NG 447

New game 447 is now available.


Round 1: R P N R A O P O D

I had ROAR, APRON, and PARDON.

The other six is NARDOO ("any of the Australian species of the mud-loving or aquatic genus of ferns, Marsilea").

My selection: PARDON


Round 2: I E E C T S S O R

I had CITE, CITES, SECTORS / ESCORTS, rightly rejected SECTORISE, wondered about COSSETER (not valid), and COTERIES.

The other eights are ESOTERIC and EROTISES (EROTISE: "to translate (emotion, etc.) into sexual feeling").  I was a little surprised that CROSSTIE was not listed.

My selection: COTERIES


Round 3: Target 551 from 100 50 25 8 9 8

Applying the standard method means we want to make a 1 for the final adjustment; I opted to make it as 9 - 8, and got the rest to make a solution of 551 = 8*(100 - 25) - 50 + 9 - 8.  Then I realised that I could also make a 1 as 8/8 and found the simpler 551 = 9*50 + 100 + 8/8.

My selection: 551 = 9*50 + 100 + 8/8


Round 4: D O N E E O L G S

I had NODE, GOLDEN, LODGES, LEGENDS, and NOODLES.  After time I noted DONGLES as another seven.

Those appear to be all the sevens, but there is an eight: LOOSENED.

My selection: LEGENDS
Best: LOOSENED


Round 5: I L A W E R S O T

I had WAIL, an uncertain WAILER (valid), a similarly uncertain WAILERS (also valid, clearly), SAILOR, and SALTIER / SALTIRE ("Heraldry an ordinary in the form of a Saint Andrew's Cross"; note that this is a heraldric sense of the word "ordinary") / REALIST.  After time I noted WARIEST / WAITERS as other sevens.

There's a lot of other sevens here, of which I'll just mention ISOLATE, TOILERS, TAILORS, and RETAILS.

My selection: SALTIER


Round 6: Target 652 from 25 75 50 4 6 2

The target is 25*26 + 2; making 26 is not directly easy, but a 24 was easy and that was good enough to give 652 = (50 - 6*4)*25 + 2.  Then I considered the alternative of 13*50 + 2 and found the other solution of 652 = (6 + 4 + 75/25)*50 + 2.

My selection: 652 = (50 - 6*4)*25 + 2


Round 7: A U I B R H S R A

I had HAIR, BRUSH, HUBRIS, and thought that AIRBRUSH might be hyphenated but decided to risk it.  That was fortunately the right decision.

AIRBRUSH is the only eight, and there are no sevens.  Two other sixes are BURSAR and SIRRAH, amongst others.

My selection: AIRBRUSH


Round 8: Target 465 from 50 100 25 1 3 10

The standard method suggests making it as 475 - 10, which I did as 465 = 3*(100 + 50) + 25 - 10.  Then I considered a tweaked version for the shorter 465 = (50 - 1)*10 - 25.

My selection: 465 = (50 - 1)*10 - 25


Round 9: NOSE LANES

It took me a little while to investigate the -LESS and -NESS options, and so find the answer of ALONENESS.

My selection: ALONENESS (4.6s)