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Sunday Puzzle: Three of a kind

On-air challenge: I'm going to give you three words starting with S, E, and P -- as in "September." Think of a word that can follow each of mine to complete a compound word or a familiar two-word phrase.

Ex. Spring, Egg, Pay --> ROLL (as in spring roll, eggroll, payroll)

  1. Sales, Estate, Property
  2. Shut, Eagle, Private
  3. Stretch, Easy, Post
  4. School, Elbow, Powder
  5. Stained, Eye, Plate
  6. Social, Earth, Political

Last week's challenge: Last week's challenge comes from listener Lillian Range, of New Orleans. The word NONUNION has four N's and no other consonant. What famous American of the past -- first and last names, 8 letters in all -- has four instances of the same consonant and no other consonant?

Challenge answer: Eli Lilly

Winner: Franny Bavaro of Long Island

This week's challenge: This week's challenge comes from listener Ethan Kane, of Albuquerque, N.M. Name a famous TV personality of the past. Drop the second letter of this person's last name, and phonetically the first and last names together will sound like a creature of the past. What celebrity is this?

Submit Your Answer

If you know the answer to the challenge, submit it here by Thursday, September 5th, 2024 at 3 p.m. ET. Listeners whose answers are selected win a chance to play the on-air puzzle. Important: include a phone number where we can reach you.

Copyright 2024 NPR

NPR's Puzzlemaster Will Shortz has appeared on Weekend Edition Sunday since the program's start in 1987. He's also the crossword editor of The New York Times, the former editor of Games magazine, and the founder and director of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament (since 1978).