NG 674

New game 674 is now available.


Round 1: S T R I U N A E M

I had STIR, RUINS, NUTRIAS (NUTRIA being another name for the coypu), NATURES, URINATES, MURIATES, SURNAME, and RUMINATES.  After time I noted RUMINATE and TERMINUS as other eights.

The other nine here is ANTISERUM ("serum containing antibodies [...]").  The other eights are MINARETS / RAIMENTS (maybe), NATURISM, TAURINES / URANITES, ANEURISM, MENSTRUA (plural of MENSTRUUM: "a solvent"), and MUNTRIES (plural of MUNTRY, a type of shrub).

My selection: RUMINATES


Round 2: T C A O I P U H C

I had COAT, COATI, ATOPIC (adjective derived from ATOPY: "a genetic tendency to develop allergic reactions"), HAPTIC ("of or relating to the sense of touch"), and APHOTIC ("without light").  A final L instead of that C would have allowed PATCHOULI -- a shame.  After time I checked on CATCHUP, finding that the meaning that I was thinking of was hyphenated (CATCH-UP), but it was listed as a single word as a variant spelling of KETCHUP.  That surprised me.

The other sevens are CHAOTIC, OCCIPUT ("the back part of the head or skull"), and ACOUCHI (a type of rodent similar to an agouti).

My selection: APHOTIC


Round 3: Target 369 from 100 50 6 2 4 10

With no odd numbers available, it seemed very likely that we were going to have to divide something by 2.  While I was playing around with those options I realised that the standard method would suggest making this as 375 - 6, and with that viewpoint I soon found 369 = 4*100 - 50/2 - 6.

My selection: 369 = 4*100 - 50/2 - 6


Round 4: N D S A B O O F P

I had hoped for an R for NARDOOS, but its absence left me struggling.  I had SAND and BANDS.  Lots of other fives, of course, but I did not note them down.

The findable six here was DOONAS, and the other is ADOBOS (ADOBO being a type of food from the Philippines).

My selection: BANDS
Best: DOONAS


Round 5: L C E R O U S N E

I had CORE, ULCER, ULCERS, OUNCES, COUNSEL, rightly rejected RECOUNSEL / COUNSELER, recalled from previous occasions that ENSORCEL is not valid (the Macquarie only has the spelling ENSORCELL), and then happily hit upon ENCLOSURE for my second full monty of the game.  Woohoo!

ENCLOSURE is the only nine, and LUCERNES is the only eight (the Macquarie does not list ENCLOSER).

My selection: ENCLOSURE


Round 6: Target 702 from 75 25 100 8 2 5

Applying the standard method gave me 702 = 8*100 - 75 - 25 + 2, then I saved a number with 702 = 8*75 + 100 + 2.

My selection: 702 = 8*75 + 100 + 2


Round 7: A O I G M D N S A

I had MAGI, DOSING, and ADAGIOS.

The eight to be had here is ANGIOMAS (ANGIOMA: "a tumour consisting chiefly of dilated or newly formed blood or lymph vessels").  The other sevens are ANGIOMA, DOMAINS / DAIMONS (DAIMON being a variant spelling of DAEMON) / MADISON (a type of cycling race), AGNOSIA ("loss or impairment of the ability to recognise objects by any of the various senses"), ANOSMIA ("loss of the sense of smell"), GANOIDS (GANOID being any of a certain type of fish), and SIAMANG (a type of gibbon).

My selection: ADAGIOS


Round 8: Target 600 from 25 1 9 6 1 2

A multiple of 100 is rarely troubling.  The target is 24*25, and I started with 600 = (2 + 1 + 1)*6*25 and then saved a number with 600 = (2*9 + 6)*25.

My selection: 600 = (2*9 + 6)*25


Round 9: ACNE TRAIN

Chosen yet again.  A tough one, I would have thought, with the letters being fairly common.

My selection: [N/A -- chosen]
Best: INCARNATE