CRYPTO CLUES CCXXXIV

GAMES Magazine

March/April, 1982

Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon (1, 4, 7, 11)

October, 1982

Mike Shenk (2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9,10, 12, 13)

 

1. Ms. Oakley is awfully inane

 

2. Friends strike back

 

3. Reduces homework assignments, we hear

 

4. Moonstarer, possibly!

 

5. Watch monarch going on a hunt

 

6. Votes for President after Grant is beheaded

 

7. Animal doctor is terribly naive trainer

 

8. Wax from Warsaw

 

9. That messy assortment of jewels

 

10. Driver, if young, has to give proof

 

11. A demon horribly wailed

 

12. Wise man goes through US employments

 

13. Turned silent to hear a speech  

 

HINTS: 

1, 4, 7, 9, 11, 13: Anagrams

2. Definition - Reversal

3. Homophone

5. Two definitions - two words

6. Beheadment

8. Homophone

10. Hidden word

12. Container 

 

Answers:

1. ANNIE (inane)

2. PALS (friends) [reverse of SLAP (strike)]

3. LESSENS (lessons = homework)

4. ASTRONOMER (moonstarer)

5. SEEKING (watch = see / monarch = king)

6. AYES (votes for) [HAYES = President after Grant]

7. VETERINARIAN (naive trainer)

8. POLISH (capital P - from Warsaw / small p - wax)

9. AMETHYSTS (that messy) 

10. VERIFY (give proof - driVER IF Young) 

11. MOANED (a demon) 

12. USAGES (employments) [U SAGE S]

13. LISTEN (silent) 

  

DROP A LETTER - GET A NEW WORD CXLV

GAMES/World of Puzzles

June, 2026

FAMILY REUNIONS

Bob Stigger

 

Drop one letter from each word and re-arrange the remaining letters to get ten related words.

 

1. ARMY

2. ALIEN

3. NEPALI

4. OPTION

5. CLERICS

6. LIGHTEN

7. QUAKERS

8. GEMSTONE

9. EMIGRATED

10. RETAILING 

 

HINTS:

First letters of the new words:

1. R

2. L

3. P

4. P

5. C

6. L

7. S

8. S

9. D

10. T

 

Answers:

 

1. RAY

2. LINE

3. PLANE

4. POINT

5. CIRCLE

6. LENGTH

7. SQUARE

8. SEGMENT

9. DIAMETER

10. TRIANGLE - - - Geometry terms   

NUMBER ANAGRAMS I

GAMES/World of Puzzles 

June, 2026

Rodolfo Kurchan

 

Anagram the letters of the given numbers to form a word. The letters given as clues do not appear in the numbers.  

 

Ex: ONE + TWO

H _ M _ _ _ _ _

Ans: hOm ETOWN 

 

Ex: THREE + FOUR

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ M _ R _

FURTHERmOr E

 

1. THREE + SEVEN

    _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ L _ _ S

 

2. THREE + EIGHT

     F _ A _ _ _ _ W _ _ _ _ _

 

3. TWO + EIGHT

     _ _ _ S _ _ R _ _ _

 

4. THREE + TEN

     _ _ _ _ A _ _ _ _ D

 

5. FOUR + FOUR

    _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

 

6. ONE + NINE

    _ _ _ _ C _ _ C _ 

 

HINTS:
First of the missing letters of the words:

1. N

2. E

3. G

4. T

5. F

6. I 

 

Answers:

 

1. NEVERTHELESS

2. FEATHERWEIGHT

3. GHOSTWRITE

4. THREATENED

5. FROUFROU

6. INNOCENCE 

 FOUR-WORD MARCH II

GAMES /World of Puzzles

June, 2026

Shawn Kennedy

 

In each row of each grid below, enter the same three-letter word in the three blank squares to form six-letter words reading across. 

 

1. _ _ _ TOR

    F _ _ _ PE

    SC   _ _ _ E

    UNW _ _ _ 

 

2. _ _ _ ERE

    C _ _ _ US

    SC _ _ _ I

    REV _ _ _

 

3. _ _ _ EGE

    M _ _ _ ET

    RE _ _ _ Y

    AP P _ _ _

 

4. _ _ _ ENT

    C _ _ _ OR

    SA _ _ _ I

    BED _ _ _

 

5. _ _ _ LER

    M _ _ _ RA

    SH _ _ _ Y

    DEC _ _ _ 

 

Answers:

 

1. RAPTOR

    FRAPPE

    SCRAPE

    UNWRAP

 

2. AMPERE

    CAMPUS

    SCAMPI

    REVAMP

 

3. ALLEGE

    MALLET

    REALLY

    APPALL

 

4. LAMENT

    CLAMOR

    SALAMI

    BEDLAM

 

5. ANTLER

    MANTRA

    SHANTY

    DECANT  

TRIPLES IV

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

Ex: RAP MUSIC

Ans: SHEET (rap sheet /sheet music)

 

Ex: COURT ORDER

Ans: SIDE (courtside / side order)

 

1. BOX BOY

2. ROCK OUT

3. TIGHT GAME 

4. HOME OWNER 

5. NET GAIN/LOSS

6. MASTER STROKE

 

Answers:

 

1. OFFICE

2. BOTTOM

3. END

4. TEAM

5. WEIGHT

6. KEY  

  

NPR Weekend Edition Sunday Puzzle 

July 12, 2026

Will Shortz (1-7)

 

Name two things in each category - given the number of letters in both words and the first and last letters of both words.

 

Ex: Foods from Italy

      5 letters, P - A 

Ans: PIZZA, PASTA 

 

1. ROCKS

    5 letters, S - E

 

2. European languages

    7 letters, S - H

 

3. Ancient stringed instruments

    4 letters, L - E

 

4. Birds

    6 letters, P - N

 

5. Body parts

    5 lettters, T - H

 

6. Books of the Bible

    4 letters, A - S 

 

7. Things found in a classroom

     5 letters, C - K 

 

8. Santa's reindeer

    6 letters,  D - R 

 

Answers:

 

1. Slate, Shale

2. Spanish, Swedish

3. Lyre, Lute

4. Pigeon, Puffin

5. Thigh, Tooth

6. Amos, Acts

7. Chalk, Clock 

8. Dasher, Dancer

 

 

 

 

 

  

 TWO OUT OF THREE VII

Anagram two of the three words in each clue to get a synonym of the third word. 

Ex: ACORN, PLOT, SPICY

Ans: ACORN + SPICY = CONSPIRACY (plot)

 

1. TEMPT, ZEAL, TAINT

2. AVERT, STORY, RAIN

3. DATE, TULIP, CLICHE

4. LULU, DRUM, HINGE

5. TINS, SHONE, LEDGE

6. FARCE, RANG, SMELL 

 

HINTS:

One of the words to be anagrammed:

1. TAINT

2. RAIN

3. DATE

4. DRUM

5. TINS

6. RANG

 

Answers:

 

1. TAINT + ZEAL = TANTALIZE (tempt)

2. AVERT + RAIN = NARRATIVE (story)

3. DATE + TULIP = PLATITUDE (cliche)

4. DRUM + HINGE = HUMDINGER (lulu)

5. TINS + LEDGE = GLISTENED (shone)

6. RANG + FARCE = FRAGRANCE (smell)