Shakespeare Teacher Special Feature III: Another Magic Word
Well, I’m off on vacation, and so I’ll be away from the blog for a few days.
I’ve posted some extra “content” this morning, and of course, here’s another Shakespeare Teacher Special Feature!
The rules are almost identical to the last Shakespeare Teacher Special Feature. Here’s how it breaks down:
- I. Thursday Morning Riddle: Please find below four brand-new riddles. Each riddle is numbered. Once you’ve solved the riddles, replace each number in the Venn Diagram below with the answer to the riddle that has that number.
- II. Shakespeare Anagram: Once the numbers have been replaced by the riddle answers, the letters in each circle of the Venn Diagram can be anagrammed into the title of a Shakespeare play. However, this can only be done after the question mark in the center section is replaced by a magic word. What is the magic word? And what are the three play titles?
- III. Conundrum: This week’s challenge is to come up with 26 words, any words commonly used in English, each of which features a different letter ______. (Fill in the blank with the magic word from the center section of the Venn Diagram.)
Use the comments section below to register any and all answers, discussion, and comments. I won’t be around for the next couple of days to moderate this, so please work together. If someone posts an answer you think is right, go ahead and say so and offer some words of encouragement. Also, feel free to pass this along to anyone you think may be interested. Here is the direct link.
The Riddles:
1. In stone primitive natural dwellings we lurk;
We think GEICO’s campaign was designed by a jerk;
But we’ve picked up a sitcom – a programming quirk;
And stay plural we must for this puzzle to work.
Who are we? (7 letters)
2. I’m a bag where potatoes are kept by the pound;
When your boss decides he doesn’t want you around;
If you hit me at night, you’ll be soon sleeping sound;
And I’ll bring any quarterback straight to the ground.
Who am I? (4 letters)
3. I’m the first in the spectrum that split light creates;
In the ledger, my presence a loss indicates;
I’m far left in the East, but I’m right in the States;
And the Hanrahan prefix in stories by Yeats.
Who am I? (3 letters)
4. I’m the boyfriend to Barbie who’s dapper and neat;
I’m the junior in baseball who’s primed to compete;
I’m the Cuckoo’s Nest novelist, sort of a beat;
And the Jeopardy champ who accomplished a feat.
Who am I? (3 letters)
So the solutions to this feature are four riddle answers, one magic word, three play titles, and up to 26 Conundrum words.
Good luck!
UPDATE: Riddles 1-4, Circles A, B, C, and the magic word all solved by Annalisa. Conundrum answers provided by Annalisa (22) and, in my own special way, me (4). See comments for all answers.
August 23rd, 2007 at 1:34 pm
Riddles:
1 Cavemen
2 Sack
3 Red
4 Ken
August 23rd, 2007 at 2:32 pm
Play 1 The Merchant of Venice
Play 2 King Richard the Second
Play 3 Hamlet Prince of Denmark
Center word: THRICE
August 23rd, 2007 at 2:47 pm
Aaa analytical
Bbb babble
Ccc coccyx
Ddd daddy
Eee eerie
Fff fluffy
Ggg giggle
Iii inimical
Lll lollipop
Mmm mommy
Nnn nanny
Ppp pepper
Rrr restorer
Sss sassy
Ttt tattle
Uuu unusual
yyy syzygy
zzz Zizzer (Yes, okay, it’s a proper noun – the mascot of West Plains HS in Missouri – and in case you want to know what a “zizzer” is: it’s a lightning bolt. My HS used to play their HS. They’ve got some serious – and seriously crazy – fans. Or at least they did – that was about 100 years ago!)
August 23rd, 2007 at 2:48 pm
ooo photojournalist
August 23rd, 2007 at 2:48 pm
kkk kickback
August 23rd, 2007 at 2:52 pm
Hhh hitchhike
August 23rd, 2007 at 3:07 pm
www powwow
August 26th, 2007 at 8:53 pm
Wow! Very nicely done, Annalisa. Correct on everything.
If a “zizzer” is also a lightning bolt, then it does not have to be a proper noun. But I’m glad to see you finish the list with such pizazz.
The only remaining letters are J, Q, V, and X, so I think I can take this out of the “Active” category.
Since I am, I may as well throw out some completely invalid answers for the remaining letters.
J-j-jitterbug (from Wham)
Quaquaqua (from Waiting for Godot)
Vavavoom
XXX-rated