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Constructed by: Rebecca Goldstein
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Shrinkflation

Themed answers are common phrases that include the name of a coin, but in the grid we’ve SHRUNK that coin to a lower value:

• 36A Form of downsizing, and what has affected 18-, 29-, 45-, and 57-Across? : SHRINKFLATION

• 18A Flat sea urchin : SAND DOLLAR (shrinks to QUARTER)
• 29A Period covered in a midterm exam, maybe : ACADEMIC QUARTER (shrinks to DIME)
• 45A Tattles (on) : DROPS A DIME (shrinks to NICKEL)
• 57A Dense, dark rye bread : PUMPERNICKEL (shrinks to PENNY)

Read on, or jump to …
… a complete list of answers

Bill’s time: 13m 05s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Makeup of an oyster bed? : ICE

Raw oysters might be served on a bed of ice.

14 Sanskrit honorific : SRI

Sanskrit is an Indo-Aryan language and one of the 22 scheduled languages of India. It has a rich tradition and is the language in which many historical and religious texts are written. There aren’t many speakers of the language today although efforts are underway to revive spoken Sanskrit.

15 Second word in many fairy tales : … UPON

The stock phrase “Once upon a time …” has been used in various forms as the start of a narrative at least since 1380. The stock phrase at the end of stories such as folktales is often “and they all lived happily ever after”. The earlier version of this ending was “happily until their deaths”.

16 Member of the Seven Council Fires : OGLALA

The Oglala are a subtribe of the Lakota Native American people. The name “Oglala” translates from the Lakota language as “to scatter one’s own”.

The Native-American people known as the Sioux are more correctly referred to as the “Oceti Sakowin” (Seven Council Fires). The name encompasses the historic alliance of seven distinct Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota nations. The “council fires” symbolize the central meeting place where representatives from each nation would gather to discuss important matters and make decisions that affected the entire alliance.

18 Flat sea urchin : SAND DOLLAR (shrinks to QUARTER)

A sand dollar is a burrowing sea urchin found just below the low water line of sandy or muddy beaches. They have hard skeletons, which are often found washed up on beaches.

24 Small storage unit : KILOBIT

In the world of computing, a bit is the basic unit of information. It has a value of 0 or 1. A “byte” is a small collection of “bits” (usually 8), the number of bits needed to uniquely identify a character of text. The term “byte” is an abbreviation for “binary digit”.

29 Period covered in a midterm exam, maybe : ACADEMIC QUARTER (shrinks to DIME)

“Semester” is a German word from the Latin “semestris”, an adjective meaning “of six months”. We use the term in a system that divides an academic year into two roughly equal parts. A trimester-system has three parts, and a quarter-system has four.

33 South Indian rice cake : IDLI

Idli (also “idly”) are savory rice cakes in the cuisine from the Indian subcontinent. The cakes are made from de-husked, fermented black lentils incorporated into a batter and then steamed.

36 Form of downsizing, and what has affected 18-, 29-, 45-, and 57-Across? : SHRINKFLATION

Shrinkflation is a sneaky way that inflation can affect the consumer. Instead of raising prices directly, companies sometimes make the amount of product we get smaller while keeping the price the same. This means that we end up paying the same amount of money for less of something.

41 __ squeeze : MAIN

Back in the late 1800s, the “main squeeze” was the “most important person”. It wasn’t until almost a century later that one’s main squeeze became one’s sweetheart.

45 Tattles (on) : DROPS A DIME (shrinks to NICKEL)

The slang term “drop a dime” describes the act of sharing secret information. Apparently, the term arose in the mid-1900s as underworld slang for ratting on someone to the police. The “dime” was the 10-cents used to make a phone call to the cops.

53 401(k) kin : IRA

A 401(k) account resembles an IRA in that contributions can be made from a paycheck prior to the deduction of income taxes. A 401(k) differs from an IRA in that it is an employer-sponsored plan, with payments taken by the employer directly from an employee’s paycheck. Additionally, contributions can be fully or partially matched by an employer.

57 Dense, dark rye bread : PUMPERNICKEL (shrinks to PENNY)

The lovely bread known as pumpernickel is made with a recipe that originates in the Westphalia region of Germany. The version of the bread that we eat in North America has been adapted over the years from the original recipe, largely to produce a cheaper product. If you taste the European version beside the American version, it’s hard to believe they have the same origins.

63 Wet weather wear : ANORAK

Anoraks really aren’t very popular over here in America. Everyone has one in Ireland! An anorak is a heavy jacket with a hood, often lined with fur (or fake fur), and is an invention of the Inuit people.

64 Reddit Q&As : AMAS

Ask me anything (AMA)

67 Toy brand with a 3,955-piece “Home Alone” set : LEGO

Lego produces some wonderful specialized sets with which you can build models of celebrated structures, including:

• The Statue of Liberty (2,882 pieces)
• The Sydney Opera House (2,989 pieces)
• The Eiffel Tower (3,428 pieces)
• Tower Bridge (4,295 pieces)
• The Taj Mahal (5,922 pieces)

68 Phenomenon that may be explained by NASA : UFO

In 1952, the USAF revived its studies of reported sightings of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) in a program called Project Blue Book. Project Blue Book ran from 1952 until it was shut down in 1969 with the conclusion that there was no threat to national security and that there were no sightings that could not be explained within the bounds of modern scientific knowledge.

Down

2 Pulitzer category since 1970 : CRITICISM

Pulitzer Prizes are awarded annually for achievements in journalism, literature and musical composition. The prize was established back in 1917 by the Hungarian-American newspaper publisher Joseph Pulitzer. Pulitzer left money in his will for the prize, and for its administration by Columbia University.

3 Muslim festival that precedes the Tashreeq days : EID AL-ADHA

Eid al-Adha, also known as the “Feast of Sacrifice,” is one of the two main holidays in the Muslim calendar, along with Eid al-Fitr. It honors the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God.

9 Grocery store franchise based in Chicago : IGA

The initialism “IGA” stands for “Independent Grocers Alliance”, and is a chain of supermarkets that extends right around the world. IGA’s headquarters is in Chicago. The company uses the slogan “Hometown Proud Supermarkets”.

10 Shutterbug’s initials : SLR

A shutterbug is an enthusiastic amateur photographer, someone who likes to hear the click of that shutter, someone like me …

12 Para ice hockey gear : SLEDS

Para ice hockey, also known as sled hockey, is a version of ice hockey that allows players with physical disabilities to compete. Players move about the ice on sleds, and use hockey sticks with serrated handle tips to propel themselves. The adaptation was created in a Swedish rehabilitation center in the 1960s.

13 Boba tea flavor : TARO

Taro is a root vegetable that is grown for its edible underground plant stems (corms). The English name “taro” is borrowed from the Maori language of New Zealand. The same plant is known as “gabi” in the Philippines, “arbi” in much of India, and “jimbi” in parts of Africa where Swahili is spoken.

Bubble tea, sometimes called “boba tea”, is a tea-based drink from Taiwan. The “bubbles” are chewy tapioca balls that are usually added to the drink.

24 Actor Penn : KAL

Indian-American actor Kal Penn made a name for himself in the “Harold & Kumar” series of comedy films. These so-called “stoner comedies” are not my cup of tea, but I enjoyed him playing his more mainstream roles on TV’s “House” and “24”. He left the world of acting when President Obama won the 2008 election to work as an Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement (although he did leave the White House briefly to film the “Harold & Kumar” sequel).

39 Bill Withers hit that begins, “Sometimes in our lives / We all have pain” : LEAN ON ME

The classic song “Lean on Me” was written and recorded by Bill Withers in 1972. Withers had just relocated to Los Angeles when he wrote the song, and he found that he was homesick for West Virginia. He drew inspiration for the song from his experiences growing up in a small coal mining town, where community and mutual support were essential.

40 Civilization-building video game series set in various years : ANNO

The “Anno” series city-building and real-time strategy games challenge players to create and manage their own civilizations. Starting with “Anno 1602” in 1998, the series has spanned various historical periods, from the Age of Exploration to futuristic settings.

44 Half of roll call : ELS

Half of the letters in the term “roll call” are letters L (els).

46 Range whose highest point is Wahzhazhe Summit : OZARKS

The Ozark Mountains aren’t really mountains geographically speaking, and so are better described by the alternate name, the Ozark Plateau. It’s not really certain how the Ozarks got their name, but my favorite theory is that “Ozarks” is the phonetic spelling of “aux Arks”, short for “of Arkansas” in French.

Wahzhazhe Summit is the highest point in the Ozark Mountains, reaching an elevation of 2,561 feet. Formerly known as Buffalo Lookout, the peak was renamed in 2023 at the request of the Osage Nation Historic Preservation Office. “Wahzhazhe” is the Osage word for “Osage”.

47 Marshmallow treat : PEEP

Peeps are marshmallow candies, usually in the shapes of chicks and bunnies, primarily sold around the Easter holiday. Peeps were introduced in 1952 by a Russian immigrant called Sam Born whose company “Just Born” makes the candies to this day. The original candies were yellow and hand-shaped to look like little chicks, hence the name “Peeps”.

49 QB feeder : CTR

That would be football.

50 “Encanto” uncle : BRUNO

“Encanto” is a 2021 animated Disney film. It is about a Colombian family, named the Madrigals, who have magical powers that provide assistance to the people in their community (Encanto).

51 Rodríguez of “Will Trent” : RAMON

“Will Trent” is a cop show that debuted in 2023. It is based on a series of novels of the same name by Karin Slaughter. Ramón Rodríguez plays the title character in the TV show. Will Trent is a Special Agent in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

59 Maize unit : EAR

“Maize” is another name for “corn”. Even though there is more maize grown in the world than wheat or rice, a relatively small proportion of the total maize crop is consumed directly by humans. That’s because a lot of maize goes to make corn ethanol, animal feed and derivative products like cornstarch and corn syrup. Here in the US, over 40% of the maize produced is used to feed livestock, and about 30% is used to make ethanol.