Quiz Guy John Chaneski offers a quiz with punning clues from some of the nation’s top crossword-puzzle constructors. This is part of a complete episode.
Transcript of “Pun Clues Puzzle”
You’re listening to A Way with Words. I’m Grant Barrett.
And I’m Martha Barnette. And joining us now is our quiz guy, Mr. John Chaneski. Hello, John.
Hi, I’m Mr. Now. That’s very nice.
We missed you a lot. What do you have for us?
That’s right. What do I have for you guys? You know, you guys like to encourage people to talk about and explore language, of course.
And I encourage people to talk about and explore puzzles.
One thing that I really like people to do is to be picky about who makes their puzzles.
People should have favorites, and many crossword fans do.
Which is why I like to show the work of crossword constructors that I think are brilliant.
Okay, artisanal puzzles.
Very good, yes.
I’ll give you some punny clues from three popular constructors, and I’ll give you the length of the answer and the first letter.
Okay.
For example, the first group comes from a constructor by the name of Brendan Emmett Quigley, and you can find him on the internet, and he’s a great constructor.
Now, these are, of course, they’re punny clues, so a lot of times they have a question mark at the end of them to indicate that they are puns.
Okay, this is a five-letter word, and the clue is makes bread. It begins with an E.
Makes bread?
Makes bread, beginning with an E.
Earns?
Earns is right.
Very good.
Always a play on one of the words, usually.
Speaking of which, the clue is last thing to do before getting one’s masters. Four letters, beginning with P.
Play?
PUTT. P-U-T-T.
PUTT is correct. This one actually doesn’t even require a question mark.
It is the last thing you do before you get your master’s.
PUTT is right.
This one’s perfect for you guys.
Clean Air Org? Question mark. Three letters.
NPR.
Because they have fresh air, right?
It’s not EPA.
They do have fresh air, but this is clean air.
Of course, this is an abbreviation because the word org, abbreviation with a period is in there.
What’s the first letter?
F.
FCC.
FCC is right.
Very good, Martha.
And those were clues from Brendan Emmett Quigley.
Here are a few from a very clever constructor named Patrick Berry.
He does great crosswords as well as great cryptics.
It might hold a few swallows. This one begins with an N.
Neck?
What do you say, an N?
Not neck.
Nest?
Nest is right.
Yes.
Very good.
How about this one? Four letters. Caseload, four letters, beginning with a B.
Beer?
Beer is right.
Very good.
That fits perfectly.
I’m going to write that in.
There we go.
How about something thrown for a loop? Five letters, beginning with L.
Something thrown for a loop.
Something thrown for a loop.
Lasso.
Yes, lasso.
Very good.
Nice.
Those were from Patrick Berry.
Here are some from Elizabeth Gorski.
She has, I think, more Sunday New York Times puzzles than anybody.
How about this one? One getting hit on at a party. Six letters.
One getting hit on at a party.
Piñata?
Piñata is correct.
Yes, very good.
And how about a four-letter word for sitting area?
Butt.
Rear.
You’re close.
I’m sorry.
I should have told you it begins with a T.
Tush.
Tush is correct.
Yes, very good.
Here’s another one.
Revolutionary figure, six letters. This begins with a P.
Revolutionary figure.
Revolutionary figure.
Something that spins around.
Pirouette?
No.
Oh.
Planet.
Planet, yes, very good.
Very good, Grant.
That is a good one.
Very good.
Yeah, I like that one a lot.
And finally, ball coverings, five letters.
Ball coverings.
Yeah, five letters starting with a G.
Gowns?
Gowns is correct.
Very good, Martha.
Oh, very good.
John, thanks a lot.
Thank you.
Thank you for introducing us to some of these crossword puzzle masters.
I’ve been getting into it recently and really enjoying the clever brains.
Yes, it’s my pleasure to introduce you.
I hope to introduce you in person sometime.
We’ll talk to you next week.
See you then.
Bye-bye.
Bye-bye.
If you want to talk about any aspect of language, just give us a call at 877-929-9673.
Find us on Facebook and Twitter, and you can always email us.
That address is words@waywordradio.org.
