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NPR's puzzle master Will Shortz puts the pieces of his life together for us

On-air challenge: Here are some sentences. In each one, find two words that sound like to other words that are synonyms.

Example: I can pare an apple, too à pair, two

1. My dog's paws go0t stuck under the cars break.

2. Today's spelling lesson is about words with silence "e's".

3. In India, several lower castes are in the throes of change.

4. The wild hare has a hankering for bagels and lox.

5. After his shift ended, the worker hied to the bank to cash his paycheck.

6. The seamstress would vary the way she'd sewed.

This week's challenge: This is a two-week creative challenge. Name a geographical place. Then describe it acrostically using the letters in its name. For example, ALBANY could be described acrostically as "Administering Legislative Business At New York." The place can be anywhere in the world — the U.S. or abroad. Entries will be judged on originality, sense, naturalness of wording, elegance, and overall effect. You may submit up to three entries. The person who sends the best entry in my opinion will play puzzle on the air with me in two weeks.

Submit your answer

If you know the answer to the challenge, submit it here by Wednesday, November 15th at 3 p.m. ET. Listeners whose answers are selected win a chance to play the on-air puzzle. Important: include a phone number where we can reach you.

Copyright 2026 NPR

Ayesha Rascoe is the host of Weekend Edition Sunday and the Saturday episodes of Up First.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.