AT AUNT RHODA'S

Aunt Hildegarde has the odd habit of changing her likes and dislikes based on the first name of the relative she has most recently visited - or its letter structure.. For example, after she visited Uncle Frank, she liked people named Bill, Sue, Rob, and Rose. That's because she liked people whose names could also be regular words. Frank - with a small F - can also mean candid. Bill can be a bird's beak. Sue can be a court action, etc.

Aunt Hildegarde has just returned form visiting Aunt Rhoda. Can you determine which of the two things in each pair below Aunt Hildegarde now prefers?

1. Pica or elite type?

2. Minestrone or alphabet soup?

3. Baltimore or Philadelphia

4. Nudists or fashionistas?

5. Melodramas or musicals?

6. Southwest or Delta Airlines?

Answers:

 

Aunt Hildegarde would choose:

1. PIca type

2. ALPHAbet soup

3. PHIladelphia

4. NUdists

5. MUsicals

6. DELTA Airlines - - - She likes things that begin with Greek letters, as in RHOda. 

LOGICAL THINKING XLI

GAMES/World of Puzzles

May, 2016

David Diefendorf

 

Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes are fickle - reflecting the letter structure of the relative she has most recently visited. Can you name a relative she might have visited based on her new preferences?

 

1. She won't play BRIDGE, but enjoys WHIST.

 

2. She goes to the RACES, but she doesn't like HORSES.

 

3. She hates LIES, but loves the TRUTH.

 

4. She likes an ORANGE, but not an APPLE.

 

5. She doesn't like GREECE, but she loves ATHENS . 

Answer:

 

Aunt Hildegarde might have visited Cousin CANDY, Uncle FRANK, or any relative whose name could drop its first and last letters and leave a valid word.

LOGICAL THINKING XL

GAMES Magazine

June, 1984

David Diefendorf

 

Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes change with the relatives she visits. She likes things that are based on the word structure of the relative she has most recently seen. After visiting Aunt Toby, she came back liking meat, pageants, and cashmere. Why? Because Aunt Toby's name can be divided into two  words - TO and BY. - and so can ME AT, PAGE ANTS, and CASH MERE.

 

Aunt Hildegarde has just returned from visiting her cousin Forest.

 

Would she .........

1. rather work at home or in an office?

2. read about Attila or Genghis Khan?

3. prefer a lizard or a toad?

4. rather get paid the time and a half or overtime rate?

Does she ...........

5. prefer Fromm or Freud?

6. enjoy reading George Orwell or Upton Sinclair?

7. like Downton Abbey or Pride and Prejudice?

Do her ...........  

8. plants wither or wilt? 

Answers:

 

1. office

2. Attila 

3. toad

4. overtime rate

5. Fromm

6. Upton Sinclair

7. Downton Abbey

8. Wither - - - Aunt Hildegarde likes words that begin with prepositions.

 

LOGICAL THINKING XXXIX

GAMES Magazine

September, 1986

David Diefendorf

Aunt Hildegarde prefers things that have the same word structure as the name of the relative she's seen most recently. She last visited Uncle Frank and came back liking Greeks, but not Roman, March, but not April, and crooks, but not criminals. That's because she likes things that can drop their first letter and become other words - like Frank and rank (Greeks-reeks, March-arch, crooks- rooks).

 

Most recently, Aunt Hildegarde has been to see Aunt Samantha, and now has a brand new list of likes and dislikes. Can you  figure out what's guiding her preferences now? 

Aunt Hildegarde:

1. Uses mascara, but not rouge

2. Wears miniskirts, but not sarongs

3. Uses detergent, but never bleach

4. Wears a Panama hat, but not a fedora

5. Likes Rin Tin Tin, but not Lassie

6. Collects color photos, but not tintypes

7. Watches the Cotton Bowl, but not the World Series

8. Supports the Green Berets, but not the Marine Corps 

Answer:

 

Aunt Hildegarde likes words and phrases in which only one of the five vowels appears:

 

SAMANTHA - only A's

 

1. mascara - only A's

2. miniskirts - only I's

3. detergent - only E's, etc.

What distinguishing feature differentiates the words in the pairs below?

1. Pica but not elite

2. Nun but not monk

3. Rhoda but not Ronda

4. Taurus but not Capricorn

5. Philosophy but not psychology

6. Chiropractors but not osteopaths 

 

Answer:

 

The first words of each pair begin with the name of a Greek letter: 

 

1. Pi

2. Nu

3. Rho

4. Tau

5. Phi

6. Chi 

 

Credit:

David Diefendorf 

LOGICAL THINKING XXXVIII

GAMES Magazine

February, 1984

David Diefendorf

 

Aunt  Hildegarde likes things that have the same word structure as the name of the relative she's most recently seen. She just returned from a visit with Aunt Toby. 

 

Does Aunt Hildegarde now like............

 

1. Angora or cashmere?

2. Twins or triplets?

3. A palace or a castle?

4. Spectacles or pageants?

5. Meat or vegetables?

6. A parrot or a parakeet?

7. Granada or Madrid?

8. Murals or tapestries?

 

Answers:

 

Aunt Hidegarde likes things with names that can be split down the middle, making two words:

 

1. Cashmere (cash - mere) etc.

2. Triplets

3. Palace

4. Pageants

5. Meat

6. Parrot

7. Madrid

8. Tapestries 

LOGICAL THINKING XXXVII

GAMES Magazine

December, 1983

David Diefendorf

Aunt Hildegarde has oddly fickle tastes. They change based upon the letter structure of the name of the relative she has most recently visited. For example, if she just visited Aunt Pearl, she would prefer chandeliers to lamps, football to soccer, and potatoes to yams - - - because she prefers things that contain parts of the body. Aunt Pearl's name contains an EAR - similarly, cHANDeliers, FOOTball, and potaTOES.

1. Can you determine Aunt Hildegarde's preferences after a visit to Aunt Louella?

Cinnamon or curry?

Brahms or Beethoven?

Wetsuits or bikinis?

Bananas or apples?

Piercings or tattoos?

2. Can you determine Aunt Hildegarde's preferences after a visit to Aunt Mary?

 

Prune or apricot?

Squid or octopus?

Centuries or decades?

Handyman or janitor?

Councilman or mayor? 

Answers:

 

1. Cinnamon, Beethoven, bikinis, bananas, tattoos: (LoueLLa)

    Aunt Hildegarde prefers words that use the same letter three times.

 

2. Apricot, octopus, decades, janitor, mayor: (MARy)

    Aunt Hildegarde likes words in which the first three letters are the same as the fist three letters of months of the year (APRil, OCTober, etc.)

LOGICAL THINKING XXXVI

SHIP SHAPE

GAMES Magazine

October, 1985

Dorothy Osborne

 

In fourteen hundred ninety-eight

Carumba sailed the ocean great.

With three small ships he made his trek:

The Scout, the Search, the Hunt and Peck.

 

Aboard each ship Carumba placed 

A captain bold and handsome-faced.

The surnames of these captains three

Were  Bloodguts, Fisheye, and McCree.

 

Upon the boat that first reached land

The valiant Fisheye had command.

Carumba nobly shared his ship

With Captain Bloodguts on the trip.

Their craft, though made to veer and 

   lurch

By storms, came sooner than the Search.

Across the waters tempest-blown

The Scout's commander sailed alone.

But tell me, reader, if you can,

Which boat was captained by which man?

Aboard which vessel stout and true

Did brave Carumba sail the blue?

Which ship landed unsurpassed,

Which came second, which one

   last? 

Answers:

 

The Scout landed first under Captain Fisheye, the Hunt and Peck second under Captain Bloodguts with Carumba on board, and the Search landed last under Captain McCree. 

 

Answer in verse:

 

The Scout, by Fisheye ably manned,

Was first of all to reach the land.

Bloodguts, on the Hunt and Peck

Came next with Carumba on the deck.

The Search was last, and plied the sea

Commanded by the bold McCree.

 

 

LOGICAL THINKING XXXV

GAMES/World of Puzzles

August, 2023

David Landegent

 

Well-traveled Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes change according to the letter structure of the name of the relative she has most recently visited. She has just returned from a visit with Aunt Pearl. Can you explain her new preferences?

 

Aunt Hildegarde likes ......

1. Chandeliers, but not lamps

2. To sit by the hearth, but not the fireplace

3. To plunge into the pool, but not dive

4. Her pizza delivered, but not at a restaurant

5. Football, but not soccer

6. Snails, but not slugs

7. Potatoes, but not yams

Answers:

 

Aunt Hildegarde likes words that contain a part of the human body:

 

1. cHANDeliers

2. HEARTh 

3. pLUNGe

4. deLIVERed

5. FOOTball

6. sNAILs

7. potaTOES 

    (aunt pEARl)

LOGICAL THINKING XXXIV

GAMES Magazine

April, 2005

From the GAMES Liibrary

 

Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes are based on the word structure of the name of the relative she is visiting. Based on her likes and dislikes below, can you determine whom Aunt Hildegarde has most recently visited?

 

Aunt Hildegarde ...............

 

Has SPUNK, but isn't RUDE

Values the TRUTH, not LIES

Enjoys WHIST, but not BRIDGE

Enjoys ATHENS, but not the rest of GREECE

Goes to the RACES, though she doesn't like HORSES 

Answer:

 

Aunt Hildegarde may have been visiting her sister COREY, or any other relative whose name could drop its first and last letters and leave a valid word.

LOGICAL THINKING XXXIII

GAMES/World of Puzzles

June, 2016

David Diefendorf

 

Aunt Hildegarde is fickle. Her likes and dislikes change depending on the person she has most recently visited. For example, if she had been visiting Aunt Pat and Uncle Ben, Aunt Hildegarde would favor things whose names had a short vowel - a cat rather than a lion, milk rather than meat. Aunt Hildegarde has just returned from visiting her nephew, Mort. Does she now prefer ............

 

1. Cops or robbers

2. Snakes or eels

3. Empty or full

4. Last or first

5. Hangman or Ghost

 

Answers:

 

Like her nephew's name, MORT, Aunt Hildegarde likes things whose letters are in alphabetical order. She prefers ..........

 

1. COPS to robbers

2. EELS to snakes

3. EMPTY to full

4. FIRST to last

5. GHOST to Hangman 

LOGICAL THINKING XXXII

GAMES/World of Puzzles

April, 2005 (no credit)

June, 2016

David Diefendorf

 

Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes depend on the letter structure of the name of the relative she has most recently visited. She has just visited her Uncle Frank. Can you determine why she has the following preferences?

 

1. She likes shoes, but not socks

2. She likes stripes, but not polka dots

3. She likes pottery, but not knitting

4. She likes her hyena, but not her parrot

 

Answer:

 

Aunt Hildegarde likes words that can drop their first and last letters and leave a valid word - like Frank:

 

1. SHOES - HOE

2. STRIPES - TRIPE

3. POTTERY - OTTER

4. HYENA - YEN 

LOGICAL THINKING XXXI

GAMES/World of Puzzles

April, 2016

 

Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes change a lot. Strangely, her tastes are determined by the letters, structure, or meaning of the name of the last person she stayed with. She has just returned from a visit with her sister Robyn . Can you determine which one of the choices she prefers in each pair below?

Does Aunt Hildegarde like ........

1. A baron or a count?

2. Hearing or sight?

3. Minutes or days?

4. To read or to spell?

5. A course or an exam?

6. A commission or a council?

7. Three, five, seven  or One, two, four?

 

Answers:

 

Aunt Hildegarde likes words that have homophones:

Robyn - Robin

 

1. Baron (barren)

2. Sight (site, cite)

3. Days (daze)

4. Read (reed)

5. Course (coarse)

6. Council (counsel) 

7. One, Two, Four (won, too, for)

LOGICAL THINKING XXX

Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes change with the letter patterns in the names of those she visits. Last month she visited her mother. Can you determine the reasoning behind Aunt Hildegarde's choices in the examples below?

Aunt Hildegarde ..........

1. Likes a bayou, but not a ravine

2. Likes to sit, but not stand

3. Will act on whim, but not a dream

4. Likes to awe people, not just impress them

5. Will search for Yeti, but not Bigfoot

6. Takes the bus, not the subway

7. Has the time, but not the money

8. Likes a man with a mustache, but not a beard 

Answer:

 

This month, Aunt Hildegarde likes things that end in pronouns. 

 

Credit:

GAMES/World of Puzzles

September, 2016

Makena Dyer

 LOGICAL THINKING XXIX

AUNT HILDEGARDE

GAMES/World of Puzzles

September, 2016

Makena Dyer

 

Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes depend on the letter structure of the names of the relatives she visits. She has just returned from a visit with Uncle Ben and Aunt Flo. Can you explain the new principle behind her current tastes?

 

Aunt Hildegarde likes ........

 

1. Eggs, but not bacon

2. Films. but not theater

3. Chimps, but not hyenas

4. Forty, but not fifty

5. Abbott, but not Costello

Answer:

 

Aunt Hildegarde likes words that have their letters in alphabetical order.

LOGICAL THINKING XXVIII

FIGURING OUT AUNT MATILDA III

 

The Play of Words

Richard Lederer 

 

Aunt Matilda's likes and dislikes are based on the patterns of letters or sounds in words. Can you explain Aunt Matilda's preferences in the following examples?

1. Aunt Matilda likes:

    Radar but not radio

   A Toyota but not a Honda

   Noon but not night

   A kayak but not a canoe

 

2. Aunt Matilda likes:

    Army but not Navy

    Ribbon but not trim

    Legends but not myths

    Chinchilla but not mink

    Chestnuts but not walnuts

    Hippies but not protestors

3. Aunt Matilda likes:

    Staples but not tacks

    Bugles but not trumpets

    Demons but not devils

    Signs but not billboards

    Posters but not imposters

4. Aunt Matilda likes:

    Pears but not peaches

    Campers but not hikers

    Tables but not chairs

    Mothers but not fathers

    Platters but not dishes

Answers:

 

1. Aunt Matilda likes palindromes (words that read the same in reverse).

 

2. Aunt Matilda likes words that begin with syllables that name body parts.

 

3. Aunt Matilda likes words with long vowels, not short ones.

 

4. Aunt Matilda likes words that spell different words when the final s is moved to the front.

 

 

LOGICAL THINKING XXVII

AUNT HILDEGARDE

GAMES/World of Puzzles

April, 2016

David Diefendorf

 

Aunt Hildegarde's tastes vary with the name of the relative she is visiting. She has just returned from a visit with Uncle Pete. Can you explain the new principle behind her current tastes?

 

Aunt Hildegarde ...........

 

1. Likes to earn, but not to save

2. Likes pears, but not apples

3. Likes tea, but not coffee 

4. Likes planes, but not trains

5. Likes the tide, but not the ocean

6. Likes the morning, but not the evening 

Answer:

 

Aunt Hildegarde likes words that have homophones - like PETE and PEAT:

 

1. Earn - ern(e)

2. Pears - pairs, pares

3. Tea - tee

4. Planes - plains

5. Tide - tied

6. Morning - mourning

 

 

 

 

 

LOGICAL THINKING XXVI

AUNT HILDEGARDE

GAMES/World of Puzzles

April, 2016

David Diefendorf

Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes change frequently - depending on the name of the person she is visiting. This month she is visiting her granddaughter.

Aunt Hildegarde likes:

 

1. Xylophones

2. Ghosts

3. Mnemonics

4. Stilts

5. Kleenex

6. Tutus

7. History

8. Deer

 

What might be Aunt Hildegarde's granddaughter's name?

 

Answer:

 

STELLA - or any other name in which the first two letters are alphabetically adjacent.`                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        `    

LOGICAL THINKING XXV

FIGURING OUT AUNT MATILDA II

The Play of Words

Richard Lederer

Aunt Matilda likes and dislikes are based on the patterns of letters or sounds in words. Can you explain Aunt Matilda's preferences in the following examples?

1. Aunt Matilda likes:

    Seas but not oceans

    Pains but not aches

    Carrots but not potatoes

    Maize but not corn

    Lye but not bleach

    Beets but not turnips.

2. Aunt Matilda likes:

    Mascara but not makeup

    Lipstick but not rouge

    Condors but not falcons

    Murmurs but not whispers

    Tennessee but not Georgia

3. Aunt Matilda likes:

    Algebra but not geometry

    Stones but not rocks

    Gabbing but not gossip

    Trout but not salmon

    Health but not illness

    Pomp but not circumstance

Answers:

 

1. Aunt Matilda likes homophones (seas - sees)

 

2. Aunt Matilda likes words using only one vowel

 

3. Aunt Matilda likes words that begin and end with the same letter.

LOGICAL THINKING XXIV

Aunt Hildegarde's likes and dislikes change according to the relative she is visiting. She just returned from a visit with Uncle Ron. Can you determine how Uncle Ron influenced her choices?

This  month Aunt Hildegarde:

1. Likes the METS, but not the ASTROS 

2. Likes to put GAS in her car, but not OIL.

3. Likes to drink TANG, but not OVALTINE

4. Prefers a STOOL to an OTTOMAN

5. Likes a SPIDER, but not INSECTS

6. Likes to DELIVER, but not ACCEPT

7. Prefers a STINK to an AROMA

8. Reads CAMUS, but not BALZAC

9. Prefers PINS to NEEDLES

10. Loves DESSERTS, but shuns APPETIZERS

Answer:

Aunt Hildegarde likes words that can be reversed to make new words.