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Front Cover And Publication Information, Volume 28 Issue 4
Front Cover And Publication Information, Volume 28 Issue 4
Word Ways
Front cover and publication information for this issue.
Some Men Enjoy Oysters, A. Ross Eckler
Some Men Enjoy Oysters, A. Ross Eckler
Word Ways
On October 30, 1994, puzzlermaster Will Shortz of the Weekend Edition on National Public Radio, challenged his listeners to construct chain-link sentences, ones in which the last two letters of each word are repeated as the first two letters of the succeeding word. He gave his audience extra time, allowing them two weeks in which to send in answers before announcing the winner on November 13. The winner, followed by the four runners-up, was
A Line-End Alphabet Poem, Sir Jeremy Morse
A Line-End Alphabet Poem, Sir Jeremy Morse
Word Ways
...alphabetic telestics in which the alphabet is at line-end appear to be quite rare. I know of none; I challenge readers to create one that rhymes...
8-Letter And 9-Letter Word Networks, Leonard Gordon
8-Letter And 9-Letter Word Networks, Leonard Gordon
Word Ways
My first contributions to Word Ways were on word ladders and networks. In "Word Network Spans in the OSPD" in Feb 1989, I analyzed 4-letter, 5-letter and 6-letter word lists; in "More Network SPans in the OSPD" in AUgust 1990 I briefly studied 7-letter and 8-letter words. This was the limit of my computer capabilities at the time. Since then I have doubled the side of my lists, mostly with Webster's Second words, but I have also upgraded my computer and DOS. Here is a new study of 8-letter and 9-letter words. Part of my objective was to find ideal …
Possessionlessness Pluralized?, David G. Armstrong
Possessionlessness Pluralized?, David G. Armstrong
Word Ways
I cannot let pass without protest the use, in Susan Thorpe's otherwise excellent article (Word Ways, Aug 1995) of POSSESSIONLESSNESSES. People who have possessions may have a wide variety of kinds and numbers of possessionfulnesses. But if several such persons were to lose their possessions would all be reduced to the null set and they would share in common a unique and singular possessionlessness, for which no plural is admissible.
A Spooner-Assisted Ten-Square, Jeff Grant
A Spooner-Assisted Ten-Square, Jeff Grant
Word Ways
"In Search of the Ten-Square" in the November 1990 Word Ways featured in a manually-constructed square with reasonable 10-letter terms in every position. The ASTRALISED 10-square is arguably the finest of its type so Spooner, an interesting variation of this square is possible.
Rejoinders, Stephen Sniderman
Rejoinders, Stephen Sniderman
Word Ways
Would you like to join the tennis club? I'd LOVE to! How about the Sierra Club? NATURally! And the cereal club? Not on your LIFE! The Action Club? AFFIRMATIVE! You get the idea. In the two puzzles below, try to match each invitation in the left-hand column with the appropriate reJOINder in the right-hand column. If you think some are unforgivably awful puns, join the club! Se Answers and Solutions for the answers.
Senescent Sentences: Ten Scenes, Nyr Indictor
Senescent Sentences: Ten Scenes, Nyr Indictor
Word Ways
Staring at my tube of toothpaste the other morning, I noticed the word GINGIVITIS. It occurred to me that this was an anagram of IS IT GIVING. Having nothing better to do while brushing my teeth, I started pondering the significance of sentences that may be broken down into components which are anagrams of each other, like "Is it giving ! gingivitis?" and "The potato's ! short a poet, ! past the too-!hot-to-paste ! toothpaste." By the time I had finished brushing, the basic of the game of Senescent Sentences had been formulated.
Square And Triangular Number-Names, Monte J. Zerger
Square And Triangular Number-Names, Monte J. Zerger
Word Ways
In the mathematics of sets the cardinality of a collection of object is defined to be the number of objects in the collection, and is denoted by placing vertical bars around a listing of that collection. Following that convention we write !FOUR! = 4 or !SEVEN! = 5.
A Modest Proposal, Bob Maier
A Modest Proposal, Bob Maier
Word Ways
As you already know, a palindrome is a word or phrase that spells the same way forward and backward. Some examples are BOB, MADAM I'M ADAM and A MAN, A PLAN, A CANAL: PANAMA.
Madam, I'M Adam (Sir, I'M Iris), Howard Richler
Madam, I'M Adam (Sir, I'M Iris), Howard Richler
Word Ways
Given names figure prominently in palindromic utterances. There are two main reasons for this. Many are quite short, and thus easy to manipulate palindromically. Also, a higher percentage of given names than ordinary English words end in the vowels A or I which serve as excellent palindromic connectors.
Sending Messages By Telephone, A. Ross Eckler
Sending Messages By Telephone, A. Ross Eckler
Word Ways
Although the telephone conveys the spoken word with ease, it is illsuited for the written one needed for pagers or communication with the deaf. The telephone keypad contains only ten alternatives (something twelve), far fewer than the 26 alphabetic letters plus space, which means that a single press of a button is ambiguous. The traditional arrangement ABC/DEF/GHI/JKL/MNO/PRS/TUV/WXY omits Q and Z, but these can be understood to be in their normal positions.
In Words Of One Syllable, Frederick Crane
In Words Of One Syllable, Frederick Crane
Word Ways
There are those who claim that the best way to set free the work of one who would make art is to set curbs, that one must clip one's own wings to be free to fly. There are the twelve tone folks, and there are some who write whole books that have not one word at all with an e in it (see Word Ways of May of two years back, page four score less nine).
The Morristown Fables: Part 4, Peter Newby
The Morristown Fables: Part 4, Peter Newby
Word Ways
Ross and Faith Begorrah enjoyed their roast chicken with relish. At last, they had rid themselves of that stupid talking hen which had been the bane of their life and mantlepiece of what seemed like an age.
Paper Caper, Stephen Sniderman
Paper Caper, Stephen Sniderman
Word Ways
The object of this game is to find more sets of rhyming words on a particular page than your opponents. To start the game, each player is given a magazine or book, which s/he should open to nay page s/he wishes. Players are then given a specified amount of time (three minutes seems reasonable) to find and write down sets of rhyming words on the page in front of them. To qualify as a rhyme, two words must have the same number of syllables, must be accented on the same syllable, must have different sounds at the beginning of the …
The Information Superhighway, Mike Morton
The Information Superhighway, Mike Morton
Word Ways
Recently I received email which informed me that INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY anagrams to I'M ON A HUGE WISPY RHINO FART. I couldn't let this pass without comment, and enclose a list which Word Ways readers might enjoy.
A Story With A Palindromic Larom, Andrew Belsey
A Story With A Palindromic Larom, Andrew Belsey
Word Ways
It is not often that science comes to the aid of literature. But here is a case in which a development in science makes a difference to literature, and indeed could have made a difference to life and death themselves.
The Anglo-American Hyphen, Peter Newby
The Anglo-American Hyphen, Peter Newby
Word Ways
When Queen Victoria was offered a choice of four names for one of her newer overseas possessions, she opted for Fiji as she linked its three dots. In contrast to this word-loving monarch (who is credited with having invented the double acrostic), a conspiracy of lexicogrpahers, those responsible for the OED, spent a large part of her reign introducing a form of word vandalism, the unnecessary hyphen.
See It Now On Tv!, Mary J. Hazard
See It Now On Tv!, Mary J. Hazard
Word Ways
Luv Is Void A best-bet arty film. Betty Boop's ex (gimpy guy) seen in Rome. He tried to buy a hot forty-foot one-ton lorry; now the jig is up!
Another Dictionary Curio, Christopher Mcmanus
Another Dictionary Curio, Christopher Mcmanus
Word Ways
Abridged basic dictionaries are rarely plumbed by serious word-watchers. In the February 1995 Word Ways, I enumerated the unique and fascinating features of one such elementary dictionary. In continuing to search for its antecedents and variants, I discovered a separate family of intriguing student dictionaries.
Familiarity Breeds Confusion, Richard Lederer
Familiarity Breeds Confusion, Richard Lederer
Word Ways
Here's a game to whet your appetite, or (great expectorations!) wet your appetite for spelling challenges.
Updating Gary Gray And Edna Dean, A. Ross Eckler
Updating Gary Gray And Edna Dean, A. Ross Eckler
Word Ways
In the May 1986 Word Ways I described a search of telephone directories of individuals whose given names are transpositions of their surnames, as examplified by the title of this article. Such a search has been made far easier by the advent of PhoneDisc, described in the May 1991 Word Ways, which consists of two CD-ROM disks that claim to include 90 million names, addresses and telephone numbers of US residents. The table below extends the one given in the earlier article; numbers in parenthesis give the counts found earlier.
Kickshaws, David Morice
Unlikely Menus, Mary Christie Craig
Unlikely Menus, Mary Christie Craig
Word Ways
Ever since I heard the joke "What do honeymooners eat" (Lettuce alone). I've been making up unlikely menus to fit every taste, mood and culture. Here are a few.
New Lighweights And Heavyweights, Susan Thorpe
New Lighweights And Heavyweights, Susan Thorpe
Word Ways
In the November 1972 issue of Word Ways, Darryl Francis listed the lightest and heaviest words (assigning A = 1, B = 2, etc.) of lengths up to, and including, 15 letters. Some 23 years later, in the August 1995 issue. Leonard Gordon responded to Darryl's suggestion of 1972 that "Perhaps some enterprising Word Ways readers would like to extend our work, investigating words with more than fifteen letters by repeating the exercise for words of 16 to 24 letters. He also improved two of Darryl's original examples.
Answers And Solutions
Word Ways
Answers and solutions to the puzzles and games contained in this issue.
Front Cover And Publication Information, Volume 28 Issue 3
Front Cover And Publication Information, Volume 28 Issue 3
Word Ways
Front cover and publication information for this issue.
Alphabet Poems: A Brief History, Nyr Indictor
Alphabet Poems: A Brief History, Nyr Indictor
Word Ways
As a collector of alphabet books, and sometime editor of a newsletter on the subject, I have had many opportunities to consider the history of the alphabet poem. Although alphabet poems may take a wide range of forms, most are generally divided into twenty-six parts (lines, couplets, stanze...), one for each letter.