzle: take a 5-letter word. Change the 2nd letter so it is three earlier in the alphabet. Change the 5th letter so it is one later in the alphabet. Write the word backwards and... Are you following me so far? Great, because I don't remember what the answer was supposed to be.

A: YOURS TRULY

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 21, 2019): Easy Money

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Jul 21, 2019): Easy Money:

Q: Think of a common two-word phrase, in nine letters, naming something that makes it easy to get money. Rearrange its letters to spell another common two-word phrase naming something that makes it hard to get money. What phrases are these?

May you have the first but not the second.

A: DEBIT CARD <--> BAD CREDIT