Common Bonds Quiz: One Word Links Them All

You’re listening to A Way with Words, the show about language and how we use it.

I’m Martha Barnette.

And I’m Grant Barrett.

And here he is, dressed in his Texas tuxedo that’s denim top to bottom.

It’s our quiz guide, John Chaneski.

It’s comfortable.

What can I say?

Denim is a little bit.

It really fits you.

I’ve never seen a blue jean 10 gallon hat, but it’s all right.

I don’t have to think about what to wear.

I just denim.

Just denim.

That’s it.

All right, I’ll give you guys this, time.

This week our quiz is something we’ve done before.

I’ll give you three things and you tell me what they have in common.

We call the common bonds.

There’s a a lot of names for these, but when they were in a board game format it was called tribond, people still call it that.

If you’re a diehard puzzle solver, you probably know it from yes, the UK game show only connect where it’s called the connecting wall.

If I said something like handed, bank or click, you would say left.

Left handed, left bank, left click, something like that.

Okay?

Gotcha.

All right, good.

Because they’re all these are all word based.

Here’s the first one.

Canon, leaf, change.

Canon C-A-N-O-N.

Correct.

Canon leaf change.

Loose.

Loose is correct.

Loose cannon.

Loose leaf, loose change.

Very good.

Gasp, supper, ditch.

Last.

Last is T.

Is right.

Last is next.

It’s last, last gasp, last supper, last ditch.

Will room wage living.

Living, yeah.

Living is correct.

You might notice a pattern in these, by the way.

You’ll see quickly as we move on.

The next one.

Oh, I’ll say that again, by the way.

Living will, living room, living wage.

Gas, stock, cow.

I was gonna say live cow, but that doesn’t help.

So are they oh so gas stock cow.

Cow.

Huh.

The last one’s less a phrase, more of a brand name.

Oh, laughing.

Yes, laughing is correct.

Laughing gas, laughing stock, laughing cow.

I have contributed to the Wikipedia entry for that one.

Oh really?

Yes.

That sounds like a story.

Yeah, I want to hear that sometime.

How about mine line mass mine e line line mass spelled the usual way.

Could be land.

It could be land because it is land.

Oh, there we go.

Land mine, landline, land mass.

For you kids out there, a landline was a foam.

And condescension is that’s what it is, right?

How about this one?

Opener, perfect box.

Opener perfect box B O X I was going with King, but that doesn’t work.

Opener gift mail no letter letter letter is correct.

Letter opener letters.

Yes.

What are the other ones?

I love the sound of realization.

Very good.

Letter opener, letter perfect, letterbox.

Finally, pitchers, women, dipper.

P-I-T-C-H-E-R-S Pitchers.

Yes.

Your spelling is on point today, Grant.

Very good.

Very smart.

Yes.

Sounds like it could be teeny weeny.

And it is.

What is the teeny meeny answer?

Little women, little dipper and little leaves.

Little pictures.

That’s right.

Slang for kids, little pictures have big ears.

There we go.

You guys did fantastic on that common bonds quiz.

Well done.

Thank you, John.

We’ll see you next week.

Take care of yourselves.

See you then.

You too.

Bye-bye.

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