Sunday Puzzle: TransformeR
On-air challenge
I’m going to give you clues for two four-letter words. Put an “r” between them to complete a common nine-letter word.
Ex. World’s Fair / tiny bell sound —> EXPORTING
1. Penny / friend in war
2. Shape of a frisbee / to change, as text
3. Take a breather / a variant of “isn’t” that isn’t considered grammatical
4. 18-wheeler / Russia’s ___ Mountains
5. Jump into water headfirst / lady’s partner, informally
6. Arrived / word said at the end of a prayer
7. To exist / place to swim [city name]
8. Sharp part of a wire fence / pointed tools used for punching holes [two words]
Last week’s challenge
Last week’s challenge came from Tom Streit, of Crozet, Virginia. A man said to a friend: “I’m thinking of a nine-letter word that contains my name, Ian (I-A-N), embedded somewhere inside it. If you replace my three-letter name with your four-letter name, you’ll get a familiar word in 10 letters.” What are the two words, and what is the name of Ian’s friend?
Challenge answer
The first word is “appliance.” If you change the “Ian” to “Esau” you get “applesauce.”
Winner
Joan Suits of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
This week’s challenge
This week’s challenge comes from Greg VanMechelen, of Berkeley, California. Name something you don’t want to have at night using two words (3,5). Shift each of the letters of the second word nine spaces later in the alphabet. If your count reaches the end of the alphabet, continue counting from the start. The result will name a famous singer.
If you know the answer to the challenge, submit it below by Thursday, February 26 at 3 p.m. ET. Listeners whose answers are selected win a chance to play the on-air puzzle.
Team USA faces tough Canadian squad in Olympic gold medal hockey game
In the first Olympics with stars of the NHL competing in over a decade, a talent-packed Team USA faces a tough test against Canada.
PHOTOS: Your car has a lot to say about who you are
Photographer Martin Roemer visited 22 countries — from the U.S. to Senegal to India — to show how our identities are connected to our mode of transportation.
Looking for life purpose? Start with building social ties
Research shows that having a sense of purpose can lower stress levels and boost our mental health. Finding meaning may not have to be an ambitious project.
Danish military evacuates US submariner who needed urgent medical care off Greenland
Denmark's military says its arctic command forces evacuated a crew member of a U.S. submarine off the coast of Greenland for urgent medical treatment.
Only a fraction of House seats are competitive. Redistricting is driving that lower
Primary voters in a small number of districts play an outsized role in deciding who wins Congress. The Trump-initiated mid-decade redistricting is driving that number of competitive seats even lower.
Homeland Security suspends TSA PreCheck and Global Entry airport security programs
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is suspending the TSA PreCheck and Global Entry airport security programs as a partial government shutdown continues.
