Sunday, January 9, 2022

Solutions to the Saturday Paraprosdokian Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday’s Qudoku puzzle sets spelled out wordplay known as a paraprosdokian.



The Sunday Challenge in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Saturday, January 8, 2022

New Word Sudoku (Paraprosdokian Sudoku!) Puzzles for Saturday, 1/8/2022

Better over the hill … than under it!
A paraprosdokian is wordplay where the latter part of a statement forces you to reinterpret the first part. The phrase intentionally leads you in one direction—misleads you into thinking one way—and then abruptly changes direction, ending with the unexpected twist. The origin of the word is Greek, meaning "against expectation."

Most of the statements in these weekly blog posts are actual paraprosdokians; you might possibly dispute a few. But since they’re still fun plays on words, I’m sharing them anyway.

Because paraprosdokians come in two parts, I present each part as a separate quote, each revealed by solving its own set of word Sudoku puzzles.

BOTANY
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

SLICED
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once
Copy circled letters to the corresponding numbered cells in the quote grid to spell out the quote



WRITES
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

JUDO
4x4 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x2 square and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once
Copy circled letters to the corresponding numbered cells in the quote grid to spell out the quote


Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to Friday's Word Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday's 5x5 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in ADE + TWO (TAWED) and the 7x7 Diagonal/Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in LUBA + TWO (BAWL OUT).

The Saturday Paraprosdokian in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Friday, January 7, 2022

New Word Sudoku Puzzles for Friday, 1/7/2022

ADE + TW
5x5 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and enclosed shape contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells out in the shaded cells


LUBA + TWO
7x7 Diagonal/Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, diagonal and enclosed shape contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal


Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solution to Thursday's Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday's 10x10 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in HAD BRIE + TWO (WHITEBOARD).

Another set of puzzles in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Thursday, January 6, 2022

New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Thursday, 1/6/2022

HAD BRIE + TWO
10x10 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x5 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal


Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solution to Wednesday's Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday's 8x8 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in X BACH + TWO (WATCHBOX).

A new puzzle in a bit.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Wednesday, January 5, 2022

New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Wednesday, 1/5/2022

X BACH + TWO
8x8 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x4 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal


Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solution to Tuesday's Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday's 9x9 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in CHARK B + TWO (THROWBACK).

A new puzzle in just a bit.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Tuesday, January 4, 2022

New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Tuesday, 1/4/2022

CHARK B + TWO
9x9 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 3x3 square contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal


Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solutions to Monday's Word Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday's 4x4 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in AC + TWO (WACO) and the 6x6 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in MBA + TWO (WOMBAT).

A new set of puzzles in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Monday, January 3, 2022

New Word Sudoku Puzzles for Monday, 1/3/2022

AC + WO
4x4 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x2 square contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells out in the shaded cells


MBA + TWO
6x6 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 2x3 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word spells down the diagonal


Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave


(A reminder that weekday puzzles in 2022 are based on words or phrases containing at least two of the three letters in TWO, a puzzle form I call Missing Letter Hidden Word Sudoku. Please see my amazon puzzle page www.bit.ly/WordSudokuBooks for puzzle collections of this form that span the entire alphabet.)

 

Solutions to the Sunday Qudoku Puzzles

Yesterday’s Qudoku puzzle set spelled out a complete story in exactly five words.

New puzzles in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Solution to the Sunday Challenge Word Sudoku Puzzle

Yesterday’s Sunday Challenge 12x12 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle was based on the letters in LAKE BIRCH + TWO (BLACK OR WHITE).

New puzzles in a bit.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Sunday, January 2, 2022

New Word Sudoku (Punnish Sudoku: 5-word Flash Fiction) Puzzles for Sunday, 1/2/2022

Always believe in the impossible.
Every Sunday, I offer you a quote (spelled out by solving Sudoku puzzles, of course). In 2022, these quotes are flash fiction: exactly five words long.

VARLET
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains these letters exactly once


NOSILY
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains these letters exactly once
Copy circled letters to the corresponding numbered cells in the quote grid to spell out the quote


Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

(All puzzles and text contained in this blog are copyright © 2008-2022, David H. Thompson. All rights reserved. Please tell your puzzle-loving friends to follow this blog. Thank you!)

 

Sunday Challenge: New Word Sudoku Puzzle for Sunday, 1/2/2022

LAKE BIRCH + TWO
Sunday Challenge: 12x12 Hidden Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column and 3x4 rectangle contains these letters exactly once
The hidden word or words spell down the diagonal


Solution first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

(All puzzles and text contained in this blog are copyright © 2008-2022, David H. Thompson. All rights reserved. Please tell your puzzle-loving friends to follow this blog. Thank you!)

 

Solutions to the Saturday Paraprosdokian Sudoku Puzzles Yesterday’s Qudoku puzzle sets spelled out wordplay known as a paraprosdokian.






The Sunday Challenge in a few hours.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

Saturday, January 1, 2022

New Word Sudoku (Paraprosdokian Sudoku!) Puzzles for Saturday, 1/1/2022

Sea captains … don’t like crew cuts.
A paraprosdokian is wordplay where the latter part of a statement forces you to reinterpret the first part. The phrase intentionally leads you in one direction—misleads you into thinking one way—and then abruptly changes direction, ending with the unexpected twist. The origin of the word is Greek, meaning "against expectation."

Most of the statements in these weekly blog posts are actual paraprosdokians; you might possibly dispute a few. But since they’re still fun plays on words, I’m sharing them anyway.

Because paraprosdokians come in two parts, I present each part as a separate quote, each revealed by solving its own set of word Sudoku puzzles.

VANS
4x4 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x2 square and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

GLIB
4x4 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x2 square and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

TECH
4x4 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x2 square and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once
Copy circled letters to the corresponding numbered cells in the quote grid to spell out the quote



CONVEX
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

FRIGHT
6x6 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x3 rectangle and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once

DAMP
4x4 Word Sudoku Puzzle
Each row, column, 2x2 square and set of circled cells contains the letters in the word exactly once
Copy circled letters to the corresponding numbered cells in the quote grid to spell out the quote


Solutions first thing in the morning.

Thanks,
--Dave

 

2022 posting schedule


from GDJ via Pixabay,com

Happy New Year!

We’re reaching the end of the 14th year of this daily word puzzle blog. For years now, I’ve experimented with annual themes, trying to tie daily puzzles together. This year’s posts will continue that effort.

  • 2016 was the year of the vowel—almost all daily puzzles above size 6 used all of AEIOU.


  • 2017 expanded on the idea of including one combination of letters in a bunch of words, using the 3-letter abbreviations for each month (JAN, FEB, MAR, etc.). Almost every weekday Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle contained the three letters of the name of the month when the puzzle posted.


  • 2018 I went the opposite way from 2016: Each daily puzzle tried to minimize the number of the five common vowels. You might have noticed: A lot of puzzle words contained ‘y’ used as another vowel.


  • 2019 took that effect another step: Every puzzle word contained 'y’.


  • 2020 played off the spelling of the year itself. Every puzzle word or phrase in the Monday-through-Friday puzzles of length 6 or more contained the three letters 'twe', spread out in the word; words of length 4 or 5 contained at least two of those three letters.


  • 2021 took the same approach as 2020, playing off the spelling of the year itself, but with even more success. Every puzzle word or phrase in the Monday-through-Friday puzzles contained the three letters 'one', spread out in the word.


  • 2022 attempts the same approach as 2021, playing off the spelling of the year itself, but with less success in the 4x4 and 5x5 puzzles. Every puzzle word or phrase in the Monday-through-Friday puzzles contains the three letters 'two', spread out in the word—except for many 4x4 and 5x5 puzzles. Many puzzles of these sizes contain only two of those three letters, not all three. Oh, well.

Here’s the weekly 2022 posting schedule, starting out easy on each Monday and reaching fiendish by the following Friday.

  • Monday: 4x4 and 6x6 Word Sudoku puzzles

  • Tuesday: 9x9 Word Sudoku puzzle

  • Wednesday: 8x8 Word Sudoku puzzle

  • Thursday: 10x10 Word Sudoku puzzle

  • Friday: 5x5 and 7x7 Word Sudoku puzzles. As you know, Sudoku puzzle sizes are normally not based on primes; the internal box (rectangle or square) has width and length, and the outside dimension of a puzzle is the product of these two integers. Relaxing the requirement that the internal shapes be rectangular boxes removes this restriction. But that doesn't make prime-size puzzles easy!

  • Saturday: For the first time in 10 years, I’m replacing the Swifty Sudoku play on adverbial puns with something new: A Paraprosdokian Sudoku puzzle set. A paraprosdokian is wordplay where the latter part of a statement forces you to reinterpret the first part. The phrase intentionally leads you in one direction—misleads you into thinking one way—and then abruptly changes direction, ending with the unexpected twist. Because paraprosdokians come in two parts, I present each part as a separate quote, each revealed by solving its own set of word Sudoku puzzles.

  • Sunday: (The Challenge) Every Sunday, I’ll provide you a Punnish Sudoku puzzle set. The first half of the year will continue with last year's "Books Never Written" theme; the second half of the year will have you spelling out a complete story in five words—flash fiction. I'm about to publish a book full of "Books Never Written" puzzles; I'll publish a flash-fiction collection of puzzles around June. (All puzzles in both books will be different from what's in this blog.) And yet another series of Sunday blog puzzles will alternate with a 12x12 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle; this third series spells out a palindrome—a statement that reads the same backward or forward


In all, I’m posting about 700 Word Sudoku puzzles in 2022.

I’ve also produced more than 30 books of Word Sudoku puzzles—more are planned for 2022—that  test your Word Sudoku skills while hopefully providing you hours of fun. Please visit my amazon author page to see my puzzle books: https://www.amazon.com/author/davethompsonapr. The puzzles in the books have not appeared in the blog.

I started Magic Word Square in 2008—more than 11,500 posts ago—to explore the fun of mixing words and anagrams, letters and logic. I hope you enjoy solving these puzzles as much as I do creating them.

As always, I invite your comments—please let me know what you think using the blog comment feature.

Thanks,
--Dave

from MAKY_OREL via Pixabay.com


All puzzles and text contained in this blog are copyright © 2008-2022, David H. Thompson. All rights reserved. Please tell your puzzle-loving friends to follow this blog. Thank you!

 

Solutions to Friday's Word Sudoku Puzzles

Yesterday's 5x5 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in IT + ONE (TOE-IN) and the 7x7 Hidden Word Sudoku puzzle was based on the letters in MIRK + ONE (MONIKER).

A new kind of Word Sudoku quote puzzle coming your way in a few hours--a paraprosdokian! I'll explain tomorrow morning.

And...Happy New Year! May 2022 bring you peace and prosperity. Or at least, peace and quiet.

Thanks,
--Dave