NG 262

New game 262 is now available.


Round 1: A T H R P I U O L

I had HART, PATH, TAPIR, AUTHOR, and THORIA.  After time I noted other sixes of PORTAL / PATROL and HARLOT, and noted that an E instead of the U would have allowed EPILATOR for eight.

There is an eight here, though: TROUPIAL, a type of bird.  Some sources would also allow ULTRAHIP, but it is not in the Macquarie.

The Macquarie also does not list a specific plural for PHILTRUM, so PHILTRA must be deemed invalid.  The only seven here is thus UROLITH, listed as a term for URINARY CALCULUS -- a term which always amuses me, making me think of people having to solve calculus problems before they can urinate, but actually goes back to the root meaning of CALCULUS as the Latin word for pebble.  (Pebbles being used for calculation purposes at the time.)  So URINARY CALCULUS are more or less small stones in the urinary tract.

My selection: AUTHOR
Best: TROUPIAL


Round 2: L S T F E T A B I

I had FELT, wondered about FELTS (with more time to think, it is clearly valid), BATTLES / TABLETS, STABILE ("a sculpture or construction of sheet metal, wood, etc., similar in concept and design to a mobile, but motionless"), and rightly rejected SIFTABLE and FITTABLE.

Scrabble would allow FITTABLE as it turns out, but not the Macquarie, so seven is the best to be done.  The other sevens are BESTIAL / ABLEIST / ALBITES (ALBITE being a mineral) / ASTILBE (a type of plant), LEFTIST, FATTIES, and BATISTE ("a fine, delicate fabric of plain weave").

Update: Victor pointed out that there is an eight here after all.  The seven of FLATTIE is defined as "a flat-bottomed dinghy", so FLATTIES is valid for eight.  (It also has a meaning as a pair of low-heeled shoes.)

My selection: BATTLES
Best: FLATTIES


Round 3: Target 583 from 25 100 75 9 6 2

My first instinct was to descent from 600, but the offset of 17 is not so easy (although 18 is, so one away is very achievable).  But the offset is also 8 away from 575 and that is much more promising; I went with 583 = 9*75 - 100 + 6 + 2.

My selection: 583 = 9*75 - 100 + 6 + 2


Round 4: P A T I C A A C I

I had PACT and CACTI, pondering but rejecting ACCIPIT (I was wondering if this might be some legal term, but the closest match is ACCIPITER, a type of bird) and PICCATA (legal in Scrabble, but not listed in the Macquarie) along the way.  I was OK with the extra vowels as I had been hoping for an O for TAPIOCA, but not such luck.  A Y would have allowed CAPACITY, too, but was always poor odds.  A final H would have allowed CAPTCHA, but -- a little to my surprise -- that is not listed in the Macquarie yet (and it seems that it might require capitals also).

There are sixes here, though: ACACIA, PATACA ("the unit of currency used in Macao"), and CAPITA (plural of CAPUT: "Anatomy any head or headlike expansion on a structure, as on a bone").  CACTI looks like the only five.

My selection: CACTI
Best: ACACIA


Round 5: R D N E E E S O N

I had REND, ENDER, NEEDER, SNEERED, ENDORSE, and ENDORSEE.

ENDORSEE looks like the only eight; the other seven is NEEDERS.

My selection: ENDORSEE


Round 6: Target 352 from 75 50 100 8 4 9

This felt a little like the first numbers round in a way -- subtracting 100 and then getting the final adjustement: 352 = 9*50 - 100 + 8/4.  Late in the piece I looked at factors and found the factorisation 11*32, which I really should have seen earlier.  That led to the alternative solution 352 = 4*8*(9 + 100/50).

My selection: 352 = 9*50 - 100 + 8/4


Round 7: R Z F I S A T A E

I had FIRS, FAIRS, TIARAS, and FAIREST.

Seven looks like the best to be done; the others are FRITZES (plural of FRITZ: "Especially SA a large, mild-flavoured, pre-cooked sausage, usually sliced thinly and eaten cold") and ARISTAE (plural of ARISTA: "Botany a bristle-like appendage of grain, etc.") / ATRESIA ("Medicine the congenital absence or excessive narrowing of a duct or canal") / ASTERIA ("a precious stone which shows asterism when cabochon-cut, as the star sapphire").

My selection: FAIREST


Round 8: Target 851 from 100 75 10 3 8 9

Yet another case of getting near, adjusting by 100, and then making a final adjustment: 851 = 10*75 + 100 + 9 - 8.  Then I spotted the alternative option of 875 - 24, and the tweaked solution of 851 = 8*(100 - 3) + 75.

My selection: 851 = 8*(100 - 3) + 75


Round 9: TIN TIGERS

I was annoyingly slow to pick out -ING here, getting hung up on -IEST instead.  I eventually saw the answer of RESITTING but delayed a little to check for something more plausible as the RE- words can be dangerous.  It was the intended answer, though.

My selection: RESITTING (9.1s)