Wordy Wednesday 320: Pent Words 64 & Wordy Wednesday 321: Drop It Like It's Hot

WORDY WEDNESDAY #318

DIAGRAMLESS CROSSWORD 4 (answer)

Here is the answer to this puzzle. If you still wish to solve it yourself, please go here for the normal version of the puzzle, or here for the easier version of the puzzle. Here's a list of people who solved it:
Jack Bross **
Joe Bernard **
Mark Ballinger **
Bo & Becky Green **
Bryce Herdt **
Eric Maddy **
Kevin Orfield **
Michael Fleck **
Paul Thurmond **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **
Stephen Potter **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #319

LOOSIE GOOSIE (hint)

As of this writing, 12 people have solved this puzzle. Haven't solved it yet? Here's a hint. Send your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com within the next week to appear on the solvers list and be recognized for your puzzle prowess. Good luck, solvers!

LET'S SOLVE A REBUS!

Here is a preview of a contest coming to my blog very soon! You can win a copy of my game Mammalath with the Mammalath Plus expansion (an over $50 value) by solving one simple puzzle! Check my blog every day to increase your chances of winning. :)

FIFTH WEDNESDAY OF THE MONTH = DOUBLE WORDY WEDNESDAYS!

WORDY WEDNESDAY #320

PENT WORDS 64

(click here for a PDF version)

This puzzle contains a word suggested by patron M. Sean Molley. Support me on Patreon at the $5 per month level and solve the monthly Patron Puzzle for a chance to suggest a seed word for a future puzzle, or at the $20 per month level to suggest one seed word every month!

In this puzzle, you must divide the grid into pentominoes (regions containing five cells each), and write a letter in each cell. The rows, reading from left to right, will contain the words hinted at by the ACROSS clues. The letters in the pentominoes, in reading order (left to right starting with the top row), will form the words hinted at by the PENTOMINOES clues; these clues are presented in no particular order. (In the example, the rows spell PLANT, SHARE, and BITES, and the pentominoes spell the words PLANS, TREES, and HABIT.) Use the ACROSS answers to determine where the pentominoes are.

ACROSS (two answers per row):
1 "'OK _____,' Responds 911 Operator As Man Calls Complaining Of Severe Chest Pains" (headline from Christian satirical news site The Babylon Bee) / Tragic Shakesperean king
2 Layout / There are nine in the board game Clue
3 Deacon / Stronghold
4 Artist Keith / Surreptitious release, as of confidential information
5 German name meaning "eagle" / Aquatic carnivorous mammal
6 Relating to love / Be nosy, perhaps
7 More secure / Machine in which an object is rotated and cut
8 Zero / A maneuver in the card game bridge
9 Greek god of war / Thor's Mjölnir, for one
10 Mammal's coat / "'This Is The ____ Lions And We'd Love To Sign You,' Says Giggling Trump On Yet Another Prank Call To Colin Kaepernick" (The Babylon Bee headline)
   
PENTOMINOES:
* HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
* THE OTHER HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
* Mistake
* Really, really bad mistake
* Shoplift, slangily
* Swiss ____
* Siddhartha author Hermann
* Word before "house" or "knife"
* Fragment of broken glass
* Word associated with alcoholic strength
* Cupcake-making need
* Avis rival
* Country singer Haggard
* Hearts ____ (1992-1995 sitcom)
* Humorist Pratchett
* Subway
* Like a Keebler worker
* ____ position (a position in yoga)
* Mathematician Leonhard
* Virtue

WORDY WEDNESDAY #321

DROP IT LIKE IT'S HOT

(click here for a PDF version)

(click here for a PUZ version)

The meta answer is a three-word song title relevant to the puzzle's theme.

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .

* A Crypticrostic!
* Patron Puzzle #67, which will be delivered exclusively to Patreon supporters ($5 or more per month), is a diagramless crossword.

Submit your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com. Until next time, keep on living, and yappy solving!

Contest Info: Let's Solve a Rebus!

This contest will involve daily posts on my blog, so I decided to post info on it a week in advance so you folks can be ready to check my blog once a day for a few weeks.

You are tasked with solving a phonetic rebus in the style of the old game show Concentration. You can play an old abandonware DOS game based on the 1987-1991 revival Classic Concentration here. Here's an example I made:

The answer is HARRY HOUDINI (hare+E hoodie+knee). Just sound out what you see, and you'll get it!

The catch in this contest is that the rebus will be hidden by 25 numbered squares:

Every day from February 2, 2020 through February 15, 2020 (excluding Wednesdays, so as not to distract from Wordy Wednesday), some of the numbered squares will be removed at random at 12:01 AM Central time (3 squares on the first day and 2 squares every day thereafter). Submit your guess to the rebus answer to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com to be entered in the contest. There is no penalty for a wrong guess (so guess away!), but you're limited to one guess per revelation. The sooner you submit the correct answer, the more contest entries you get (12 entries for solving on the first revelation, 11 for the second revelation, all the way down to 1 entry for the final revelation). One randomly-selected winner will win my board game Mammalath (with the Mammalath Plus expansion)! The game Mammalath can now be played on Board Game Arena, as well, but I trust that you'll enjoy playing it with your real-life friends, too. :)

Good luck!

Contest: Mystery Anacrossword (RESULTS!)

About three weeks ago, I posted the Mystery Anacrossword contest. Here are the results!

Wordy Wednesday 319: Loosie Goosie

WORDY WEDNESDAY #317

ULTERIOR MOTIVES (answer)

Here is the answer to this puzzle. If you still wish to solve it yourself, please go here for the normal version of the puzzle, or here for the easier version of the puzzle. Here's a list of people who solved it:
M. Sean Molley **
Tyler Hinman **
Bryce Herdt **
Eric Maddy **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #318

DIAGRAMLESS CROSSWORD 4 (hint)

As of this writing, 12 people have solved this puzzle. Haven't solved it yet? Here's an easier version. Send your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com within the next week to appear on the solvers list and be recognized for your puzzle prowess. Good luck, solvers!

WORDY WEDNESDAY #319

LOOSIE GOOSIE

(click here for a PDF version)

(click here for a PUZ version)

The meta answer is an actor's name that fits the puzzle's theme.

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .

* What's a 5-letter word for "Word associated with alcoholic strength"?
* Another crossword!

Submit your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com. Until next time, keep on living, and yappy solving!

Wordy Wednesday 318: Diagramless Crossword 4

WORDY WEDNESDAY #316

SECTION SIX 31 (answer)

Here is the answer to this puzzle. If you still wish to solve it yourself, please go here for the normal version of the puzzle, or here for the easier version of the puzzle. Here's a list of people who solved it:
Cindy Heisler **
Joe Bernard **
Mark Ballinger **
Pavel Curtis **
Tyler Hinman **
Bryce Herdt *
Eric Maddy **
Kevin Orfield **
Paul Thurmond *
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #317

ULTERIOR MOTIVES (hint)

As of this writing, 6 people have solved this puzzle. Haven't solved it yet? Here's an easier version. Send your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com within the next week to appear on the solvers list and be recognized for your puzzle prowess. Good luck, solvers!

WORDY WEDNESDAY #318

DIAGRAMLESS CROSSWORD 4

(click here for a PDF version)

This crossword has 54 entries in a 15x15 grid, obeys American crossword rules, and has standard rotational symmetry.

ACROSS
1 Ryan of Sleepless in Seattle (1993)
4 Pitiful
5 Egress
6 Noted game show contestant Jennings
9 Singer Turner
10 Fine
15 Ott of baseball
16 Expert musician
18 First half of a clue to the final answer: ? wds.
22 Trent Reznor’s band, for short
23 Poison ____
24 A neutral color
27 Lauder of cosmetics
29 Key pressed with Tab to switch windows in Windows
30 Tear
31 Second half of a clue to the final answer: ? wds.
39 Trisha of country music
40 It’s often yellow
42 Film critic Maltin
43 Scrabble piece
45 Richard of Mrs. Miniver (1942)
46 The largest continent
47 Hue
48 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's ____
DOWN
1 Magazine with a Hot 100
2 “Lose Yourself” rapper
3 Be on friendly terms: 2 wds.
4 ____ bygones be bygones
6 James of Grown Ups (2010)
7 Nobel Peace Prize winner Wiesel
8 Geek
11 Pontiac made from 1964 to 1974
12 Jul. successor
13 ____ sequitur
14 Agcy. founded in 2001
17 Leave out
19 Fight
20 All About ____
21 Tie-____
24 Sheepish comment
25 2003 film starring Ed Asner as Santa Claus
26 ____-bitty
27 Frozen wasser
28 View a sports event, say
30 Olson’s successor on The Price is Right
32 Electric ____
33 Charlotte of Diff'rent Strokes
34 ____-Magnon
35 Possess
36 Lament
37 Opening of sorts
38 Purple item in trail mix
41 Third Eye ____
44 ____ Pray Love

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .

* A crossword!

Submit your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com. Until next time, keep on living, and yappy solving!

Wordy Wednesday 317: Ulterior Motives

WORDY WEDNESDAY #315

PENT WORDS 63 (answer)

Here is the answer to this puzzle. If you still wish to solve it yourself, please go here for the normal version of the puzzle, or here for the easier version of the puzzle. Here's a list of people who solved it:
Cindy Heisler **
Joe Bernard **
Mark Ballinger **
Bryce Herdt **
Eric Maddy *
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **
Stephen Potter **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #316

SECTION SIX 31 (hint)

As of this writing, 9 people have solved this puzzle. Haven't solved it yet? Here's an easier version. Send your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com within the next week to appear on the solvers list and be recognized for your puzzle prowess. Good luck, solvers!

WORDY WEDNESDAY #317

ULTERIOR MOTIVES

(click here for a PDF version)

Sometimes, when it appears that someone is acting selflessly, they're actually being sly.
The final answer is a 5-letter word formed by anagramming the letters in the shaded squares.

0.0001%
A greater liking for one thing than for another
Casino card game with a French name
Circular mushroom formation: 2 wds.
Einstein’s general theory of ____
Heraldic mark of a bastard: 2 wds.
Hershey’s candy addict
Lacking consciousness or the ability to move
Like a tree that doesn’t shed
Northeastern US region: 2 wds.
“Oh, Pretty Woman” singer: 2 wds.
One to whom the glass is half empty
Pay a furry artist to make furry art for you, say
Read a new meaning into, perhaps
Wandered aimlessly

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .

* A diagramless crossword!

Submit your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com. Until next time, keep on living, and yappy solving!

Contest: Mystery Anacrossword

For more information on the contest, including the secret instructions and what the prize is, you’ll have to solve the puzzle below. For every person who follows the secret instructions and sends adequate proof to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com before the deadline (11:59 PM Central time on January 24, 2020), I will donate $2.50 to the Food Bank of West Central Texas and feed hungry local people (up to a maximum of $50). Up to the first 25 entrants will receive the 10x10x10 Crosswords pack, as well. So get to work!

PDF version: CLICK HERE

Answers are clued alphabetically by length.

4 LETTERS
* Verdi opera
* Rear
* Dayton’s state

5 LETTERS
* Recipient of a monetary gift
* Weary feeling of boredom
* Pretend
* Faux pas
* Bulb sometimes cut into rings and deep-fried
* Little hooter
* “Delta Dawn” singer Tucker
* Partner of Crosby, Stills & Nash

6 LETTERS
* Insult with contempt
* ____ Montana (2006-2011 Disney Channel series featuring Miley Cyrus back when she had a tiny bit of innocence)
* Very fast car: 2 wds.
* Confine, as prisoners of war
* Speaker
* Host
* Facade
* Sift

7 LETTERS
* Merit
* Bram Stoker’s classic 1897 novel
* Journalist Gladwell
* Convent

8 LETTERS
* Francis after whom a wind force scale is named
* Punky ____ (1984-1986 sitcom)
* Green cabbage relative
* Checkers, to a Brit
* Signed the back of a check, say

9 LETTERS
* Common household pest
* The ____ Rabbit (1922 children’s book)

10 LETTERS
* Old, worn-out car

12 LETTERS
* One in a tournament’s top four, perhaps
* 1964 Elvis Presley movie set in a Nevada city (hence the name): 3 wds.

13 LETTERS
* Anonymous love letter author: 2 wds.

14 LETTERS
* Penry the mild-mannered janitor’s alter ego: 3 wds.

16 LETTERS
* Nursery rhyme eater of curds and whey: 3 wds.

Wordy Wednesday 316: Section Six 31

WORDY WEDNESDAY #314

FILL-IN CROSSWORD 8 (answer)

Here is the answer to this puzzle. If you still wish to solve it yourself, please go here for the normal version of the puzzle, or here for the easier version of the puzzle. Here's a list of people who solved it:
Cindy Heisler **
Mark Ballinger **
Bo & Becky Green **
Bryce Herdt **
Eric Maddy **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **
Stephen Potter **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #315

PENT WORDS 63 (hint)

As of this writing, 8 people have solved this puzzle. Haven't solved it yet? Here's an easier version. Send your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com within the next week to appear on the solvers list and be recognized for your puzzle prowess. Good luck, solvers!

WORDY WEDNESDAY #316

SECTION SIX 31

(click here for a PDF version)

This puzzle's grid has six rings and six sections. Each ring contains a series of words placed end to end, reading either clockwise or counterclockwise; all the words in a given ring will read in the same direction. Ring 1 (the outer ring) contains six answers that read clockwise; the starting spaces are numbered in the grid. Clues for the answers in the remaining rings are given in order, but their starting points and direction are for you to determine. The sections (separated by the heavy lines radiating from the center) will help you place the inner rings: in a given section, each ring segment contains all but one of the letters in the next segment outward. In other words, a section's outermost segment contains six letters; the next segment inward contains five of those six letters in some order; and so on, until only one of the original six letters remains.

Arrange the letters in the six starred spaces to form the final answer, a 6-letter word.

Ring 1
1 Danish relative: 2 wds.
2 Affluent
3 That which isn't just imaginary
4 Actress Plakson
5 Delves into penetratingly
6 Follower of the prophet Muhammad

Ring 2
* Ring-tailed primate
* Examination of tissue from a living body
* Certain stringed instrument
* Chemist ____ Cameron Patterson
* Makes an awkward ascent

Ring 3
* Items in a math textbook
* Orange shade of yellow
* Trope
* Hungarian pianist Franz

Ring 4
* Big name in travel
* Reverend
* Symbol of a nation, perhaps

Ring 5
* Learn by heart
* Baby's sleeping quarters

Ring 6
* Rob who directed the horror movie 31 (2017)

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .

* A puzzle about ulterior motives!

Submit your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com. Until next time, keep on living, and yappy solving!