The Ninelette family’s globe-
What Sil lacks in tact he more than makes up for in language ability. His English vocabulary is, oh, 639 three-
One of Sil’s grad students showed up at SpecGram headquarters with a piece of paper containing ten sets of four languages. Knowing the Ninelettes, we hypothesize that these sets somehow produce nine-
If you can figure out the one word that describes Sil’s current occupation and send your solution to the editors of SpecGram by March 15th, 2018, you could win some SpecGram merch. The correct solution and winners, if any, will be announced in the next issue of Speculative Grammarian.
| M | C | W | H | O | R | T | E | R | D | Y | I | R | B | A | L | |
| I | O | U | R | L | P | I | A | A | G | I | ||||||
| N | O | N | N | A | S | A | L | A | T | N | L | A | T | |||
| I | O | S | P | E | C | T | R | O | G | R | A | P | H | |||
| M | A | W | R | I | N | G | R | A | M | N | E | U | ||||
| A | M | E | I | A | I | A | N | A | C | A | ||||||
| L | I | E | F | N | P | I | S | M | I | T | E | N | ||||
| I | N | D | I | C | E | L | I | S | I | O | N | D | I | |||
| S | C | R | E | P | E | S | T | C | O | B | R | A | ||||
| T | E | N | S | E | O | I | R | A | N | I | A | N | ||||
| P | R | E | O | N | K | E | L | V | I | R | I | L | E | |||
| R | E | G | U | L | A | R | A | E | N | C | I | L | K | |||
| O | A | T | I | N | A | S | T | E | G | E | E | N | Y | |||
| G | A | T | E | Z | S | P | E | A | K | E | R | G | E | R | ||
| R | I | I | M | H | O | C | D | A | G | U | N | G | ||||
| A | O | N | U | E | R | T | A | N | Y | |||||||
| M | O | N | O | G | E | N | E | T | I | C | E | L | I | Z |
The solution to February’s Cryptolinguistic Puzzle is provided here, with additional explanations given below.
Despite the high degree of difficulty, all of the following puzzlemeisters completed the puzzle and will be receiving prizes:
Doan Qui Thanh • Vincent Fish • Vitória Rodrigues Souza
Across: 1. M.C. (emcee) + WHOR(T)E + R (author of Word on the Street); 6. anagram of badly around I+R; 11. U.R. + L; 12. P(I)A, Esperanto for pious, Swahili for also; 13. a G.I. (Ital. for comforts); 14. No + N.N. + as + a + L; 15. A + T + N (for Augmented Transition Network); 16. (pa)LAT(al) & (pala)TAL (backwards); 17. anagram of the GOP’s crap; 19. maw + or (Welsh for great (big)); 22. Chomskya(N GRAM)mar; 23. anagram of une; 24. A + ME + I (Port. for I loved); 25. d(-IANA)(as in Edwardiana, Canadiana, etc.); 26. L + I.E. + F; 27. Steve(N PI)nker (abbr. for negative polarity item;) 30. S. (M.I.T.)E. (abbr. for Massachussetts Institute of Technology in abbr. SE); 32. brahm(IN DIC)tionary; 34. E(LI)SION; 36. no(SE PERC)e (backwards); 37. anagram of carbo(n); 40. Tens + E; 43. I + (R)+ AN + (repeated: I AN); 45. P.(R)E.; 46. 0 + N + LEK (backwards); Norw. for uncle; 49. V. I. + RILE; 50. RE( L. + U.G. (backwards))AR; 52. fr(ENC)h (abbr. for enclosure); 53. KLI(ma)(backwards); 55. anagram of in a state (Port. for “you were right”); 58. Gee + N (Dutch for no/not a(n)); 59. T in anagram of gaze (Fr. 2nd plural present form of spoil); 60. S(PEAK)ER, SER Sp. for to be; 61. GE(a)R (alternate ISO code for German); 63. He(IM HO)jier (abbr. for in my humble opinion); 65. DA(U.G. (backwards))NG (O.E. for dawn); 66. NU (Fr. for naked) + E.R.; 67. anagram of nay; 68. anagram of come on, get in; 69. initials of Linguist In Zaire.
Down: 1. anagram of is optimal in grammar (minus one A); 2. anagram of chinos for 1; 3. chi(NA IS SUR)e; 4. TR(ask, carn)AP; 5. Homophone of L, N (for Ellen Prince); 6. anagram of rita i’d invest; 7. anagram of many + a + M + OO (two eggs); 8. anagram of gullible canadian + B; 9. a + gap + E; 10. anagram of hail aunt in; 12. PATR(ici)A, Esperanto for fatherly; 18. (do)C GI(von) (for Computer Generated Images); 20. ami (Fr. for friend)+ N; 21. homophone of we’d; 28. pe(o)p(le) (without olé)(Swedish for squeaked); 29. f(ELI)x; 31. INC(ho)(ARC(h)ER)ATE; 33. anagram of core + Liz + in G; 35. “I so late”; 38. Est(ONI)an; 39. Is(RAEL); 41. wh(ERE); 42. no it agen(t) (backwards); 44. R(ING)ED; 47. N + AN; 48. K(RASH)EN; 51. (distrib)UTE(d morphology)(Swed. & Norw. for outdoors); 54. cra(ZY GR(ee)(Y)K) (backwards); 56. SP. + OR+ E.; 57. O.E. for also; 62. Mill(ENNI)als/homophone of any (Icel. for forehead); 64. MU(t)E (Fr. for molting).