Tag: Sneaky tricks crossword clue

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Constructed by: Zhouqin Burnikel
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: Spanglish

Themed answers are common phrases with one English reinterpreted as a Spanish word. Clever …

• 23A Number of NBA championships won by Bill Russell? : “ONCE” IN A LIFETIME (“eleven” in a lifetime)
• 38A Heaven for basic seasoning lovers? : “SAL” PARADISE (“salt” paradise)
• 56A Introduction for a cartoon hamburger? : “SOY” PROTEIN (“I am” protein)
• 80A Carb choice of Olympic marathon runners? : “PAN” FOR GOLD (“bread” for gold)
• 98A Typical posture for a cancan dancer? : “PIE” IN THE SKY (“foot” in the sky)
• 115A Representative for Buckingham Palace, say? : “REAL” ESTATE AGENT (“royal” estate agent)
• 37D Sweet spread for a teen’s birthday celebration? : “QUINCE” JELLY (“fifteen” jelly)
• 41D Gene carrier that keeps people wanting more? : “Y” CHROMOSOME (“and” chromosome)

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

Bill’s time: 16m 55s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Hoity-toity type : SNOB

Back in the 1780s, a snob was a shoemaker or a shoemaker’s apprentice. By the end of the 18th century the word “snob” was being used by students at Cambridge University in England to refer to all local merchants and people of the town. The term evolved to mean one who copies those who are his or her social superior (and not in a good way). From there it wasn’t a big leap for “snob” to include anyone who emphasized their superior social standing and not just those who aspired to rank. Nowadays a snob is anyone who looks down on those considered to be of inferior standing.

Believe it or not, the term “hoity-toity” has been in the English language since the 1660s, but back then it meant “riotous behavior”. It began to mean “haughty” in the late 1800s, simply because the “haughty” sounds similar to “hoity”.

5 “Poker Face” singer Lady __ : GAGA

“Poker Face” is a 2008 song co-written and recorded by Lady Gaga. Having sold over 14 million copies, it is one of the best-selling singles ever released. You know, I don’t think I’ve ever heard it …

14 Former TV drama set in SoCal : LA LAW

“L.A. Law” ran on NBC from 1986 to 1994, and was one of the network’s most successful drama series. It took over from the equally successful “Hill Street Blues” in the Thursday night 10 p.m. slot until, after a six-year run, it was itself replaced by yet another respected drama, “E.R.” The opening credits showed that famous California license plate. The plate was on a Jaguar XJ for most of the series, but moved onto a Bentley towards the end of the run. For each series the registration sticker was updated, so no laws were being broken.

19 Anecdotal tales : LORE

An anecdote is a short account of an event, usually something amusing. The term ultimately derives from the Greek “anekdota” meaning “things unpublished”, or more literally “things not given out”.

23 Number of NBA championships won by Bill Russell? : “ONCE” IN A LIFETIME (“eleven” in a lifetime)

Bill Russell is a retired basketball player who played for the Boston Celtics from 1956 to 1969. Russell also captained the gold medal-winning US national team at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia.

26 Island near Java : TIMOR

Timor is an island in Maritime Southeast Asia. The island is politically divided into West Timor, belonging to Indonesia, and the independent state of East Timor (aka “Timor-Leste”). The name “Timor” comes from a Malay word for “east”, and is used as Timor lies at the eastern end of the Lesser Sunda Islands.

27 Baby panda : BEAR CUB

Taxonomic classification of the giant panda has been a subject of great debate for years, the main question being whether it belongs to the bear or raccoon family. The accepted opinion these days, based on molecular studies, seems to be that the panda is in fact a true bear.

28 Dr. with a dream : MLK

1963’s March on Washington was one of the largest political rallies in the history of the US, with about a quarter of a million people participating in the march itself. The rally was a call for civil and economic rights for African Americans. Famously, Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech to the protesters while standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial.

29 Video game where players round up primates : APE ESCAPE

Primates are mammals, many of whom are omnivorous and make good use of their hands. They also have larger brains relative to their body size, compared to other animals. The order Primates includes apes, lemurs, baboons and humans.

31 Early console letters : NES

The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) was sold in North America from 1985 to 1995. It was the biggest selling gaming console of the era. Nintendo replaced the NES with Wii, which is also the biggest-selling game console in the world.

38 Heaven for basic seasoning lovers? : “SAL” PARADISE (“salt” paradise)

Jack Kerouac’s 1957 novel “On the Road” is largely autobiographical, telling the story of Sal Paradise (Jack K.) and the road trips that he and his friends took across the country in the fifties.

47 Song that was never a single : DEEP CUT

The phrase “deep cut” is used to describe a piece of music performed by a singer or band that is relatively unknown, is familiar to only the most ardent fans.

49 Soul great Redding : OTIS

Otis Redding is often referred to as the “King of Soul”, and what a voice he had. Like so many of the greats in the world of popular music it seems, Redding was killed in a plane crash, in 1967 when he was just 26 years old. Just three days earlier he had recorded what was to be his biggest hit, “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay”.

50 Rabbit kin : HARE

Hares belong to the genus Lepus. Young hares under one-year-old are called leverets.

59 Detergent powder : BORAX

Borax is also known as sodium borate, and is a salt of boric acid. Borax is a white powder that dissolves easily in water. The compound has many uses, for example as an antifungal agent, water-softening agent and as an antiseptic. Actor and future US president Ronald Reagan used to tout 20 Mule Team Borax that was used as a laundry product.

60 Miracle-Gro alternative : SCOTTS

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company was founded in 1868 by one Orlando Scott, and initially sold seed to the agricultural industry. In the early 1900s, Scotts started to sell to homeowners, and mainly supplied lawn seed. The company merged with the gardening company Miracle-Gro in 1955, and then with TruGreen in 2016.

63 Pluto, for one : DOG

Pluto is Mickey Mouse’s pet dog, as well as a star in his own right. Pluto is an unusual Disney character in that he is portrayed basically as a dog as opposed to a “humanized” version of a dog, as are the other Disney characters.

65 People unlikely to develop crushes, briefly : AROS

Someone described as aromantic (“aro”, for short) experiences little or no romantic attraction. The opposite of aromanticism is alloromanticism.

66 Skin care product long used by Aboriginal people in Australia : EMU OIL

Emu oil is extracted from the fat of emu carcases that are processed for meat.

68 Seller of Souls : KIA

The Kia Soul is a compact car produced in South Korea, although it was designed by Kia here in the US, in Irvine, California. Yep, the Kia Soul is made in Seoul …

72 Spun records : DJ’ED

The world’s first radio disc jockey (DJ) was one Ray Newby of Stockton, California who made his debut broadcast in 1909, would you believe? When he was 16 years old and a student, Newby started to play his records on a primitive radio located in the Herrold College of Engineering and Wireless in San Jose. The records played back then were mostly recordings of Enrico Caruso.

73 Goose egg : NIL

The use of the phrase “goose egg” to mean “zero” is baseball slang that dates back to the 1860s. The etymology is as expected: the numeral zero and a goose egg are both large and round.

77 Steering gear component : TIE-ROD

The modern car uses a rack and pinion steering system. The turning motion of the steering wheel turns the pinion gear. This pinion gear meshes with a linear gear called a rack, so the torque is converted to linear motion, side-to-side. This side-to-side motion turns the wheels at either end of the axle via tie-rods and the steering arm.

79 Some facials : PEELS

A chemical peel is a technique used to improve the look and feel of the skin. It involves using a chemical to deliberately injure the outermost layer of the skin. The damaged skin dies and peels off, revealing regenerated skin below.

80 Carb choice of Olympic marathon runners? : “PAN” FOR GOLD (“bread” for gold)

Only relatively small amounts of carbohydrate can be stored by the human body, but those stores are important. The actual storage molecule is a starch-like polysaccharide called glycogen, which is found mainly in the liver and muscles. Glycogen is a quick source of energy when required by the body. Most of the body’s energy is stored in the form of fat, a more compact substance that is mobilized less rapidly. Endurance athletes often eat meals high in carbohydrates (carbo-loading) a few hours before an event, so that their body’s glycogen is at optimum levels.

86 South American barbecue : ASADO

In much of South America, the event we know as a barbecue is referred to as an “asado”, with “asado” translating from Spanish as “roast”. The “asador” is the “roaster”, the person roasting the meat.

88 Olympic event whose name comes from the French for “sled” : LUGE

“Luge” is a French word meaning “sled”. A luge is a small sled used by one or two people, on which one lies face up and feet first. The luge can be compared to the skeleton, a sled for only one person and on which the rider lies face down and goes down the hill head-first. Yikes!

89 Caramel candy : ROLO

Rolo was a hugely popular chocolate candy in Ireland when I was growing up. It was introduced in the thirties in the UK, and is produced under license in the US by Hershey. I was a little disappointed when I had my first taste of the American version as the center is very hard and chewy. The recipe used on the other side of the Atlantic calls for a soft gooey center.

92 Writer/illustrator Carle : ERIC

Eric Carle is a very successful children’s author and book illustrator, with over 100 million of his books sold around the world. Carle’s most famous title is “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”, and it alone has sold 30 million copies.

95 N’s on sorority row : NUS

Nu is the thirteenth letter in the Greek alphabet, and is the equivalent of our letter N. An uppercase nu looks just like the Latin capital N, but the lowercase nu looks like our lowercase V. Very confusing …

98 Typical posture for a cancan dancer? : “PIE” IN THE SKY (“foot” in the sky)

The Moulin Rouge cabaret is located right in the middle of one of the red light districts of Paris, the district of Pigalle. You can’t miss the Moulin Rouge as it has a huge red windmill on its roof (“moulin rouge” is French for “red windmill”). The nightclub opened its doors in 1889 and soon after, the working girls of the cabaret adopted a “respectable” party dance and used it to entice their clients. That was the birth of the can-can. Nowadays, the Moulin Rouge is home to a lavish, Las Vegas-style show that costs millions of euros to stage. It features showgirls, dancers and acrobats, a whole host of entertainers in fact. And I am sure the can-can features as well …

102 Expels, as lava : SPEWS

Lava is a phenomenon that results from the eruption of magma from a volcano. Depending on the type of lava and the volcano it comes from, lava can reach temperatures of up to 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit (1,200 degrees Celsius). That’s hot enough to melt steel …

110 Many Mount Everest mountaineers : SHERPAS

In the Tibetan language, “Sherpa” means “eastern people” (sher = east, pa = people). Sherpas are an ethnic group from Nepal, but the name is also used for the local guides who assist mountaineers in the Himalayas, and particularly on Mount Everest.

114 “Yes we can” sloganeer of 2008 : OBAMA

The 2008 campaign that resulted in the election of President Barack Obama used the slogan “Change we can believe in”, along with the associated chant “Yes We Can”. The words “Yes We Can” were perhaps borrowed from the United Farm Workers, which organization uses the motto “Sí, se puede”. “Sí, se puede” translates as “Yes, it is possible” and is a phrase very much associated with labor leader Cesar Chavez.

115 Representative for Buckingham Palace, say? : “REAL” ESTATE AGENT (“royal” estate agent)

Buckingham Palace is a stately home that has been the official residence of the British monarch since the days of Queen Victoria. The building was originally a large townhouse built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1703, hence the name.

118 “Never needs sharpening” brand : GINSU

Ginsu knives are more famous for their hard-sell television ads than they are for their efficacy in the kitchen. The Ginsu phenomenon took off in the seventies when two brothers found a set of knives called “Eversharp” that were being manufactured in Ohio. The brothers changed the brand name to something more exotic, and Japanese in particular (Ginsu), and then produced ads that made references to Japanese martial arts. I think they made a fortune …

120 Actress Falco : EDIE

Actress Edie Falco won three Emmy Awards for playing Carmela Soprano on HBO’s outstanding drama series called “The Sopranos”. Falco also won an Emmy in 2010 for playing the title role in “Nurse Jackie”, an excellent black comedy.

121 Cosmetics chain : ULTA

Ulta Beauty is an American chain of beauty stores that was founded in 1990 and headquartered in Bolingbrook, Illinois. I am not part of the company’s target demographic …

123 Constellation that resembles a serpent : DRACO

The constellation Draco is said to resemble a dragon or serpent. The name “Draco” is Latin for “dragon”. It is located in the northern sky right beside the constellation Ursa Minor.

Down

4 Happy hour snacks : BEER NUTS

“Beer Nuts” is the brand name for a snack consisting of peanuts in a sweet-and-salty glaze. There’s no beer in the recipe, just the suggestion that the snack goes well with beer.

5 Family division : GENUS

Biological classification is a method used to group organisms by biological type. The method uses a hierarchy of nested classes, with an organism being classified with reference to evolutionary traits. The major taxonomic ranks used are:

• Life
• Domain
• Kingdom
• Phylum (plural “phyla”)
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus (plural “genera”)
• Species

8 Kangaroo or koala : ANIMAL

The word “kangaroo” comes from the Australian Aborigine term for the animal. There’s an oft-quoted story that the explorer James Cook (later Captain Cook) asked a local native what was the name of this remarkable-looking animal, and the native responded with “Kangaroo”. The story is that the native was actually saying “I don’t understand you”, but as cute as that tale is, it’s just an urban myth.

The koala bear really does look like a little bear, but it’s not even closely related. It is an arboreal marsupial and a herbivore, native to the east and south coasts of Australia. Koalas aren’t primates, and are one of the few mammals other than primates who have fingerprints. In fact, it can be very difficult to tell human fingerprints from koala fingerprints, even under an electron microscope. Male koalas are called “bucks”, females are “does”, and young koalas are “joeys”. I’m a little jealous of the koala, as it sleeps up to 20 hours a day …

10 Menopause treatment, briefly : HRT

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT)

15 White Rabbit pursuer : ALICE

The White Rabbit is a character who appears at the very start of Lewis Carroll’s novel “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”. Alice sees the White Rabbit checking his watch and mumbling “Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be late!” Alice then follows him down the rabbit hole and into Wonderland.

33 Bert’s roommate : ERNIE

For many years, I believed that the “Sesame Street” characters Bert and Ernie were named after two roles played in the Christmas classic “It’s a Wonderful Life”. In the movie, the policeman’s name is Bert and his taxi-driving buddy is named Ernie. However, the “Sesame Street” folks have stated that the use of the same names is just a coincidence. Aww, I don’t wanna believe that’s a coincidence …

37 Sweet spread for a teen’s birthday celebration? : “QUINCE” JELLY (“fifteen” jelly)

“Quinceañera” is a celebration of a girl’s fifteenth birthday, and is an event common in many parts of Latin America.

The quince is a fruit related to the apple and pear. Some people suggest that the fruit eaten from the Tree of Knowledge by Adam and Eve was in fact a quince.

39 Org. that fights age bias : AARP

AARP is the official name now for the interest group that used to be called “The American Association of Retired Persons”. The name change reflects the current focus of the group on all Americans aged 50 or over, as opposed to just people who have retired. The AARP was founded by Dr. Ethel Percy Andrus in 1958 and is a successor to the National Retired Teachers Association, also founded by Andrus over ten years earlier.

41 Gene carrier that keeps people wanting more? : “Y” CHROMOSOME (“and” chromosome)

In most mammalian species, including man, females have two identical sex chromosomes (XX) and males two distinct sex chromosomes (XY). As a result it is the males who determine the sex of the offspring. However, in birds the opposite is true and so females determine the sex of the chicks.

42 “The Black Tulip” novelist : DUMAS

“The Black Tulip” is an 1850 historical novel by the French author Alexandre Dumas, père. Central to the plot is a competition in the Netherlands to grow a black tulip, and win a prize of 100,000 Dutch guilders.

43 River of Hades : STYX

The River Styx of Greek mythology was the river that formed the boundary between the Earth and the Underworld (or “Hades”). The souls of the newly dead had to cross the River Styx in a ferry boat piloted by Charon. Traditionally, a coin would be placed in the mouths of the dead “to pay the ferryman”.

45 Pinterest upload : PHOTO

Pinterest is a free website which can be used to save and manage images (called “pins”) and other media. For some reason, the vast majority of Pinterest users are women.

61 Tamagoyaki, e.g. : OMELET

Tamagoyaki is a Japanese omelet that is prepared by layering thin sheets of seasoned egg in a rectangular pan, and then rolling the sheets into a layered cylinder. “Tamagoyaki” translates as “grilled egg”.

67 “Illusion” singer Dua __ : LIPA

“Illusion” is a 2024 song co-written and released by English-Albanian singer Dua Lipa. It is described as a dance number, and comes from her studio album “Radical Optimism”.

74 Heavily loaded : LADEN

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.

76 Link destination : URL

Uniform resource locator (URL)

78 Stuffed grape leaf : DOLMA

Dolmas are stuffed vegetable dishes from the Middle East. Strictly speaking, dolmas are made by hollowing out some vegetables before adding a stuffing. The derivative dish called “sarma” is made by wrapping vine or cabbage leaves around a filling. In many cuisines, the name “sarma” has been dropped in favor of “dolma”.

79 Ads that raise awareness : PSAS

Public service announcement (PSA)

81 Needle point? : NORTH

True north is the direction pointing towards the Earth’s geographic North Pole. Magnetic north is the direction pointing towards the Earth’s Magnetic North Pole, and is the direction indicated by a compass needle.

87 Way to serve satay : SKEWERED

The dish known as “satay” originated in Java, Indonesia and is marinated pieces of meat served on a skewer in a sauce, often a spicy peanut sauce. “Satay” is the Indonesian spelling, and “sate” is the Malay spelling.

89 Speed trap device : RADAR GUN

Radar speed guns were first used to monitor traffic by Connecticut State Police in the town of Glastonbury, way back in 1947!

94 Minesweeper units : CELLS

The relatively simple computer game called Minesweeper has been included in releases of the Microsoft Windows operating system from 1992. The first version of Windows to include Minesweeper was Windows 3.1, but the last version was Windows 7. Windows 8 didn’t include Minesweeper by default, but you could pick up a copy in the Windows Store.

101 Store with a Swedish House Mafia collaboration : IKEA

OBEGRÄNSAD, meaning “unlimited” in Swedish, is a furniture collection from IKEA born out of a collaboration with the electronic music supergroup Swedish House Mafia. Designed to cater to music creators and enthusiasts, the collection features over 20 pieces, including a desk, armchair, and even a record player.

102 Kafka protagonist : SAMSA

“The Metamorphosis” is a famous novella by Franz Kafka that is regarded by many as one of the greatest pieces of short fiction written in the 20th century. The story tells of the metamorphosis of Gregor Samsa into a gigantic insect. His sister Grete Samsa becomes his caregiver.

105 Enters in a record book : LOGS

The word “logbook” dates back to the days when the captain of a ship kept a daily record of the vessel’s speed, progress etc. using a “log”. A log was a wooden float on a knotted line that was dropped overboard to measure speed through the water.

106 Final bio : OBIT

Our word “obituary” comes from the Latin “obituaris”. The Latin term was used for “record of the death of a person”, although the literal meaning is “pertaining to death”.

108 Mystery writer Paretsky : SARA

Sara Paretsky is an American author of detective fiction. Her most famous character is a female private investigator called V.I. Warshawski. Warshawski was played by Kathleen Turner in a big screen adaptation of one of her stories in 1991. I listen quite a lot to Turner portraying V.I. Warshawski in BBC radio broadcasts …

111 Soccer legend nicknamed “O Rei” : PELE

“Pelé” was the nickname of Edson de Nascimento, a soccer player who used the name “Pelé” for most of his life. For my money, Pelé was the world’s greatest ever player of the game. He was the only person to have been a member of three World Cup winning squads (1958, 1962 and 1970), and was a national treasure in his native Brazil. One of Pele’s nicknames was “O Rei do Futebol” (the King of Football).

116 Business letters : LLC

A limited liability company (LLC) has a structure that limits the liability of the owner or owners. It is a hybrid structure in the sense that it can be taxed as would an individual or partnership, while also maintaining the liability protection afforded to a corporation.

117 Oral health org. : ADA

American Dental Association (ADA)