What do the following three-letter words have in common?

1. HAD

2. GEE

3. CUR

4. FOR

5. LAW

6. HER

7. WAR

8. IRA

9. BOA  

10. ALA

11. SPA

12. MEN

13. VIE

14. APE

15. BUS

 

Answer:

 

Each three-letter word becomes a new four-letter word when a successive letter of the alphabet is added at the end - starting with J - with the exception of  added letters V and Z.

 

1. HADJ  

2. GEEK

3. CURL

4. FORM

5. LAWN

6. HERO

7. WARP

8. IRAQ

9. BOAR

10. ALAS

11. SPAT

12. MENU

13. VIEW

14. APEX

15. BUSY 

 

NOTE: For a similar puzzle with words ending with letters A - I,  (parka, plumb, maniac, etc - see post of 3/17/26.

  

 

 

COMPOUND LINKS XXXV 

Fill in the blanks with a compound word or two-word phrase so that the first two words and the last two words make up other compound words or two-word phrases.

Ex. SHELF ________ RAIL

Ans. LIFEGUARD ( shelf life / guardrail) 

 

1. BOX ________ BAY

2. TIN ________ ROLL 

3. JET ________ SHOW

4. OLD ________ KNEE 

5. STICK ________ OUT 

6. TIME ________ BOOK 

7. INDIA ________ DONE 

8. TEXT ________ PHONE

9. SOLID ________ STORY 

10. HONEY ________ GOAT

 

Answers: 

 

1. boxCAR SICK bay 

2. tin EARDRUM roll

3. jet BLACK LIGHT show

4. old HAT TRICK knee

5. stick PINPOINT out

6. timeCLOCK FACEbook

7. india INKWELL done

8. textBOOK SMART phone

9. solid GOLDFISH story

10. honeyMOONSCAPEgoat  

The ten words below can be paired up into five pairs according to a certain pattern. 

SIFT

NUDE

CUFFS 

SNOOP 

ARTIST

DISHES

OUGHT 

BUSIER 

OZONES

FIGHTER

 

HINTS:

1. Anagrams 

2. Rhymes

 

Answers:

 

The ten words can be anagrammed into five rhyming pairs:

 

SIFT - DISHES = FIST - HISSED

NUDE - SNOOP = DUNE - SPOON

CUFFS - OUGHT = SCUFF - TOUGH

ARTIST - FIGHTER = STRAIT - FREIGHT

BUSIER - OZONES = BRUISE - SNOOZE

 

Credit:

Braingle  

 

NO ENDS IN SIGHT V

Each word below can be changed to a new one by adding two letters - one at the front and one at the back. (More than one answer may be possible.)

1. HIM

2. RAM

3. WAR

4. LIMA

5. ONES

6. ERNE

7. ABLE

8. ROVER

9. TAMPED

10. OREGON 

 

(Possible) Answers:

 

1. CHIME

2. DRAMA

3. DWARF

4. CLIMAX

5. HONEST

6. KERNEL

7. TABLET

8. PROVERB

9. STAMPEDE

10. FOREGONE  

 

PAIRS XXVI

Dell PennyPress Variety Puzzles

October, 2025 

 

Place the same pair of letters on both dashes to complete the words. The letter pair will be different for each answer. #10 is a valid, but seldom-used word.

 

1. P _ _ IMET _ _

 

2. D _ _ IZ _ _

 

3. BA _ _ STA _ _

 

4. _ _ S _ _ RIZE

 

5. IN _ _ CTI _ _

 

6. _ _ _ _ DLY

 

7. C _ _ TORTI _ _ 

 

8. _ _ L _ _ BLE

 

9.  _ _ ST _ _ CT

 

10. REP _ _ RI _ _ E 

 

Answers:

 

1. pERimetER

2. dENizEN

3. baNDstaND

4. MEsMErize

5. inVEctiVE

6. VIVIdly

7. cONtortiON

8. PAlPAble

9. INstINct

10. repATriATe 

 

  

 

SYNONYM/ANAGRAM CCCXLIII 

The two words on each line can be anagrammed into one - beginning with the given letter. The meanings of the anagrams given below the clues. 

1. LAD + MERE = E

2. YET + TRIVIAL = R 

3. QUIET + EARNS = E 

4. SLED + OCTANE = A 

5. MINOR + PLEAD = P 

6. COOP + SIMMER = C 

7. PRINT + SUMAC = M

8. BAIL + BEMOAN = A 

9. LEMON + VALET = M

10. CONE + INVENT = C 

 

Meanings of the anagrams:

1. Precious gem

2. Time/space theory

3. Horseback rider

4. Teenager, for one

5. KAYAK is one

6. Mutual agreement, perhaps 

7. Original, unpublished text

8. Like a certain Snowman

9. Evil 

10. Easy, at hand

 

Answers:

 

1. EMERALD

2. RELATIVITY

3. EQUESTRIAN

4. ADOLESCENT

5. PALINDROME

6. COMPROMISE

7. MANUSCRIPT

8. ABOMINABLE 

9. MALEVOLENT

10. CONVENIENT   

 TRIPLES VII

In each compound word or two-word phrase below, the same word can follow the first word and precede the second word to make two other compound words or two-word phrases. What are the connecting words?

Ex. FOOD ORDER

Ans. COURT (food court / court order)

 

1. LOOSE BALL

2. BABY FACE

3. ROWBOAT

4. TIRE IRON 

5. PETER OUT

6. GOLD FISH

7. DIAL DOWN

8. POINT OUT 

9. CLEAN THROUGH

10. FOREIGN SERVICE 

 

Answers:

 

1. CANNON

2. DOLL

3. HOUSE

4. PUMP

5. PAN

6. STAR

7. TONE

8. BLANK

9. BREAK

10. CAR