NG 79

New game 79 is now up.


Round 1: R P W E E C E R U

I had WEEP, CREEP, and CREEPER.

CREEPER is the only seven, and the only six is WEEPER.

My selection: CREEPER


Round 2: S F A I S S L U A

A lot more duplication in this round, bother.  I had SASS, LASSIS (LASSI: "a sweet or savoury Indian drink made from yoghurt or buttermilk, mixed with water"), and SALSAS (referring either to the dance or the sauce).  I briefly contemplated ASSFULS, but it's no surprise that it is not a word.

There is a seven here, though: The vexingly straightforward ASSAILS.  The other sixes are ASSAIL, SISALS (SISAL being either a type of fibre used for making ropes, or "a plant yielding such fibre"), and FUSILS (FUSIL: "a light musket or flintlock").

My selection: SALSAS


Round 3: Target 358 from 50 5 8 2 9 7

A straightforward 358 = 7*50 + 8 was almost all I bothered with, but then I decided to avoid the large number and also found 358 = 8*9*5 - 2.

My selection: 358 = 7*50 + 8


Round 4: M D A A T R O H M

I had DATA, DRAMA, and MATADOR.  Those two words were a little amusing to me, because in each instance I had noticed that they would be available if the next letter were right, and it was.

MATADOR is the only seven.  The sixes are MARMOT (a type of ground squirrel; I'll note that the animal presented here is not actually a marmot), DHARMA ("(in Hinduism and Buddhism) essential quality or character" plus several similar meanings), and DAMMAR ("a copal-like resin, chiefly from trees [...] in Southern Asia [...], much used for making colourless varnish").

My selection: MATADOR


Round 5: D T N I D A L E C

This round hurts.  I had DINT, DIALECT / CITADEL, CANDLED, CANDIED, and then spotted DEDICANT.  Unfortunately, the Macquarie does not have it; Chambers does ("a person who dedicates").  I've most often seen it used in religious contexts.

The other sevens are DELTAIC / EDICTAL, DILATED, and NIDATED (NIDATE: "to implant in a uterus").

But there is an eight after all: TIDELAND (an American term: "land in the interidal zone").

My selection: [invalid -- DEDICANT]


Round 6: Target 794 from 50 6 10 7 9 1

Much like the first numbers round, find the appropriate multiple of 50 and adjust by the rest.  I found 794 = (9 + 7)*50 - 6 and left it at that.

My selection: 794 = (9 + 7)*50 - 6


Round 7: O E O B P T Y I N

I had OBOE, BOOT, BOOTY, POINTY, and POTION.  I had hoped for a final S for OBESITY, but no such luck.

After time I noted that PONYBITE could be formed from the letters, but unsurprisingly there's no entry for it.  There is one for HORSE BITE (as two words), though.

A bit later again I was pleased to see BIOTYPE ("a group of organisms with the same hereditary characteristics") for seven.

That's the only seven; the other sixes are BOOTIE, OPTION, POINTE ("(in ballet) the tip of the toe"), TOONIE (the Canadian two-dollar coin), BONITO (a type of tuna), and BETONY (a type of herb).

My selection: POINTY


Round 8: Target 694 from 100 5 3 10 8 5

This round was a struggle, with a 6 very hard to make from the small numbers.  I wrote down a fallback 695 = (10 - 3)*100 - 5, and in the end that was where I stayed.

With good reason, as it turns out: The target is not achievable.  There are many ways to one off (on both sides), though.

My selection: 695 = (10 - 3)*100 - 5 (1 off)


Round 9: RAINY GIFT

I pulled out the -ING, didn't see anything useful from the result, and moved on in search of other potential conundrums.  That was careless, as the answer is RATIFYING.

My selection: [no answer]