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LAST WEEK’S RESULTS:
Title: “In Other Words…”
Instructions: This week’s contest answer is a two-word phrase.
Answer: THAT IS (or ID EST)
We had six theme entries last week, all of which’s clues began with a single letter:
18-A [“M,” and others] = OLD MOVIES. “M” is one of the greatest old movies. I’ve probably seen in 8 times.
24-A [F, and others] = MUSICAL NOTES
40-A [L, for example] = NUMERAL. In the Roman sense.
42-A [K, for example] = VITAMIN
53-A [P, and others] = GREEK LETTERS
62-A [B, for example] = BLOOD TYPE
Your first instinct will be to do something with those six single letters, or with their answers in the grid, or with a combination…but the key lies in those overlooked little helpers, the clue tags! Like in a murder mystery where the ever-present but easily overlooked butler did it (before that became cliche).
The tag “and others” often appears in crosswords as “et al.” and “for example” often appears as “e.g.”. So take that first letter plus its translated-into-Latin tag and we get:
M + etal = METAL
F + etal = FETAL
L + eg = LEG
K + eg = KEG
P + etal = PETAL
B + eg = BEG
Now what? The clue at 68-A tipped many solvers off to the next step: [___ position (rolling the body up in a ball)] was TUCK, but you might have tried to enter FETAL there while solving before realizing it’s a letter too long. But let’s use it now: each of the newly formed words can answer a clue already in the grid:
1-A [Piece at Popeyes] = THIGH but also LEG
10-A [Command to a dog] = HEEL but also BEG
38-A [Brass or steel] = ALLOY but also METAL
68-A [___ position (rolling the body up in a ball)] = TUCK but also FETAL
70-A [Landing spot for a bee, maybe] = IRIS but also PETAL
72-A [Beer container] = STEIN but also KEG
The first letters of those entries spells contest answer THAT IS, found by 176 solvers. And relevant since it translates into another Latin phrase, “id est,” which was also counted as correct since you could’ve reasonably inferred that I was looking for the Latin translation. And the deadline was on Christmas Day, so I certainly wasn’t going to play Grinch.
David Stein says:
I’m happy to part of the Meta this week
Cheers! Hope everyone had a nice holiday season.
This week’s winner, whose name was chosen at random from the 176 correct entries received, is J.W.. In addition to a MGWCC pen, pencil, and notepad set, J.W. will also receive a 1-year subscription to Matt Gaffney’s Daily Crossword.
THIS WEEK’S INSTRUCTIONS:
What Harrison Ford movie would complete this puzzle’s theme?
Solve well, and be not led astray by words intended to deceive.