Category: Mini

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Mini Venn Mini

Venn Mini 2

Words:  11

Average Length:  4.73

Drying heads of 5 Down, Lofoten Islands, Norway

online | puz | pdf | solution

I wasn’t threatened too grievously after posting Venn Mini 1 last week, so here we go again! Think of each half of each clue as a circle in a Venn diagram; the answer will fit in the intersection between the two circles. It could be a common component, a word used in both “circles” but with different meanings, a name associated with both “circles,” or some other common ground.

EXPLANATIONS/SPOILERS BELOW

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1A:  MOSS is a kind of bryophyte; Kate Moss is a supermodel

5A:  COPPER is an essential element of both brass and bronze

7A:  O’LEARY was the owner of the cow that started the great Chicago fire, and “Mr. Wonderful” on Shark Tank is Kevin O’Leary

8A:  DERIVE is a term used both in calculus and in etymology

9A:  SANE – besides meaning “sensible,” Aladdin Sane was one of David Bowie’s alter egos

1D:  MOLES are enemy agents who’ve burrowed into a spy organization as well as rodents that burrow in gardens

2D:  OPERA – The Marx Brothers are known for A Night at the Opera and Kurt Weill is noted for his music for The Threepenny Opera (esp. “Mack the Knife”)

3D:  SPAIN – Toledo is a city in Spain and Columbus’s expeditions were funded by Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain

4D:  SERVE – people serve in tennis and in the military

5D:  COD – Cash on Delivery or a kind of fish

6D:  RYE – Salinger wrote The Catcher in the Rye, and rye is a type of whiskey

Categories
Mini Venn Mini

Venn Mini 1

Words:  10 (5×5)

Average Length:  4.20

I haven’t seen a puzzle like this before, although I’m sure the concept exists.  Think of each half of the clue as a circle in a Venn diagram; the answer is found in the intersection between the two circles.  It may be a shared trait or name, a constituent part of each category, a word associated with both “circles” but meaning different things in each context, or some other common ground.

online | puz | pdf | solution

Explanation/spoilers below:

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1A: FLEA is the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ bassist, and a flea is common parasite

5A:  BRAND is a ranch “dressing,” or decoration, and Hidden Valley is a common brand of ranch dressing

6A:  LINDA Rondstadt sang Blue Bayou (as did Roy Orbison, but he doesn’t fit), and Linda Blair starred in The Exorcist

7A:  UTEs is the name both of an indigenous American people and a common shortening of “utility” for vehicles.

8A:  EOS is a Canon camera and the Greek goddess of the dawn

1D:  FRITO means fried in Spanish; a chimichanga is fried – and of course Frito is an iconic corn chip

2D:  LANES are found in both highways and bowling alleys

3D:  ENDS – a line segment has 2 ends, and codas are the ends of musical pieces

4D:  ADA Lovelace is regarded by some as an early computer programmer, and the ADA is the professional organization of dentists

5D:  BLUE is component of both Green (with yellow) and Purple (with red)

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Mini Puny but Punny

Puny but Punny 4

Words: 10

Average Length: 4.80

More Wednesday silliness. This one might be a bit more difficult than my other PBP puzzles, but with extra challenge comes extra humor, I hope.

online | puz | pdf | solution

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Mini Puny but Punny

Puny but Punny 3

Words: 8

Average Length: 4.0

Another bite-sized package of silly puns.  I’m particularly proud/ashamed of 4 Down.

online | puz | pdf | solution

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Mini Puny but Punny

Puny but Punny 2

Here’s a fun-sized grab bag of shameless (shameful?) puns.  If you like it, please share the puzzle with your friends. If not, please share it with your enemies.

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Mini Puny but Punny

Puny but Punny

Words: 8

Average Length: 4

I woke up one morning a few weeks ago with half of this puzzle already in my head.  Perhaps I should have stayed asleep?

If you forgive me after solving this, please come back tomorrow for a themeless that I promise is 100% free of Dad jokes.

online | puz | pdf | solution

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Mini

Mostly Musical Mini

Words:  18 (7×7)

Average Length:  5.00

Difficulty:  Familiarity with Weird Al, Beethoven, and musical notation helps.  Unfamiliarity is unacceptable and virtually guarantees you won’t complete the grid.

Organ, Helsinki’s Rock Church (Temppeliaukio Church). See 8 Down (who might have gone there since the church opened in 1969 and he died in 1973).

Here’s a piquant amuse-bouche for y’all.  It’s about 2/3 music-related clues and 1/3 other stuff.  Please enjoy, and please come back Sunday for a challenging themeless.

puz | pdf | solution