Wordy Wednesday 692: Codewords 34

WORDY WEDNESDAY #690
PENT WORDS 138 (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:
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
Derek Allen **
James Haddad **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Pavel Curtis **
Randy Rogers **
Russ Kale **
Kevin Orfield **
Marie desJardins **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **
Steve Levy **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #691
KEVIN'S PUZZLES AT HOME ARE TWICE AS NICE (hint)

As of this writing, 7 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 #692
CODEWORDS 34
(click here for a PDF version)

In the crossword puzzle above, every letter is represented by an integer from 1 through 26. You must decipher the code to reveal the words.

Arrange the letters in the shaded spaces to spell the final answer, an eight-letter word.

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .

* A Framelinks!

Submit your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com. Until next time, happy solving!

Wordy Wednesday 691: Kevin's Puzzles at Home are Twice as Nice

WORDY WEDNESDAY #689
ANACROSSWORD 48 (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:
Cathy Bowen **
Derek Allen **
James Haddad **
Michael Lebowitz **
Pavel Curtis **
Randy Rogers **
Russ Kale **
Kevin Orfield **
Marie desJardins **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **
Steve Levy **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #690
PENT WORDS 138 (hint)

As of this writing, 14 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 #691
KEVIN'S PUZZLES AT HOME ARE TWICE AS NICE
(click here for a PDF version)

Everyone’s favorite anthropomorphic wolf Kevin Edmund Kepler has returned with five puzzles that you’ll enjoy so much that you won’t mind solving each of them twice in a row! Just don’t forget to look for the meta answer while you’re at it.

Puzzle #1
“What’s the good word?” That’s what Kevin wants to know. The vertical words seem ambiguous, but perhaps the horizontal ones will prove more unique.

Puzzle #1A

Puzzle #1B

Puzzle #2
Kevin may be a wolf, but he’s friends with mammals of a diverse bevy of species.

Puzzle #2A

• In comic books, this cave dweller inspired Bruce Wayne’s superhero alter ego.
• This dam builder is the second-largest extant rodent species, only behind the capybara.
• Geoffrey, the mascot of Toys “R” Us, is this long-necked creature.
• This spiny mammal is used in Wonderland in place of a ball when the Queen of Hearts plays croquet.
• This great ape’s name comes from the Malay for “man of the forest”.
• Algae grow in the fur of this mammal noted for its low metabolism.

Puzzle #2B

• The nine-banded variety of this hard-shelled creature is the official state small mammal of Texas.
• Political cartoonist Thomas Nast is credited with first depicting the Republican Party as this animal.
• A stereotypical magician might produce this cute lagomorph from a top hat.
• This animal is endangered in part because its spiky horn is often used in traditional Chinese medicine.
• This black-and-white critter is notorious for the foul stench it sprays as a defense mechanism.
• The title character of Rocko’s Modern Life is this Australian cousin of the kangaroo.

Puzzle #3
Whoops, Kevin is blanking out on the names of these Hollywood actors and actresses! But you know what to do by now, right?

Puzzle #3A

It’s no mystery that she delighted audiences as the lead in Murder, She Wrote (1984-1996)
__ __ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
               02             13       19
British actor who rose to international fame in 2001 as Harry Potter
__ __ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
            11                01          07
He played Rick Blaine (of “here's looking at you, kid” fame) in Casablanca (1942)
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __ __ __
10    14    17                         03
Sex symbol who was the subject of Andy Warhol paintings and Elton John’s “Candle in the Wind”
__ __ __ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __ __ __
      04                         12 15
Born with the surname Coppola, he’s since made a name for himself in films like National Treasure (2004)
__ __ __ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __
   05             09             18
He played father-turned-Santa-Claus Scott Calvin in the holiday classic The Santa Clause (1994)
__ __ __    __ __ __ __ __
16 08                06

Puzzle #3B

Talk show hostess who provided the voice of Dory in Finding Nemo (2003)
__ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
08       19                            02
He deftly wielded a whip as archaeologist-adventurer Indiana Jones
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __
            10       15             09
Hawaii-born actor noted for his portrayal of Aquaman
__ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __ __
   05 03                18
Matriarch on The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961-1966) who got her own self-titled sitcom in the 1970’s
__ __ __ __    __ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __ __
      06          17                      07
Female hip-hop superstar who played Robyn McCall in The Equalizer (2021-2025)
__ __ __ __ __    __ __ __ __ __ __ __
12          11             14       01
Aspiring Catholic priest who played Maverick in Top Gun (1986) instead
__ __ __    __ __ __ __ __ __
04          16    13

Puzzle #4
These sums are making Kevin cross again! Are you skilled enough at math to help him?

Puzzle #4A

Puzzle #4B

Puzzle #5
On a hot Texas summer day, Kevin swears that there must be many suns beating down on him and not just one! He wishes he had something that could cool him off.

Puzzle #5A

Puzzle #5B

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .

* A Codewords!

Submit your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com. Until next time, happy solving!

Wordy Wednesday 690: Pent Words 138

WORDY WEDNESDAY #688
MINI TOUCHWORD 10 (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:
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
Derek Allen **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Pavel Curtis **
Randy Rogers **
Russ Kale **
Kevin Orfield **
Marie desJardins **
Patrick Jordan **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **
Steve Levy **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #689
ANACROSSWORD 48 (hint)

As of this writing, 10 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 #690
PENT WORDS 138
(click here for a PDF version)

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 Prior to / Very wide
2 Charge with a crime / ____ Patch Kids (candy brand)
3 Blood-pumping organ / Cowboy’s rope
4 ____ of paris / Jet ____ (traveler’s woe)
5 Male red deer / Romantic liaison
6 ____ Days Grace (Canadian rock band) / Tonioli of Dancing with the Stars
7 Get bigger / Item on a saucer
8 Bassist Claypool / Space for holding goods
9 Vacant opening / At a moderately slow tempo
10 Difficult physical work / Not loose, as a clothing fit
PENTOMINOES:
• HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
• THE OTHER HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
• “Secret ____ Man” (hit song for Johnny Rivers)
• Musical instrument namesake John Philip ____
• The Jetsons’ dog
• “____ Days a Week” (hit song for the Beatles)
• Beyond disgusting
• Lost intentionally
• “Red” or “giant” mammal
• Carouse
• Sandy seashore
• Terminate, as a mission
• Thespian
• Cruel, savage person
• Big blunder
• Stricken down
• Olive Garden offering
• Spud
• Viscounts’ superiors
• Permissible

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .

* A set of puzzles that are twice as nice!
* Patron Puzzle #142, which will be delivered on March 8, 2026, exclusively to Patreon supporters at the Super Fan level and up ($5 or more per month), is a Large Sudokurostic.

Submit your answers to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com. Until next time, happy solving!