Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 4, Episode 5: Confounding Columns

PREVIOUS EPISODES
Introduction (what these puzzles are and why they're called "Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 4"): click here
Episode 1 (The Writing on the Wall): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 16 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 4 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 2 (Baffling Banners): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 14 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 4 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 3 (Humor Me): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 15 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 3 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 4 (Garden Paths): puzzle PDF, hint PDF (new!)
* 16 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece.
 
The total number of points scored is 3325. Thus, the current money pool for the Food Bank for West Central Texas is $33.25. Three anonymous benefactors have agreed to match this donation, meaning that the Food Bank for West Central Texas will actually receive $133.00. If you haven't already, you may solve the above puzzles for 25 points apiece, possibly with the aid of the hints.

KEVIN’S PUZZLES AT HOME
SEASON 4, EPISODE 5:
CONFOUNDING COLUMNS
Kevin needs a break from this pestilent puzzle! Can you help him arrange these columns of letters?

(This illustration by Tintinabar is not part of the puzzle.)

Submit your answer to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com for 50 points, and stay tuned next week for Episode 5's hint and Episode 6's puzzle. Good luck!

Wordy Wednesday 540: Pent Words 108

WORDY WEDNESDAY #538
FRAMELINKS 18 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cole Kendall **
James Haddad **
Michael Lebowitz **
Tyler Hinman **
Derek Allen **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #539
SPICY GERMAN SAUSAGE 4 (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 #540
PENT WORDS 108
(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 Pertaining to a church singing group / Racetrack shape, often
2 Finite portion of a line / “____ the Force, Luke”
3 Local ____ network / On Fire with Jeff ____ (official Survivor podcast which debuted in 2023)
4 From head to ____ / Related to the outer layer of the eye
5 Sodium hydroxide is one / Meat from a calf
6 Inclined, like a skiing course / Traveled via horse, for example
7 Word before “can” or “talk” / Relinquish, as a right
8 Its flag represents its Catholic and Protestant populations and the peace between them / Long fish
9 “Friend”-ly name of Arthur Read’s pet dog / Cheese named after a village in Somersetshire, England
10 Kim Hunter’s role in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) / “New ____” (Tom Lehrer song)
PENTOMINOES:
* HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
* THE OTHER HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
* Water lily which serves as a Hindu symbol
* Tool for ensuring that something is perfectly horizontal
* Certain camel relative
* Journey to the Center of the ____
* Big name in oil and gas
* ____ and well
* One paid to park your car
* Out of bed
* Assisted
* Investigate thoroughly
* Ring-shaped coral reef
* Adhesive substance
* Item in the logo of the Disney cartoon Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers
* Quick-cooking Japanese egg noodles
* Felt a dull, persistent pain
* Become overwhelmed
* Opted for
* The Phantom of the ____

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* A Codewords!
* What item is at the center of a peach?

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

Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 4, Episode 4: Garden Paths

PREVIOUS EPISODES
Introduction (what these puzzles are and why they're called "Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 4"): click here
Episode 1 (The Writing on the Wall): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 16 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 3 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 2 (Baffling Banners): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 14 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 2 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 3 (Humor Me): puzzle PDF, hint PDF (new!)
* 15 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece.
 
The total number of points scored is 2375. Thus, the current money pool for the Food Bank for West Central Texas is $23.75. Three anonymous benefactors have agreed to match this donation, meaning that the Food Bank for West Central Texas will actually receive $95.00. If you haven't already, you may solve the above puzzles for 25 points apiece, possibly with the aid of the hints.

KEVIN’S PUZZLES AT HOME
SEASON 4, EPISODE 4:
GARDEN PATHS
Kevin has planted bunches of beautiful blooms along the meandering paths in his garden. You might want to pick out a dozen of them!

(This illustration by Tintinabar is not part of the puzzle.)

Submit your answer to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com for 50 points, and stay tuned next week for Episode 4's hint and Episode 5's puzzle. Good luck!

Wordy Wednesday 539: Spicy German Sausage 4

WORDY WEDNESDAY #537
ROUTE-NUMBERED (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:
Michael Lebowitz **
Tyler Hinman **
Derek Allen *
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Spheniscine **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #538
FRAMELINKS 18 (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 #539
SPICY GERMAN SAUSAGE 4
(click here for a PDF version)
In a German Sausage, a type of puzzle originating from the National Puzzlers League, when you take the indicated pairs of answers to the clues from the first list, combine their letters, and anagram them, you get the answers to the clues from the second list. (For example, if the answers to clues 1 and 2 were ANAGRAM and SEGUES, then the answer to clue 1+2 could be GERMAN SAUSAGE.) However, in this variation, you must add an extra letter to each pair of answers to make the longer answer (for example, you might make GERMAN SAUSAGE from ANAGRAM and GUESS plus an extra E).

Rearrange the added letters in (parentheses) to make a 6-letter word, and rearrange the added letters in [square brackets] to make a 6-letter word. Write these words in the final set of blanks, and rearrange the letters in {curly braces} to make a 6-letter word, the final answer.

1. Texas city in which Baylor University is located
2. Tampa Bay’s MLB team
3. ____ Titans Go! (Cartoon Network series since 2013)
4. Presses, as wrinkled clothes
5. Suffered a dull pain
6. Nickname for Dwight D. Eisenhower
7. Board game featured in the 2004 documentary Word Wars
8. Wine and ____
9. Like a cloudless sky
10. Male bovine
11. Gear tooth
12. Gimme a Break! (1981-1987) star Carter whose name sounds like the toll of a bell at a funeral

1+2+(__). Flightless bird related to the emu
2+3+[__]. In a sincere manner
3+4+(__). Thick Italian vegetable soup
4+5+[__]. Shape of a 20-sided die
5+6+(__). My Little ____ (1940 film starring Mae West)
6+7+[__]. Fruits named after their dark color
7+8+(__). Surpassing what can be expressed through words
8+9+[__]. Character who “kissed a snake” in a jump rope rhyme
9+10+(__). Like a worker who performs manual labor: hyph.
10+11+[__]. Implement for Lee Trevino: 2 wds.
11+12+(__). The most abundant protein in the human body
12+1+[__]. Money paid weekly to a child, for example

(Parentheses): {__} {__} {__} __ __ __
[Square brackets]: __ {__} __ __ {__} {__}
{Curly braces}: __ __ __ __ __ __

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* What's a 5-letter word for "Water lily which serves as a Hindu symbol"?

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

Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 4, Episode 3: Humor Me

PREVIOUS EPISODES
Introduction (what these puzzles are and why they're called "Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 4"): click here
Episode 1 (The Writing on the Wall): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 16 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 3 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 2 (Baffling Banners): puzzle PDF, hint PDF (new!)
* 14 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece.

The total number of points scored is 1575. Thus, the current money pool for the Food Bank for West Central Texas is $15.75. Three anonymous benefactors have agreed to match this donation, meaning that the Food Bank for West Central Texas will actually receive $63.00. If you haven't already, you may solve the above puzzles for 25 points apiece, possibly with the aid of the hints.

KEVIN’S PUZZLES AT HOME
SEASON 4, EPISODE 3:
HUMOR ME
Kevin’s dad was always telling him corny jokes as a pup, and a number of them still resonate with him even now that he’s “groan” up.
“I worked as a waiter for four years. I was hired because I bring a lot to the  __ __ __ __ __.”
“How did the ocean greet the two beachgoers? It  __ __ __ __ __.”
“I sold my two vacuum cleaners because they were just gathering  __ __ __ __.”
“I found four wooden shoes stopping up my toilet. It was  __ __ __ __ __ __ __.”
“The five bakers were very rich because they made a lot of  __ __ __ __ __.”
“How did the five mathematicians travel to the geometry convention? Via  __ __ __ __ __.”
“I would tell four jokes about hats, but they would go over your  __ __ __ __.”

(This illustration by Tintinabar is not part of the puzzle.)

Submit your answer to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com for 50 points, and stay tuned next week for Episode 3's hint and Episode 4's puzzle. Good luck!

Wordy Wednesday 538: Framelinks 18

WORDY WEDNESDAY #535
PENT WORDS 107 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
Cole Kendall **
James Haddad **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Tyler Hinman *
Kevin Orfield **
Patrick Jordan *
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #536
SECTION SIX 53 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Tyler Hinman *
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #537
ROUTE-NUMBERED (hint)
As of this writing, 5 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!

WORDY WEDNESDAY #538
FRAMELINKS 18
(click here for a PDF version)
Fill in the empty squares in the diagram with the given letters to form words.
Arrange the letters in the shaded squares to form the final answer, an 8-letter word.

A A A A A A   B B   C C C   E E E E E E E E   F F   G   H H H H   I I I I   K   L L L   N N N N N N N N
O O O   P   R R   S S   T T T T T T T T   U U U U   V   Y Y
 
COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* In what Texas city is Baylor University located?

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

Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 4, Episode 2: Baffling Banners

PREVIOUS EPISODES
Introduction (what these puzzles are and why they're called "Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 4"): click here
Episode 1 (The Writing on the Wall): puzzle PDF, hint PDF (new!)
* 16 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece.

The total number of points scored is 800. Thus, the current money pool for the Food Bank for West Central Texas is $8.00. Three anonymous benefactors have agreed to match this donation, meaning that the Food Bank for West Central Texas will actually receive $32.00. If you haven't already, you may solve the above puzzle for 25 points, possibly with the aid of the hint.

KEVIN’S PUZZLES AT HOME
SEASON 4, EPISODE 2:
BAFFLING BANNERS
Kevin was told that he’d have a “merry time” figuring out the meanings of these flags, but so far, it hasn’t been smooth sailing.

(This illustration by Tintinabar is not part of the puzzle.)

Submit your answer to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com for 50 points, and stay tuned next week for Episode 2's hint and Episode 3's puzzle. Good luck!

Wordy Wednesday 537: Route-Numbered

WORDY WEDNESDAY #534
FRAMELINKS 17 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
James Haddad **
Michael Lebowitz **
Stephen Potter **
Tyler Hinman **
Derek Allen **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **
Tamara Brenner **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #535
PENT WORDS 107 (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 #536
SECTION SIX 53 (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 #537
ROUTE-NUMBERED
(click here for a PDF version)
What item could be used to help you manage all of these links?

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* A Framelinks!
* Patron Puzzle #108, which will be delivered on May 8, 2023, exclusively to Patreon supporters at the Super Fan level and up ($5 or more per month), is a Super Pent Words.

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

Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 4, Episode 1: The Writing on the Wall

INTRODUCTION
This series is inspired by the website Kevin's Puzzles, on which Kevin Orfield, who is a regular reader of this blog, posts an instructionless puzzle-hunt-style puzzle every Monday. Kevin Orfield's puzzles usually lean towards the easy side of this genre in order to target a less experienced and/or younger audience. Kevin's Puzzles at Home is my markedly inferior knockoff of Kevin's Puzzles, so called because of the "we have X at home" meme:
The puzzles in Kevin's Puzzles at Home are intended to be easier than my Wordy Wednesday posts, and hopefully at least 80% as entertaining as the real Kevin's Puzzles. Kevin's Puzzles at Home will be presented by my "we have X at home" version of Kevin:
(This illustration by Tintinabar is not part of any puzzle. Any resemblance between this Kevin and the real Kevin, or any real Kevin, is entirely coincidental.)
Kevin Edmund Kepler, the colorful and prodigious wolf depicted above, hopes that you enjoy the puzzles that he will be offering you over the course of these coming months!
 
Every Monday during May and June 2023, a new episode will be posted at 12:01 AM (Central); as with the real Kevin's Puzzles, the final answer will be a word or phrase. Email me (at glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com) the correct solution to this puzzle within the next week to score 50 points. Each puzzle will also have a hint posted for it one week later; solving the puzzle while the hint is up will be worth 25 points. Episode 9, which will be posted on June 26, is a meta puzzle which requires the answers to all of the previous puzzles in order to be solved; this puzzle will be worth double (100 points before the hint, 50 points after). The highest possible score a solver can attain will thus be 500 points, by solving each puzzle during its first week. For every point scored by my readers by 11:59 PM (Central) on July 9, I will donate 1¢ to the Food Bank for West Central Texas, up to a maximum of $100. (Thus, each solver can contribute a maximum of $5 to this pool.) Three anonymous benefactors have agreed to match my donation as well, making the maximum possible donation $400 (and thus the maximum contribution to this donation by a single solver $20). Get to work!

Unlike the real Kevin's Puzzles, which posts each puzzle's solution one week after its hint is posted, all puzzle solutions will be posted simultaneously on July 10, one week after the final hint is posted. This will make the meta slightly harder, since you can't just look up the solutions to the previous puzzles to start solving it, but will also permit latecomers to score more points (and thus raise more money) than otherwise possible.

Astute readers will notice that the words "Season 4" appear in the title. Links to the previous seasons follow:
Season 1 (May-June 2022): Puzzles and hints, solutions.
Season 2 (September-October 2022): Puzzles and hints, solutions
Season 3 (January-February 2023): Puzzles and hints, solutions

Have fun, and remember to check out the real Kevin's creations if these fake ones are up your alley!

KEVIN’S PUZZLES AT HOME
SEASON 4, EPISODE 1:
THE WRITING ON THE WALL
Some of Kevin’s favorite words sat on this wall, but they had a great fall! With any luck, you won’t need any horses or men to place the bricks and put the words back together again.

(This illustration by Tintinabar is not part of the puzzle.)

Submit your answer to glmathgrant[at]gmail[dot]com for 50 points, and stay tuned next week for Episode 1's hint and Episode 2's puzzle. Good luck!

Wordy Wednesday 535: Pent Words 107 & Wordy Wednesday 536: Section Six 53

WORDY WEDNESDAY #533
SNAKE CRISSCROSS 22 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
James Haddad **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Stephen Potter **
Tyler Hinman **
Derek Allen *
Ezra Brauner **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #534
FRAMELINKS 17 (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!

LAST WEDNESDAY OF THE MONTH = DOUBLE WORDY WEDNESDAYS!
WORDY WEDNESDAY #535
PENT WORDS 107
(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 Group of theatrical performers / Star Trek: The ____ Generation
2 Gain alternative / Valley formed by a river
3 ____ Punk (electronic music duo) / “Modest” name of a Texas city
4 Light quantum / Three-____ sloth
5 Relaxation’s partner / One who dies for not renouncing a religion
6 Jamaican music genre / Mild, as punishment
7 Fool / Siberian spitz
8 Most adorable / It lists restaurant dishes
9 Actor Guinness / Truthful
10 “All My ____ Friends Are Coming Over Tonight” (Hank Williams Jr. song) / Bird’s roost
PENTOMINOES:
* HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
* THE OTHER HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
* Oman’s neighbor to the southwest
* “Three’s a ____”
* Musical sounds
* Character voiced by Chris Pratt in a 2023 movie
* Extremely excited
* ____ of Wells Fargo (1957-1962 TV western)
* Sanka offering, briefly
* Double ____ (jump rope game)
* Tom ____ (small folkloric character)
* Completely destroyed
* “Private ____” (B-52’s hit)
* Praise highly
* Monikers
* The Long Ranger’s companion
* Richter ____
* Fishy surname of baseball player Mike
* Reznor of Nine Inch Nails
* Destitute

WORDY WEDNESDAY #536
SECTION SIX 53
(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 Movie critic Roger
2 Group of fish
3 Place to skate or play hockey: 2 wds.
4 Beyond dreadful
5 Election loser: hyph.
6 Certain batting technique in baseball

Ring 2
* Type of light that flashes
* Some male choir members
* Genesis tower site
* Weather-related term for someone who attracts new clients
* Scottish body of water

Ring 3
* Muck
* Like a sponge
* “____, Can You Spare a Dime?”
* Grant temporary use of

Ring 4
* Yellowjacket relative
* Bandit
* The Executioner’s Song author Norman

Ring 5
* Off the ground, as a plane
* One of a golf course’s 18

Ring 6
* Car from a series of Disney movies which is emblazoned with the number 53
 
COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* A puzzle that will have you feeling "route"-numbered!

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

Wordy Wednesday 534: Framelinks 17

WORDY WEDNESDAY #532
CODEWORDS 23 (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 *
Michael Lebowitz **
Tyler Hinman **
Ezra Brauner **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #533
SNAKE CRISSCROSS 22 (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 #534
FRAMELINKS 17
(click here for a PDF version)
Fill in the empty squares in the diagram with the given letters to form words.
Arrange the letters in the shaded squares to form the final answer, an 8-letter word.

A A A A A A A A A A A A   B B B   C C C C   D   E E E E E E E   F   H H   I I I I   K K   M M M M   N
O O O O O O O   P P P P   R R   S S S S S   T T T T T T T T   U   W   Y   Z
 
COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* What's a 5-letter word for "Character voiced by Chris Pratt in a 2023 movie"?
* What's a 6-letter word for "Car from a series of Disney movies which is emblazoned with the number 53"?

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

Wordy Wednesday 533: Snake Crisscross 22

WORDY WEDNESDAY #530
PENT WORDS 106 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
James Haddad **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Nan **
Stephen Potter **
Tyler Hinman **
Derek Allen **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #531
FRAMELINKS 16 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
James Haddad **
Stephen Potter **
Michael Lebowitz **
Tyler Hinman **
Derek Allen **
Ezra Brauner **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #532
CODEWORDS 23 (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 #533
SNAKE CRISSCROSS 22
(click here for a PDF version)
This puzzle’s crisscross grid contains entries which read across and down as normal; these are defined in alphabetical order by length under the heading “Crisscross Words”. The grid also needs to be divided into a number of areas which follow a single clear path, called “snakes”. Each of these snakes contains an entry reading from one end of the path to the other; these are defined in alphabetical order by length under the heading “Snake Words”. You must determine how the grid is divided into snakes and which entry corresponds to each snake.

Arrange the letters in the highlighted cells to form the final answer, an 8-letter word.
CRISSCROSS WORDS
3 LETTERS
Morning moisture
“Able was I ____. . .”
Not well
Certain limb
Commit a moral infraction
4 LETTERS
Hearing organs
Maleficent
A type of pitcher
Fete
Heap, as of dirty laundry
Horse-riding need
5 LETTERS
Noted Italian poet
Made a mistake
Furniture namesake Allen
Papas of The Guns of Navarone (1961)
Gillan who played Nebula in Guardians of the Galaxy
Part of a flower
“No ____, No Cry” (Bob Marley hit)
6 LETTERS
Trainee at a workplace
Some stockings
President Reagan’s first name
Completely emotionless
1980’s term for an affluent city dweller
7 LETTERS
Attachment to a mountain climber’s shoe
Jiggly dessert
Showing signs of foot pain, in a way
8 LETTERS
Musically-inclined phantom in the Monster High franchise
12 LETTERS
Philadelphia-based life insurance company: 2 wds.

SNAKE WORDS
5 LETTERS
____ the Dragon (1973 martial arts film)
Coffee shop purchase
“What am I, chopped ____?”
Florida senator Rubio
Did a lawn chore
Extend, as a subscription
6 LETTERS
Hooded jacket
Become enlarged
South Dakota’s capital
Pay: 2 wds.
Moves a houseplant, perhaps
More diminutive
7 LETTERS
Item for receiving a radio signal
C2H5OH, familiarly
Felonious
Encroach, as on a right
Tel Aviv resident
8 LETTERS
Ordinary: 2 wds.

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* A Framelinks!

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

Wordy Wednesday 532: Codewords 23

WORDY WEDNESDAY #529
HEX PATHFINDER 33 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
James Haddad **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Stephen Potter **
Tyler Hinman *
Derek Allen **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #530
PENT WORDS 106 (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 #531
FRAMELINKS 16 (hint)
As of this writing, 11 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 #532
CODEWORDS 23
(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. . .
* What's a 5-letter word for "Gillan who played Nebula in Guardians of the Galaxy?"
* Patron Puzzle #107, which will be delivered on April 8, 2023, exclusively to Patreon supporters at the Super Fan level and up ($5 or more per month), is a pair of Codewords.

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

Wordy Wednesday 530: Pent Words 106 & Wordy Wednesday 531: Framelinks 16

WORDY WEDNESDAY #528
SPICY GERMAN SAUSAGE 3 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
Cole Kendall **
James Haddad **
Michael Lebowitz **
Stephen Potter **
Derek Allen *
Jason Boomer **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #529
HEX PATHFINDER 33 (hint)
As of this writing, 11 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!

LAST WEDNESDAY OF THE MONTH = DOUBLE WORDY WEDNESDAYS!
WORDY WEDNESDAY #530
PENT WORDS 106
(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 Sesame, for one / Line on a weather map, perhaps
2 Not a moment too ____ / City in Penobscot County, Maine
3 A creditor’s right to hold a debtor’s property / Haunting
4 “____, won’t you blow your horn?” / Super Mario ____ (2015 video game in which players can create their own Mario levels)
5 Giant dust cloud in space / “Hit the ____ Jack” (Ray Charles hit)
6 Male offspring / Foxy
7 ____ Pio (2022 film in which Shia LaBeouf plays an Italian saint) / Funny
8 Set up, as computer software / Sweet potato
9 Gets a point / “Lone” shape on the Texas flag
10 Annoy / Air Jordan manufacturer
PENTOMINOES:
* HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
* THE OTHER HALF OF THE FINAL ANSWER
* Assent
* A Night at the ____ (Queen album)
* Preserved by adding salt, as meat
* Daniel of Home Alone
* Favor, slangily
* Ohio city known as the “Rubber Capital of the World”
* Long-necked wading bird
* 2020 title role for Liu Yifei
* Australian canine
* Street Fighter character M. ____
* Long lock of hair
* Political gathering
* Senseless
* Seat in a park, often
* Radio Flyer vehicle, briefly
* Andean pack animal
* Listerine alternative
* Zaragoza’s country

WORDY WEDNESDAY #531
FRAMELINKS 16
(click here for a PDF version)
Fill in the empty squares in the diagram with the given letters to form words.
Arrange the letters in the shaded squares to form the final answer, an 8-letter word.

A A A A A A B C C C C C D E E E E E E E E E E E G H H H I I L L L L M M M M M
N N N N O O O O O O O P R R R R R S S S T T T T T T U V W
 
COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* A Codewords!

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

Wordy Wednesday 529: Hex Pathfinder 33

WORDY WEDNESDAY #527
FOXGERYPTICS 17 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
Cole Kendall **
M. Sean Molley **
Michael Lebowitz **
Stephen Potter **
Tyler Hinman **
Derek Allen *
Ezra Brauner *
Kevin Orfield **
Patrick Jordan **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #528
SPICY GERMAN SAUSAGE 3 (hint)
As of this writing, 11 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 #529
HEX PATHFINDER 33
(click here for a PDF version)
In this puzzle, each answer starts in the correspondingly numbered hexagon and winds through the grid, starting in the indicated direction. When you have finished, every letter will be used in exactly two entries.

Rearrange the letters in the shaded spaces to get the final answer, a 7-letter word.
1E Victoria’s Secret purchase (8)
2NE War of 1812 battle site (10, 2 wds.)
3NE Catch sight of (4)
4NW Skyscraper also known as Freedom Tower (19, 4 wds.)
4SW Fierce attack (9)
5NW Movement influenced by Cubism (7, 2 wds.)
6NE “____ All Angels” (Train song) (7)
7SE Garment worn by women in India (4)
8SE Sound at a comedy club (8)
9W Hidden feature on a DVD, for one (9, 2 wds.)
10SE 1997 film starring Pierce Brosnan as volcanologist Harry Dalton (10, 2 wds.)
11SW Talk pompously (5)
12E Eschatological event (10)
13NE Small opening in your skin (4)
14SE Rodent-related term for an endless strenuous pursuit (7, 2 wds.)
15SW A refugee seeks this (6)
16SE Physical strength (6)
17E Take back, as a belief (6)
18NE The white parts of the eyes (7)
19SW Schweppes product (9, 2 wds.)
20E Prohibition-era establishment (9)
21SE Ate or drank (8)
22W Is rueful (7)
23NW Pertaining to canines (6)
24NE Excite (6)
25NW Musical with the song “You’ll Never Walk Alone” (8)
26W Word following “smoke” or “touch” (6)
26SE Scornful facial expression (5)
27SW Cadillac SUV model (8)
28NW Students at a police academy (6)
29NE Securely close, as an envelope (4)

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* What's a 5-letter word for "A Night at the ____ (Queen album)"?
* A Framelinks!

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

Wordy Wednesday 528: Spicy German Sausage 3

WORDY WEDNESDAY #526
SECTION SIX 52 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
James Haddad **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Stephen Potter **
Tyler Hinman **
Derek Allen **
Ezra Brauner **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #527
FOXGERYPTICS 17 (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 #528
SPICY GERMAN SAUSAGE 3
(click here for a PDF version)
This puzzle contains a word suggested by Jason Boomer. Support me on Patreon at the Super Fan level ($5/month) and solve the monthly Patron Puzzle for a chance to suggest a seed word for a future puzzle, or at the Ultra Fan level ($20/month) to suggest one seed word every month!
In a German Sausage, a type of puzzle originating from the National Puzzlers League, when you take the indicated pairs of answers to the clues from the first list, combine their letters, and anagram them, you get the answers to the clues from the second list. (For example, ANAGRAM and SEGUES can be combined and anagrammed to make GERMAN SAUSAGE.) However, in this variation, you must add an extra letter to each pair of answers to make the longer answer (for example, you might make GERMAN SAUSAGE from ANAGRAM and GUESS plus an extra E).

Rearrange the added letters in (parentheses) to make a 6-letter word, and rearrange the added letters in [square brackets] to make a 6-letter word. Write these words in the final set of blanks, and rearrange the letters in {curly braces} to make a 6-letter word, the final answer.

1. Yellow finch
2. Chevrolet plug-in hybrid
3. One who can predict the future
4. Lacking slack, as a rope
5. Cut a ____ (dance)
6. The Atlantic or the Pacific
7. ____ and haw
8. Defamatory statement
9. Beefcake
10. Center, as of an apple
11. Verb on a ticket, often
12. Conservative talk radio host Larry, or someone who is more advanced in years

1+2+(__). Possessing extrasensory perception
2+3+[__]. First Lady Eleanor
3+4+(__). Crush of Finding Nemo is one: 2 wds.
4+5+[__]. Articulated in the throat
5+6+(__). Hearten
6+7+[__]. Lizard with the ability to camouflage itself
7+8+(__). Add fanciful details to, as a story
8+9+[__]. American Revolution battle site in Boston: 2 wds.
9+10+(__). Term for an uncouth person which suggests a coarse body part
10+11+[__]. Pertaining to government by the people
11+12+(__). Tolkien setting: hyph.
12+1+[__]. Period from January 1 to December 31: 2 wds.

(Parentheses): {__} {__} {__} __ __ __
[Square brackets]: {__} {__} __ __ {__} __
{Curly braces}: __ __ __ __ __ __

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* What's a 10-letter, 2-word answer for "1997 film starring Pierce Brosnan as volcanologist Harry Dalton"?

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

Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 3: FINAL RESULTS!

FINAL SCORES
Here is a table of all of the participants and their scores (click to enlarge):
Participants are sorted by score (high to low), and then alphabetically (A to Z). The total number of points scored was 8900. Thus, the final money pool for the Palm Beach County Food Bank is $89.00. Three anonymous benefactors have agreed to match this donation, meaning that the Palm Beach County Food Bank will actually receive $356.00.

Head below the break for the actual solutions! If you're looking for more easy-ish puzzles in this style, remember to visit the actual Kevin's website every single Monday, or come back to this site in May when I plan to launch Season 4! The puzzles are already written and tested, so all that's left to do is wait patiently for May to roll around!

Wordy Wednesday 527: Foxgeryptics 17

WORDY WEDNESDAY #524
ANACROSSWORD 30 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
Cole Kendall **
James Haddad **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Nan **
Tyler Hinman **
Kevin Orfield **
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #525
PENT WORDS 105 (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:
Bonnie Veenschoten **
Cathy Bowen **
Cindy Heisler **
Cole Kendall **
James Haddad **
Joe Bernard **
Michael Lebowitz **
Stephen Potter **
Tyler Hinman **
Ezra Brauner *
Kevin Orfield **
Patrick Jordan *
Ryan Faley **
Sam Levitin **

WORDY WEDNESDAY #526
SECTION SIX 52 (hint)
As of this writing, 11 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 #527
FOXGERYPTICS 17
(click here for a PDF version)
Insert a single letter in each space of each grid so that each grid's five rows and five columns spells a word from left to right or top to bottom (including the letters outside the grid).

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

COMING NEXT WEEK. . .
* What lizard has the ability to camouflage itself?

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

Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 3: Final hint and final week!

PREVIOUS EPISODES
Introduction (what these puzzles are and why they're called "Kevin's Puzzles at Home Season 3"): click here
Episode 1 (Name That Toon): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 15 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 4 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 2 (Fuzzy Flock): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 16 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 3 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 3 (Tricky Triplets): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 17 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 2 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 4 (Totally A-Mazed): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 18 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 1 person solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 5 (People of Note): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 16 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 3 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 6 (Pain by Numbers): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 16 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 3 people solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 7 (Fill Me In): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 18 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 1 person solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 8 (Fix My Flicks): puzzle PDF, hint PDF
* 17 people solved this within the first week for 50 points apiece; 1 person solved it later for 25 points.
Episode 9 (Meta) (Mix-Up): puzzle PDF, hint PDF (new!)
* 18 people solved this within the first week for 100 points apiece.

The total number of points scored is 8900. Thus, the current money pool for the Palm Beach County Food Bank is $89.00. Three anonymous benefactors have agreed to match this donation, meaning that the Palm Beach County Food Bank will actually receive $362.00. If you haven't already, you may solve the above puzzles for 25 points each, or the meta for 50 points, possibly with the aid of the hints. This week is your final chance to score points and earn money for the food bank!
 
Stay tuned next week for all of the solutions and the final results. Good luck!

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