Is a piano involved?Q: Name two things that many houses are built with: "[blank] and [blank]." Drop the first letter of the first thing. Change the last two letters of the second thing to a "Y." And you'll name a popular TV show, "[blank] and [blank]." What show is it?
A: BRICK and MORTAR --> RICK and MORTY
Edit: The picture of the supermarket shows a vehicle with tires, presumably Michelin :)Q: Think of two well-known brand names, each in eight letters that have the same first six letters in the same order. Both brands are of products, one found in a supermarket and one for something used outdoors. And even though the first six letters of the names are the same, they're not pronounced the same. What products are these?
A: MICHELOB, MICHELIN
This person was due for a puzzle — !Q: Take the name of a large financial corporation in 10 letters. Drop the fourth and fifth letters. Move the sixth and seventh letters to the front. You'll name a person associated with financial misdeeds. What is the company, and who is the person?
A: CAPITAL ONE --> AL CAPONE
Clearly "porn" and "pom" don't work, and I'd never expect to hear that as the answer on NPR either.Q: If you squish the lowercase letters "r" and "n" together, they look like an "m." Think of a word that ends in the consecutive letters "r-n." Squish them together to get a homophone of a synonym of the first word. What words are these?
A: DARN --> DAM (DAMN)
Q: Name something, in eight letters, that you might hear at an opera. Drop three of the letters, without changing the order of the remaining five. You'll name something you might see at an opera. What things are these?If you remove a large quantity, you get something soft you can eat.
A: BARITONE --> BATON
Q: Name two countries with a total of 12 letters that, when spelled one after the other, form six consecutive state postal abbreviations. What are the two countries?Anagram all the letters and you get something that means "loony sail".
A: DENMARK, SPAIN (Delaware, New Mexico, Arkansas, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Indiana)
Q: Name a well-known island. Move the first letter six spaces later in the alphabet. Read the result backward. You'll get where this island is located. What island is it?
A: Intended answer = MALTA --> ATLAS
Alternate answer = JAMAICA --> A CIA MAP
Q: Think of an eight-letter noun composed phonetically of two consecutive names traditionally given to girls. Remove the sixth letter and rearrange the result. You'll get an event where you might hear the thing named by the original noun. What words are these?If you remove the first letter and rearrange, you get a place you probably wouldn't want to hear the original noun.
A: CLARINET (CLAIRE, ANNETTE) --> RECITAL
Q: This is a continuation of a two-week creative challenge. The object is to write a sentence using only the letters of any particular U.S. state. You can pick the state and repeat letters as often as necessary. For example:
OREGON --> Roger, go gorge on green eggnog. NEBRASKA --> Sen. Ben Sasse's sneakers reek. [Note: Ben Sasse is a U.S. senator from Nebraska]
Entries will be judged on originality, sense, naturalness of syntax, humor, and overall elegance. No more than three sentences per entry, please. Deadline is Wednesday this week.
Winner:West Virginia: In tennis news, a new era starts as Serena is retiring. - Kate Simpson
Honorable mentions:Massachusetts: At the museum, esthetes hate the cute statues that amuse the masses. — H.S. Hughes Rhode Island: Denise hoarded sand and seashells inside her shoreside diner. — Rawson Scheinberg Rhode Island: Dolores had to dine on nine dollars she had hidden in her sandal, so she ordered a side salad and a dinner roll. — Kevin RootWashington: Shania Twain is in town tonight, singing Gaga's hit songs at Santana's San Antonio gig. — Kerry Fowler New Mexico: Native educational wisdom makes eradicating xenophobia its core obligation. — Tamar StieberMassachusetts: As she teaches math, she must use the state tests that she hates. — Rick Cleary Texas [only 5 letters to work with!]: Texas axes estate taxes. — Charvaka Duvvury
Q: This is the start of a two-week creative challenge. The object is to write a sentence using only the letters of any particular U.S. state. You can pick the state and repeat letters as often as necessary. For example:
NEW YORK --> No one knew we were ornery. WASHINGTON --> Sighting a ghost tonight was astonishing.
Entries will be judged on originality, sense, naturalness of syntax, humor, and overall elegance. No more than three sentences per entry, please.
