PCC#19 "Home Plate"
■ · By Philip Chow · Published 2023-12-11T13:00:41.872Z
Meta Prompt
[Level 2] Meta prompt: The answer to the meta is a U.S. state
This puzzle is published under Muggle Meta Mondays (MMM) at the XWord Muggles forum, see link here: https://www.xword-muggles.com/viewtopic.php?t=2570
Many thanks to @abide for test-solving and suggestions for improvement.
hint #1: the plate in the title refers to license plates... license plates will sometimes have the state's nickname on them
hint #2: see if you can find state nicknames in the grid, there are 8 of them (search online as needed for any you are unfamiliar with)
hint #3: they all follow the format "the [something] state" and are symmetrically placed (including 45-A)
hint #4: take the first letters of the states in grid order to spell out a key word
hint #5: there is a wikipedia page on "mountain states," but that is a geographic division and not a state nickname
hint #6: rocky mountain, iron mountain, green mountain, white mountain are all state nicknames, but they are not the meta answer... there is a state that is just "the mountain state"
Checking for previous play data...
1A
"What a shame"
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
65
66
Across
- 1A"What a shame"
- 7AAccumulate on the surface, like molecules (and one letter off from what sponges do to water)
- 13A"___ THE MONEY!" ("Jerry Maguire" catchphrase)
- 14AKind of nut that Calvin contemplates throwing at Susie in a "Calvin and Hobbes" comic strip
- 16ATrojan War hero in a Virgil classic
- 17ARegion now referred to as West Asia
- 19AMarge Simpson's hairstyle
- 21ARace for, as the finish line
- 22ACheck for fingerprints
- 23A"The ___-King" (Schubert composition based on a Goethe poem)
- 25ABatteries usually not included upon purchasing a toy
- 26A"C'___ la vie!"
- 27AInsect that can carry up to 50 times its own weighted
- 29AMakeup of some countertops
- 33A"Kapow!"
- 35AStart of a spelling rule that is broken twice by "weird neighbors"
- 36AFreely offer, as Katniss does as tribute in "The Hunger Games"
- 38APotent potable referred to as "the green fairy"
- 41AFakes, as ignorance
- 45ANickname (and key to unlocking the meta)
- 46AHigh-speed Internet option: Abbr.
- 47AFill up on chow
- 48AStock market debut: Abbr.
- 49AYang's counterpart, in Chinese philosophy
- 51ASnip out, as coupons
- 52ASomething to binge, nowadays
- 56AAretha Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A ___ Woman"
- 59AOverlooks, as faults
- 61AFee on some out-of-state purchases
- 63A___ dog (burrowing critter that Lewis and Clark called a "barking squirrel")
- 64A"The ___ Strikes Back" ("Star Wars" movie in which Darth Vader says "I am your father")
- 65AWord before "media," "studies," or "butterfly"
- 66APerfumes
Down
- 1D"Revenge ___ dish best served cold"
- 2DWhat someone who avoids answering a question beats around
- 3DHotel chain founded by Sonny Sonnabend
- 4D"Awesome!"
- 5DYing-ying's childhood nanny in "The Joy Luck Club"
- 6DArnaz of "I Love Lucy"
- 7DDoubleday who supposedly invented baseball
- 8DScheduled to be returned, as a library book
- 9DFish with razorbelly, yellowtail, and mackerel varieties
- 10DGumbo vegetable
- 11DOscar nominee for "Mudbound" Dee ___
- 12DExtremely close way to win
- 15DSubject of a will, perhaps
- 18D"Move along, nothing ___ here"
- 20DNov. 11 honoree, for short
- 22DWater droplets on grass
- 24DCommunity represented at a pride parade: Abbr.
- 27DCornelis van Haarlem painting "___ and a Nun"
- 28DNick of "The Prince of Tides"
- 30DCoral formations
- 31DRead ___-good story (enjoy some "Chicken Soup for the Soul," perhaps)
- 32DSeaweed used to wrap sushi
- 34D1007, in Roman numerals
- 35DVerdi's "String Quartet ___ minor"
- 37D"Driving Miss Daisy" playwright Alfred
- 38DNot quite right
- 39DNursery rhyme character who lost her sheep
- 40D"Z Z Z" makers, in comics
- 42DJiggly dessert
- 43DFancy work from a manicurist
- 44DConditions for which 1 mole of gas takes up 22.4 liters: Abbr.
- 46DGenetic evidence used in forensic science: Abbr.
- 50DInside info
- 51DThin pancake
- 53D"Grave of the Fireflies" director Takahata
- 54DLarger-than-life
- 55DTraditional Indian wedding dress
- 57DMon. follower
- 58D"Semper Fi" military branch: Abbr.
- 60D"Chandelier" singer
- 62DDeletes, with "out"
Thanks.