And Finally... (Meta)
■ · By benchen71 · Published 4 months ago
Meta Prompt
The answer to the meta is an adjective
I just love the fact that Paul, at the start of the 3rd chapter to the Philippians says, "Finally, my brothers and sisters..." - and then continues on for another 2 chapters! (In fact, he says "Finally" again in Phil. 4:8, and at that point I think he really means it, because the letter is all over 15 verses later.) This is something that often happens during sermons or speeches: when someone says "And finally..." I am never sure how serious they are. Which brings me to this meta, in which you're looking for an adjective. Nudges available here: https://www.xword-muggles.com/viewtopic.php?p=114054#p114054
Check out the "Rejected (Non-meta) MOAT Pack" here: https://www.ephesusscroll.com/about/interest4.html. US$5 gets you 10 themed crosswords, most of which were rejected by one crossword publisher or another. Were those editors right to reject them? You be the judge!
Checking for previous play data...
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Comments
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- Laura M 🤓7:07 · 4 months agoExcellent!
- Tom Wilson 🤓7:58 · 4 months agoHow do these constructors do it, time and time again? Thank you, Ben, for yet another brilliant challenge. (And thank you, Cap'n Rick ... and Dr. Tom ... and Abide ... and Al Sisti ... and Josh ... and all of rest of the far-too-clever folks who prompt a whole lotta head-scratchin'.
- DrTom 3s · 4 months agoTom, thanks for the kind comments. We enjoy making these things, even if it does sometimes drive us slightly mad.
- DIS 🤓5:20 · 4 months agoA handsome and grand puzzle -- thanks!
- hoover 4s · 4 months agoNice one! I had to backtrack my fill because the AmE term is SANDBOX, but I'm learning some Strine as I go. :) I think of a sandpit as something involved in construction or mining, like a quarry.
- Teaching Americans Strine is one of my major reasons for doing a weekly meta!
- DrTom 3s · 4 months agoWell here is an interesting side-note. My ancestors were from Lancashire England and G'ies a taste then! was a common statement around our house when I was a kid, along with "Put th'wood int hole" (shut the door), "Mi belly thinks mi throats bin cut" (are we ever going to eat?). So maybe it is not Strine but Shire or even Geordie from Newcastle - "Am paggered and there's nee way I'm crackin this belta meta today" (I'm exhausted and there is no way I'm solving this excellent meta today)
- ChrisCross 🤓11:49 · 4 months agoEmbarrassed how long it took me to notice. It was a nice aha moment when I did.
- hoover 4s · 4 months agoWas so tempted to post "Landed across the moat!"
- Cindy Heisler 3s · 4 months agoI have to hand it to you, Ben. Another great meta. Thanks!
- whimsy 🤓11:20 · 4 months agoOK -- I'll join the crowd -- Just a dandy puzzle!
- rjy 3s · 4 months agoWow! Enjoyed it, tho it was a challenge. Took awhile to gain a toehold, and then to figure out what to do with it. Clever construction, Ben!
- Carolyn 5s · 4 months agoVery nice! Thanks
- Qmark 3s · 4 months agoSuch an enjoyable fill...learned a new word (Strine). And then the meta topped it all. Another great one, Ben...thanks!
- DrTom 3s · 4 months agoWell believe me when I say I tried EVERYTHING before I got to the right thing. I looked at: Final E in grid in clues, Final Y in grid and clues, Final ly in clues, Things that went on or lasted forever (like Pi, the Messiah, Dvorak symphonies, characters voiced by Mel Blanc), PI19DCircumference / diameter[--]and PIE35AClosed-topped fruit pastry[---]RA31DEgyptian sun god[--]and SRA34ASpanish Mrs.[---](since you seldom do two letter answers I was suspect), Words with "ON" in them to see if there was ON and ON. FINALLY (yes, reference intended) I went back to my forever idea and while looking up the half life for scandium (and finding it to be hours instead of eons...stupid non-radioactive isotopes) I went back to SCANDIUM40AElement with atomic number 21[--------]again and instead landed at SANDPIT28APlayground feature involving buckets and spades[-------]. "Idiot" I proclaimed, but I saw how I could do that since it had an AND in it....WAIT A MINUTE NOW! So there were a preponderance of ANDS, plus they were symmetrical; clever boy Ben. Of course my first answer AEPOIMIL (which Webster's defines as "Inability to solve a meta crossword despite having the right idea") was wrong but "ultimately" I saw my way home. Now here I was going to say, and finally - and then go on for another paragraph or two, but instead I'll just say "Thanks for a puzzle with long lasting enjoyment"
- That was quite the journey, but I'm glad you brought it home in the end!
- I K Snamhcok 11s · 4 months agoBen, you’re the living end! (Have you ever heard someone say that? I’m sure I’m showing my age. As I recall, it was a Sixties thing.)
- Unless you're talking about the Australian punk rockabilly band (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Living_End) then no. :D
- Ergcat 11:30 · 4 months agoNeeded the nudges to focus on meta although I was looking at most of these words anyway! I was trying to change the endings and find another word. Duh! Always trying to make it harder than it is! Good one, Ben!
- ReB 4s · 4 months agoJust had to go to the third nudge to find the correct commonality. (I was getting stuck on looking for commonality at the end of the words, and got distracted by all the words ending in xA.) Then the solution was a cakewalk - and appropriate that it was the last letters to form an apropos answer. Nice tight construction.I suppose the four 2-letter words were just a necessity? I spend some time trying to relate them to word endings.
1A
Actor who won an Academy Award for his role in "Ed Wood", Martin ___
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Across
- 1AActor who won an Academy Award for his role in "Ed Wood", Martin ___
- 7AComposer known for his choral work "Messiah"
- 13ABeer mugs
- 14ADisapproving glance
- 15A"Giss ___!" (Strine for "Let me try some")
- 16ASpoken about by many
- 17AOpen-topped fruit pastry
- 18AAussie rules, for example
- 20A___ and hearty
- 21AMan of many voices, ___ Blanc
- 23AIch bin; du bist; er/sie/es ___
- 24AMany a web-surfer
- 25A"Don't ___ My Parade"
- 28APlayground feature involving buckets and spades
- 30AStyle of Indian cooking involving an oven
- 32AI am; you ___; he/she/it is
- 33AJe suis; tu es; il/elle ___ (and if you feel like you're stuck in grammar class, I apologise profusely)
- 34ASpanish Mrs.
- 35AClosed-topped fruit pastry
- 36A"For never was a story of more ___ / Than this of Juliet and her Romeo."
- 39A"From ___ to shining ___"
- 40AElement with atomic number 21
- 42AOwner of the house Little Red Riding Hood visits
- 45A"Rats!"
- 46ABanana skins
- 47AWindow to the soul, apparently
- 49AWent first
- 50AWork without ___ (take risks)
- 51AIraqi port
- 53ANot at home
- 56AIodine ___ starch
- 58AChevy muscle car
- 60AHome entertainment locales
- 61AComposer known for his symphony "From the New World"
- 62AStagecoach robber
- 63A"Better to light a ___ to curse the darkness"
Down
- 1DExam for a future attorney (abbr.)
- 2DBoy or girl preceder
- 3D___ condition (used, but you wouldn't know it)
- 4DBloat
- 5DIndustrious insect
- 6DEmploys
- 7DNudge
- 8D"Much ___ About Nothing"
- 9D"Star Wars IV: A ___"
- 10DNorth America's highest peak
- 11DHole for a shoelace
- 12D"Deep Impact" director, Mimi ___
- 14DMattress maker
- 16D"Arrested Development" actress, Portia de ___
- 19DCircumference / diameter
- 22DMakes less tight
- 24DGland near the kidneys
- 25DWay to go (abbr.)
- 26DRemote batteries, often
- 27DU.S.-Canada defense acronym
- 29DAquatic nymph
- 31DEgyptian sun god
- 35DJohn Hodgman's role in a series of computer ads
- 36DNot on the lee side
- 37DYes, in Paris
- 38DFirst responder, for short
- 39DCured, dried fish
- 40DAuthority to make the final decision (and not a hint for solving the meta, despite the central location)
- 41D"You wish!"
- 42DCity known for its war-related conventions
- 43DGain back, as trust
- 44DPork and beef
- 46DSecond installment
- 48D"Just give me some time to think about what I'm going to say"
- 51DBldng's lwst rm
- 52D"Back In Black" rockers
- 54DShrinking inland sea
- 55DOxen holder
- 57DYou, in Paris
- 59D"Selma" director, ___ DuVernay
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