My Pop Quiz Burst!
◆ · By DrTom · Published 2024-05-31T21:54:28.641Z
Meta Prompt
If you fail the quiz you may get the meta answer on your permanent record
As a student I always hated pop quizzes because I felt they were more punitive than instructive, and as an educator I felt the same way. However, as a crossword constructor, well that's a different story. The idea just popped into my mind, as so many do.
This one should play at about a Calico level, but if not I will accept all bribes and inducements for nudges...Oh, heck I am going to give Friday nudges anyway, save your money.
Kitten
CALICO
Persian
Puma
Lion
Thanks to my testers lbray53, BarbaraK, and KayW who suffered through several iterations of this little brainteaser.
My Pop Quiz Burst Nudges
Nudge 1] The title is important more for what happens in it than what it says
Nudge 2] There is no doubt about the theme clues since they all have asterisks.
Nudge 3] Could you do something with each word similar to what I did with the title?
Nudge 4] What is a more common way of saying "I'm going to CONK you on the head?"
My Pop Quiz Burst Crosshare Reveal
The Reveal:
There were 6 grid entries that, like the title, could have had a different entry for the XOP word (i.e. BURST and POP)
CONK = BOP
PRUNE = LOP
CAT = OOP (ALLEY CAT and ALLEY OOP were both 60's hits)
ACME = TOP
POLICE = COP
LEAP = HOP
The first letters give the META answer BLOTCH
For a graphic representation of the solve go to:
Checking for previous play data...
Good one, Tom -- Thanks!1A
*Hit on the head
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
Across
- 1A*Hit on the head
- 5AThat girl
- 8AElectronic journal
- 12ANitrogen-based fertilizer
- 13ADirection some people run
- 14A*Cut off a branch
- 15AMufasa's brother
- 16AFish you can find underfoot
- 17AStand for a painting
- 18ABlood-suckers
- 20ASmall songbirds
- 21ADrops it down a few notches
- 22AWrite
- 23AMagic word that is quick to be used in Italian
- 26ALong stories
- 30AMere boy
- 31AOnline representative
- 34ASmall amount
- 35AFriend of your foe
- 37A*Niche song from the 60's that made it all the way into the Billboard 100 top 10; Alley___
- 38AMilan's "La ___"
- 39A*Denotes being at your peak
- 40ABreakdown a meal
- 42AComponent of a railroad
- 43AShowed your appreciation
- 45A*Profession of a man in blue
- 47AElephant's weight, maybe
- 48AMake it home
- 50A*A way to get in or out
- 52AThose who have "drunk the Kool-aid"
- 56ACharles de Gaulle's birthplace
- 57AAustralia's gemstone
- 58AAt one time, at one time
- 59APart of a flower that might follow you around
- 60ABreaks a commandment
- 61AParis bank
- 62AContradict
- 63AGet the droop on
- 64AAug. follower
Down
- 1DAstrological gray area
- 2DTwo-tone seal eater
- 3DWarm, so to speak
- 4DGolden units
- 5DBible belted
- 6DGolfer's quests
- 7DSqueaks by
- 8DEinstein type
- 9DIntergalactic sin, ___ in space
- 10DWashington bills
- 11DPreparation for your hair or teeth
- 13DBiochemistry professor with a penchant for science fiction
- 14DFabled consumer of pumpkin
- 19DAsian appetizer
- 22DA pop
- 23DFold
- 24DRussian or French alternative
- 25DSwelling
- 26DComplete someone
- 27DBeaded counters
- 28DA lovely smelling pastel
- 29DGawk
- 32DIf you drop this you could go to jail
- 33DInformational source on a garment
- 36DHead count of males in a room
- 38DRetail outlet
- 40DAnimal house
- 41DGives in to a child's every whim
- 44DFraction of a ruble
- 46DBottle openers, essentially
- 48DBrown shade
- 49DSound from the steeple
- 50DDietary, in ads
- 51DObvious flair
- 52DBig cheese
- 53DThe E in H.O.M.E.S.
- 54DAbbreviation in an invitation
- 55D"Let it stand"
- 56DSee 32D