Games World of Puzzles December 2020

…from the editor

If “Home for the Holidays” is your theme song for 2020’s festivities, this issue of GAMES WORLD OF PUZZLES offers plenty of December-themed diversions. For most people, much of the year has been spent at home with family and close friends. That is no different for the GAMES WORLD OF PUZZLES staff. We’ve taken advantage of this downtime to put together “Staff Picks” (page 33), a compilation of the games we played most this year. Mind you, not all of these are new games—some are classics—but they reflect the diversity of interests of our staff members. Check it out—you might get a gift idea or two! Speaking of gift ideas, does your list include any hard-core grammar geeks or word nerds? If so, turn to page 40 to learn about Stet!,…

mixed doubles

Each answer word in this crossword variation has two clues leading to it, using different meanings of the word. The clues are separated into Across and Down, but are otherwise ordered randomly. When you find two Across clues or two Down clues that seem to have the same answer, add up their clue numbers to determine the place in the grid at which the answer should be entered. For example, if the clue for 1-Across were “Metallic element” and the clue for 17-Across read “Starring role,” the answer would be “lead,” which would go in 18-Across (1 + 17). Note: Tags such as “Hyph.” and “2 wds.” have been omitted. ACROSS 1 Charlotte’s NBA team 2 Comfortable 3 Champagne glasses 4 Units on a thermostat display 5 Dates arranged by friends 6 Welcome relief on a hot day 7…

52-skiddoo

There is one place for each letter of the alphabet in the 26 empty squares of each blank column in the diagram below. Fill in each letter so that a word of at least five letters is formed reading across only. Not all of the letters to the left and right of the empty box are used; it’s up to you to determine which ones are needed to complete familiar words. Some letters may fit in more than one of the empty squares to complete words, but we only came up with one arrangement that would complete a word in each row. Maybe you’ll find a better solution. Proper names are not allowed. ANSWERS…

syllables

The answer to each Syllables clue is a word or words made up of some of the syllables listed above the clues. The number of syllables in each answer is in parentheses following the clue. The dashes indicate the number of letters in the answer. After you use a syllable, cross it off; each syllable will be used only once and every syllable will be used in one of the answers. When you are through, read down the first letters of the answer words and then the last letters and you will discover the name of a person followed by a quotation by that person. ANSWERS (John Kenneth) Galbraith: Nothing is so fine in politics as a short memory. 1. Gemini, 2. Application, 3. Lollipop, 4. Braggadocio, 5. Rehearsal, 6. Alumni, 7. Inherit,…

stray cats

ACROSS 1 Former Swedish automaker 5 Fact-fudger 9 What “to err” is 14 Ballet bend 15 Hard-to-resist impulse 16 Cause to chuckle 17 Verdi opera set in Egypt 18 “All gone!” sound effect 19 U.S.-Canada-Mexico treaty until 2020 20 Ella Fitzgerald specialty: 2 wds. 23 Fragrant evergreen 24 One in a high-IQ society 25 Corn serving 27 Vote of approval 29 Segments of sentences 33 “No bet”: 2 wds. 37 Jamie of M*A*S*H 39 Wayne’s World costar Carvey 40 Actors in an epic film, perhaps: 3 wds. 43 Cavern comeback 44 Copier paper purchase 45 Printer’s equipment 46 First-rate 48 Rower’s need 50 Long, long time 51 Jai alai baskets 56 Comics bark 59 Does as expected: 3 wds. 63 Food at a restaurant “bar” 65 Antioxidant-rich berry 66 Sunburn soother 67 .jpg or .gif file contents 68 Message on a Post-It 69 Trevi Fountain city 70 The “A” in FAQ 71 Marquee-topping name 72 Rice Krispies sound DOWN 1 Involuntary twitch 2 Visitor to Wonderland 3 Quinn of Elementary 4 Is…

kid stuff

FREEZE FRAMES Each of the squares at the bottom of the page is identical to one of the squares in the winter scene above it. Some of the squares have been rolled sideways or upside-down. How many of them can you find? PUZZLOSAURUS Most of what we know about prehistoric times has been learned from bones and fossils dug up by inquisitive archaeologists. Buried in this Tyrannosaurus Rex diagram are the 30 prehistoric and dinosaur-related words and phrases listed below. How many of them can you find? Each is hidden horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, but always in a straight line. ARCHAEOPTERYX ARMOR BONES CARNIVORE DINOSAUR DIPLODOCUS DUCKBILL EGGS EXTINCT FOSSILS HERBIVORE IGUANODON LIZARD MAMMOTH MASTODON MEGALOSAUR MUSEUM PALEONTOLOGY PLATES PLESIOSAUR PREHISTORIC REPTILE SABER-TOOTHED TIGER STEGOSAURUS SWAMP TAIL TEETH TRIASSIC TRICERATOPS TYRANNOSAURUS REX ANSWERS 8 I KID STUFF: FREEZE FRAMES 1. C8 2. H1 3. F4 4. H9 5. C2 6. A8 7. G7 8. I7 9 I KID STUFF: PUZZLOSAURUS…