NG 346

New game 346 is now available.


Round 1: C L K D U A E N L

I had LUCK, CAULK, CAULKED, rightly rejected UNLACKED, and wondered about UNCALLED.  I thought that UNCALLED-FOR would definitely be listed, but was less sure about UNCALLED.  I decided to risk it anyway, and fortunately UNCALLED is listed in the block entries.

UNCALLED is the only eight.  The other sevens are CLANKED and UNLACED.

My selection: UNCALLED


Round 2: H R R O F E I U T

I had FORE, FURORE, FOURTH, and FRUITER.

The other sevens are FURTHER, TURFIER, ROTIFER (a type of microscopic animalcule), and HERITOR (variant form of INHERITOR).

But there are two eights to be had: FROTHIER and THURIFER ("someone who carries a thurible in religious ceremonies").

My selection: FRUITER
Best: FROTHIER


Round 3: Target 827 from 50 100 9 7 8 6

The target is, of course, near 11*75, but it seems hard to utilise that.  I struggled with this; the offsets for the standard method as 27 and 23; the latter can be made as 9 + 8 + 6, but then getting to 850 with the rest is difficult.  But when I considered working down from 900, the offset of 73 seemed rather more manageable, and a tweak sorted it out: 827 = 9*(100 - 8) - (7 - 6).

My selection: 827 = 9*(100 - 8) - (7 - 6)


Round 4: A H S A M S O D B

I had SHAM, SHAMS, SODAS, amused myself by noticing MOSSAD, SAMOSA, and SAMBAS.

Six is the best to be done; the others are ADMASS ("the consumers who make up the audience of advertising via the mass media") and SAMBOS (SAMBO apparently being colloquial for a sandwich, and also a derogatory American term for dark-skinned people).  I'm a bit disappointed that BADASS is not listed.

My selection: SAMOSA


Round 5: S A U P R I S E G

I had SPAR, PAIRS, PRAISES, and UPRISES.  Somehow I missed UPRAISES, although it was immediately obvious after time.

UPRAISES is the only eight; the other sevens are UPRAISE, PAUSERS, GASSIER, SUSPIRE (an archaic word meaning "to breathe"), ASPIRES / PARESIS ("incomplete motor paralysis") / SPIREAS (SPIREA being a variant spelling of SPIRAEA, a type of herb), SAURIES (SAURY being a type of fish), SPURGES (SPURGE being a type of plant), SAUGERS (SAUGER being another type of fish) / ARGUSES (ARGUS: "any observant or vigilant person"), and GASPERS / SPARGES (SPARGE: "to scatter or sprinkle").

My selection: PRAISES
Best: UPRAISES


Round 6: Target 310 from 75 50 10 4 7 3

I started with the short standard method approach of 310 = 4*75 + 10.  Then I checked the factorisation 10*31 and saw that I could do this in the small numbers alone: 310 = (4*7 + 3)*10.

My selection: 310 = (4*7 + 3)*10


Round 7: E A B I G M Z R P

I had GIBE, IMAGE, and MIRAGE, briefly amusing myself with the idea of PRIZEBAG along the way.  After time I checked up on two sevens that I had considered but rejected, and it turned out that both were valid after all: PRIMAGE ("a small allowance formerly paid by a shipper to the master and crew of a vessel for the loading and care of the goods [...]") and GAMBIER (I only thought of this because of Mount Gambier, but it turns out to have a separate meaning: "an astringent extract similar to catechu, obtained from the leaves and young shoots of Uncaria gambir, a tropical Asiatic shrub, and used in dying, tanning, etc.").

There is another seven, also, perhaps more common than both of those: EPIGRAM ("any witty, ingenious, or pointed saying tersely expressed").

My selection: MIRAGE
Best: EPIGRAM


Round 8: Target 362 from 25 75 10 4 7 9

The standard method would suggest making this as 350 + 12 or 375 - 13.  The latter is a little more tempting as 9 + 4 = 13, but then I was not easily able to get to 375 with the remaining numbers.  I wrote down a fallback one off 363 = (75 - 25)*7 + 9 + 4 just in case, and looked further afield.  I happened to consider the option of 325 + 37, and then realised that I could make the 37 as 4*7 + 9.  That let me find a solution of 362 = 10*25 + 75 + 4*7 + 9.  A bit after time I noted a tweaked variant that saved a number: 362 = 4*(75 + 7) + 25 + 9.

My selection: 362 = 10*25 + 75 + 4*7 + 9


Round 9: RUIN REACH

I chose this conundrum explicitly; no idea why it occurred to me.

My selection: [N/A -- conundrum chosen explicitly]
Best: HURRICANE