Tag: Home on an apartment building’s roof maybe crossword clue

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Constructed by: Kyle Dolan

Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: None

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

Bill’s time: 14m 17s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

10A __ forest : KELP

Kelps are large seaweeds that grow in kelp forests underwater. Kelps can grow to over 175 feet in length, and do so very quickly. Some kelps can grow at the rate of 1-2 feet per day.

19A Put on board : LADE

The verb “to lade” meaning “to load” comes from an Old English word “hladan”. “Lade” also used to mean “draw water” and indeed gave us our word “ladle”. So “lade” and “ladle” are close cousins.

20A Board game : DARTS

It was illegal to play darts in English pubs in the early 1900s because it was considered a game of chance. The law was overturned in 1908 when a pub owner, prosecuted for allowing the game, brought a skilled player into court. The player proved it was a game of skill by throwing three darts into the 20-point segment and then challenged any court official to do the same. When none could, the judge dismissed the case.

22A Radiation that triggers vitamin D synthesis, for short : UVB

The sun emits a continuous band of ultraviolet (UV) light that is often broken down into three categories or ranges of wavelength: UVA, UVB and UVC. UVB is mostly absorbed by the ozone layer, but what gets through is responsible for sunburn. Paradoxically, it is UVB that causes the body to produce vitamin D, which is essential for life.

23A Lineup of runners? : SLATE

In an election, a slate is a group of candidates running on a common platform.

25A Used a prayer rug : KNELT

The tradition of using prayer rugs, “sajjada” in Arabic, dates back to early Islamic history. While not explicitly commanded in the Quran, the practice developed from the need for a clean and defined space for prayer, especially when praying outdoors. The rug designs frequently feature a mihrab motif, an arch-shaped pattern symbolizing the mihrab in a mosque, which indicates the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca.

27A Supreme Theban deity : AMEN-RA

Amun-Ra (also “Amon, Amen”) was a god in Egyptian mythology. Amun lends his name to our word “ammonia”. This is because the Romans called the ammonium chloride that they collected near the Temple of Jupiter Amun, “sal ammoniacus” (salt of Amun).

Thebes was a city in ancient Egypt located on the river Nile, the ruins of which are now found within the bounds of the modern city of Luxor. The ruins of Ancient Thebes include the famous Luxor Temple and Karnak Temple, as well as the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens.

30A Mexico City’s __ de la Reforma : PASEO

The Paseo de la Reforma (Promenade of the Reform) is a busy thoroughfare in Mexico city. It was commissioned by Emperor Maximilian I as a gesture to his wife, Empress Carlota, and was initially named the “Empress’s Promenade”. It was eventually renamed to honor the liberal reforms of President Benito Juárez.

36A Natl. Merit Scholarship qualifying exams : PSATS

The National Merit Scholarship Program (NMSP) is an academic competition that recognizes and rewards high-achieving high school students. The top performers in the competition are awarded scholarships of varying amounts, up to the full cost of tuition. The list of NMSP honorees includes:

• Ben Bernanke: former chairman of the Federal Reserve
• Bill Gates: co-founder of Microsoft
• Elena Kagan: associate justice of the US Supreme Court
• Jeff Bezos: founder of Amazon
• M. Night Shyamalan: film director
• Stephenie Meyer: author of the “Twilight” series of novels

37A Dance with a kahiko style : HULA

The term “hula kahiko” is reserved for more traditional hula dances, ones composed before the 1900s that do not use modern instruments (like guitars and ukuleles).

38A Small beard : SOUL PATCH

A soul patch is a small patch of facial hair worn especially by jazz musicians, located just below the lower lip and above the chin. The actor and comedian Howie Mandel has been sporting a soul patch for many years, I believe.

41A Sportscaster Dick with the catchphrase “Touch ’em all!” : ENBERG

Dick Enberg was a sportscaster famous for uttering the words “Oh, my!” after particularly notable plays.

44A “Fare thee well” : ADIEU

“Adieu” is French for “goodbye, farewell”, from “à Dieu” meaning “to God”. The plural of “adieu” is “adieux”.

47A Toe bean spot : PAW

The squishy, pink pads on the bottom of a cat’s paws are known as digital pads. More casually, they are referred to as toe beans.

55A “Wicked” star : ERIVO

British actress Cynthia Erivo’s big break came on the stage, when starred in the Broadway revival of “The Color Purple” from 2015 to 2017. Her Hollywood film breakthrough came with the title role in the 2019 biopic “Harriet”, portraying Harriet Tubman and earning herself a Best Actress nomination.

“Wicked” (2024) is the first installment of a two-part film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical of the same name. It stars Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda, and shows the events that lead them to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good. I skipped this one, because I am scared of flying monkeys …

Down

2D “Loch Lomond” preposition : AFORE

“The Bonnie Banks o’ Loch Lomond” is a folk song from Scotland that dates back to the Jacobite rising of 1745, the attempt of “Bonnie Prince Charlie’s” attempt to regain the British throne. The chorus is:

O ye’ll tak’ the high road, and I’ll tak’ the low road,
And I’ll be in Scotland afore ye,
But me and my true love will never meet again,
On the bonnie, bonnie banks o’ Loch Lomond.

The “high road” in the lyrics refers to the physical mountain path, and the “low road” refers to a Celtic belief that the spirit of a person who dies away from home returns to their homeland via an underground path. Legend has it the song was written by a captured Jacobite soldier facing execution, promising his love that his soul would reach Scotland via the “low road” long before she arrived on foot.

3D Pianist McCoy who played with the John Coltrane Quartet : TYNER

McCoy Tyner is a jazz pianist from Philadelphia. For many years, Tyner was a member of the John Coltrane Quartet. McCoy’s younger brother is Jarvis Tyner, a member of the Communist Party USA who ran for Vice President in 1972 and 1976.

4D Home on an apartment building’s roof, maybe : COTE

The Old English word “cote” was used to describe a small house. Our modern word “cottage” comes from “cote”. We now use “cote” to describe a small shelter on a farm for sheep or birds. In an urban context, a cote is more likely to house racing pigeons.

10D Handy maneuver? : KARATE CHOP

Karate is a martial art that originated in the Ryukyu Kingdom, which is now part of Japan. A practitioner of karate is known as a karateka. The sport of karate was included as an Olympic sport starting with the 2020 Games.

11D “Confidentially … ” : ENTRE NOUS…

In French, something might perhaps be discussed “entre deux” (between two) or “entre nous” (between us).

15D Nice thing to call someone? : MADAME

The French city of Nice is on the Mediterranean coast in the southeast of the country. Although Nice is only the fifth most populous city in France, it is home to the busiest airport outside of Paris. That’s because of all the tourists flocking to the French Riviera. Something described as “à la niçoise” is “of Nice”.

22D Shedding card game : UNO

UNO is a card game that was developed in the early seventies and that has been sold by Mattel since 1992. It falls into the shedding family of card games, meaning that the goal is to get rid of all your cards while preventing opponents from doing the same.

25D Succumbed to gravity : KEELED OVER

To keel over is to capsize, to turn a boat over so that her keel lies up from the surface. We also use the phrase “keel over” figuratively to mean “collapse, faint”.

32D Get tanked on a tropical vacation? : SCUBA DIVE

Self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA)

34D People with concerns about trolleys? : ETHICISTS

The “Trolley Problem” is a famous thought experiment first posed in 1967, asking whether it’s more moral to sacrifice one person to save five. The scenario described is a runaway trolley careening down a track towards five bystanders who will be killed if it reaches them. Another person has control of a lever that can divert the trolley to a second track on which only one person would be killed.

36D Resident of D.C.’s Daniel Webster Hall : PAGE

US Senate Pages are 16- and 17-year-old high-school juniors who get to watch the political action up close in Washington, while doing the “gofer” jobs needed by the Senators and permanent staff. There are 30 Pages during the school year, 16 appointed by the majority party, and 14 by the minority. The list of former Senate Pages includes Amy Carter (daughter of the President), and Chris Dodd (who became a Senator).

The Daniel Webster Senate Page Residence (or simply “Webster Hall”) in Washington, DC has a somewhat somber past. Before it was renovated in 1995 to house the Senate Pages, the building served as a private funeral home. Located just blocks from the Capitol, the building’s name honors the statesman who appointed the first Senate page, a 9-year-old boy, in 1829.

39D “Orange Is the New Black” setting : PRISON

“Orange Is the New Black” is a very entertaining comedy-drama series made by Netflix about an upper middle-class woman who goes to jail for a drug-related offense committed ten years earlier, in her youth. The series is based on a memoir by Piper Kerman called “Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women’s Prison”.

43D Cesta-slung sphere : PELOTA

The essential equipment in the game of jai alai is the pelota (ball) and the cesta (wicker scoop).

49D Carnival cries : WHEES!

Back in the 16th century, carnival was a festive period of indulgence just before the start of Lent. The term “carnival” is somewhat “meaty”, in that it comes from the Old Pisan “carnelevare” meaning “to remove meat”. It was the last chance to clear out the larder of all animal products before they were forbidden during Lent.

51D Put-in-Bay’s lake : ERIE

South Bass Island is a popular summer resort destination in Lake Erie, often called the “Key West of Lake Erie”. The island is home to the village of Put-in-Bay, a major tourist spot during the summer. It also features Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial, which commemorates the Battle of Lake Erie from the War of 1812.

54D Roe source : SHAD

The shad is also known as the river herring. The eggs (roe) of the shad are prized as a delicacy, especially in the Eastern US.

57D 100 runs, for a cricketer : TON

Traditionally, a person at bat in cricket was known as a “batsman”. In recent years, the sport has adopted the more inclusive term “batter”.