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Colorful Words (Puma)

◆ · By DrTom · Published 2024-06-05T11:30:38.717Z

Meta Prompt
The meta answer is a colorful word people use when discussing the police
OK, last weeks was WAY easy I was told, and the only way it was a Calico was if you tried to do the grid blindfolded...
Fine, let's see if I can have something for everyone. This puzzle started simple and then there were a few changes for PC reasons and then there were some changes for clarity, then I made some changes to make it a little harder, then someone else thought, well you can make it harder still if you....
In the end I had KITTEN, PERSIAN, PUMA, LION...which one to pick. To heck with it, I'll do a smorgasbord. You will see that I have included one of each versions and you can choose which one you feel either comfortable or like wasting your time on. There are no pictures of the GRIDS because if I did that I would be giving away the puzzle I am afraid, but of course you are free to look at/solve them all, and that may help you if you get stuck. Because there are several versions and each step “down” reveals a little bit more (the KITTEN is a different grid and concept completely, but the answer and mechanism are pretty much the same) I probably will not post Friday nudges. But, as you all know you can PM me for assistance anytime.
Difficulty Level: Kitten to Lion of course
So go ahead and pick the one you think you’d like to try…and get ready for a litany of colorful words! Oh and when I post the solvers I will note which one was solved: KITTEN, PERSIAN, PUMA or LION.
Thanks to my diligent and long-suffering testers: Cinny, Bird Lives, pchow13, hcbirker
The Reveal
Six (6) entries become colors when the meta mechanism (a three letter entry has two letters that correspond to the first two letters of a corresponding entry, cancel out the two common letters and you are left with a color) is applied. Depending on the version [PERSIAN, PUMA, LION] either the three letter entry had an asterisk, the corresponding entry had an asterisk, no entry had asterisks.
STREAM and STR =CREAM=C
DERANGE and DEO =ORANGE=O
BOINK and BOP =PINK=P
HILUM + HIP= PLUM=P
IMBONY and IME=EBONY=E
NOOSE and NOR=ROSE=R
When arranged in order of the longer word you get COPPER, a colorful word people use when discussing the police
For a graphic representation of the solve go to:
https://www.xword-muggles.com/viewtopic.php?t=2944
Checking for previous play data...

Leaderboard (updated hourly)

  • Pair O Ducks solved 2024-06-05T12:47:16.780Z
  • kurtalert solved 2024-06-05T14:58:53.861Z
  • woozy solved 2024-06-05T17:35:50.710Z
  • ajk solved 2024-06-05T18:09:23.616Z
  • whimsy solved 2024-06-05T21:47:45.308Z
  • Jaclyn solved 2024-06-05T23:01:09.756Z
  • Qmark solved 2024-06-06T01:22:04.968Z
  • HeadinHome solved 2024-06-06T02:38:06.901Z
  • lbray53 solved 2024-06-06T11:52:53.087Z
  • rjy solved 2024-06-06T16:16:20.854Z
  • Avlan solved 2024-06-07T05:43:26.323Z

Comments

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  • Pair O Ducks 3s · 2024-06-05T12:55:20.709Z
    Nice one, Tom! Came here after a bit of noodling on the "Lion" -- turns out I was on the right trail, but I didn't trust myself enough to carry it through. (Oh, and for a minute I thought you must have found my notes for another puzzle I'm working on! But thankfully yours is different (and certainly more clever!).)
    • DrTom constructor · 2024-06-05T14:21:42.862Z
      Oh Oh - well I stole this idea from a Connections and then tried to refine it a bit. I'll file this away in my memory banks so that maybe I'll have a head start later.
    • kurtalert 7s · 2024-06-05T15:12:36.449Z
      Nice one (four!)! I solved the grid in the PERSIAN (and went and solved the KITTEN grid too, just for fun) but only did the meta in PUMA.
      Even knowing the answer, I'm not really sure I understand the Persian mechanism. I do see that it's the last letter of all the starred clues, but I'm not sure I understand why it's the last letter- and the ordering is unusual- right to left, across clues first then downs? The PUMA mechanism struck me right away, though- probably didn't even take me a minute to get that one.
      Funny how metas work- the difficulties are so different for everybody... sometimes you just see it right away, and sometimes you need to be smacked over the head with it and even then you can't really figure it out. LOL.
      Thanks for a really cool set of puzzles!
      • ajk 3s · 2024-06-05T18:11:02.159Z
        Dangit I'd spotted the IMBONY to EBONY conversion in the LION version, but didn't follow through. :) Still happy with my decision to shift down to PUMA and save some time overall. Very nicely done.
        • Qmark 3s · 2024-06-06T01:23:22.358Z
          Enjoyed the puzzle...Puma was just right for me. Thanks DrTom!
          • HeadinHome 🤓1:28 · 2024-06-06T02:38:55.089Z
            I used the PDF, which was labeled Puma… I’d say kitten. But I love kittens, so no complaints here!
            • whimsy 🤓4:40 · 2024-06-06T04:45:49.298Z
              An experience similar to Alan's. From the LION I had the idea of ebony, also DERANGED and BOINK. But was messing myself up by considering that violet could rhyme with OWLET (or perhaps YELLOW using letters from the entire row) and was attempting PUCE from NOOSE. 😆 Never would have seen CREAM or especially the tricky PLUM what with the syllable difference. I really needed the asterisks to help me zero in! Thanks for the puzzle, Tom -- and the others too that I intend to finish off!
              Play today's daily mini crossword
              1A
              Sing the praises of, probably so everyone can hear
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              Across
              1. 1A
                Sing the praises of, probably so everyone can hear
              2. 5A
                Single female
              3. 9A
                Compulsive smoke blowers, for short
              4. 14A
                Irish, once
              5. 15A
                Just
              6. 16A
                Chick that gives a hoot
              7. 17A
                Johnny Gilbert, for example
              8. 19A
                Director of "Get Out" and "Us", Jordan
              9. 20A
                Neither's partner
              10. 21A
                * A place to row, row your boat
              11. 23A
                Wicked and corrupt
              12. 24A
                "Cheap Thrills" singer
              13. 25A
                "Wow, that was close"
              14. 27A
                Bambi's aunt
              15. 28A
                * Drive nuts
              16. 32A
                * Knock on the noggin
              17. 34A
                Steed and Peel
              18. 36A
                Forever and a day
              19. 37A
                Duster
              20. 38A
                French friend
              21. 40A
                Crosby Show son
              22. 44A
                Where UNC, NC State, and Va. Tech play
              23. 47A
                Forgers workshops
              24. 50A
                * Black-eyed pea's "black eye", botanically
              25. 52A
                Emulates Houdini
              26. 53A
                Take for a ride, perhaps
              27. 54A
                Bart's saxy sister
              28. 57A
                Famed ballet co.
              29. 58A
                Exasperated cry
              30. 60A
                * Skeleton's self description
              31. 62A
                Monogram for "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" poet
              32. 65A
                "___ the one less traveled by", Frost
              33. 67A
                Things that will grind you down
              34. 69A
                * Loop in a lasso
              35. 70A
                Make-up artist?
              36. 71A
                Bill from Philadelphia
              37. 72A
                Broke it off
              38. 73A
                Fast time
              39. 74A
                Raggedy looking boy
              Down
              1. 1D
                Go full tilt
              2. 2D
                River under the Ponte Vecchio
              3. 3D
                "Anchors Aweigh" readiness gp.
              4. 4D
                Latin God
              5. 5D
                Art in small pieces
              6. 6D
                Price hike; Abbr.
              7. 7D
                Shakespeare told us it "knits up the ravell'd sleave of care"
              8. 8D
                Wine from the Northern Rhone
              9. 9D
                40's and 50's music genre
              10. 10D
                Popeye's nephew ___ Pea
              11. 11D
                Football team
              12. 12D
                Put in a different URL
              13. 13D
                Designator of a grave event
              14. 18D
                Employing
              15. 22D
                Let ___ (please stop pestering)
              16. 24D
                Beach shoe
              17. 26D
                Pursue romantically
              18. 28D
                Shout when a fish hits a barrier
              19. 29D
                "Locomotion" little girl
              20. 30D
                Big name in camping
              21. 31D
                Historical focus
              22. 33D
                Because
              23. 35D
                Txt for texting
              24. 39D
                "___ Mine", Beatles song
              25. 41D
                Fashionable body joint?
              26. 42D
                Spec you might see for a roomy flat?
              27. 43D
                C.I.A. predecessor
              28. 45D
                "__ de sac"
              29. 46D
                CDLI x II
              30. 48D
                "Painting ___, not a skill"
              31. 49D
                Places to buy yogurt
              32. 50D
                Fan of the Who
              33. 51D
                Tight with
              34. 53D
                Ship of a fictitious mutiny
              35. 55D
                Stuff you are not supposed to sweat
              36. 56D
                Hoffman of "The Chicago Seven"
              37. 59D
                Kinky thing in the back yard
              38. 61D
                Major Algerian port city
              39. 62D
                "Frozen" reindeer
              40. 63D
                Take the bar
              41. 64D
                "Teach Your Children" group, initially
              42. 66D
                One simple sneaker
              43. 68D
                Draft letters
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