Category: Kate Hawkins

Bill’s time: 12m 18s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

6 “Butt out!,” in brief : MYOB!

Mind your own business (MYOB)

14 Subtly damaging : PERNICIOUS

Something pernicious is very harmful, causing death or serious injury. The term ultimately comes from the Latin “per-” meaning “completely” and “necis” meaning “violent death”.

20 Low parts of an opera : BASSI

The bass is the lowest male singing voice. A man with such a voice might be called a “basso” (plural “bassi”). In an opera, the villain of the piece is usually played by a basso.

21 Comic strip with a teenage protagonist : ZITS

“Zits” is a popular cartoon strip written by Jerry Scott and illustrated by Jim Borgman. The strip debuted in 1997, and features a teenage boy called Jeremy Duncan as the main character.

25 “House of Games” writer/director : MAMET

David Mamet is best known as a playwright, and indeed won a Pulitzer for his 1984 play “Glengarry Glen Ross”. Mamet is also a successful screenwriter and received Oscar nominations for the films “The Verdict” (1982) and “Wag the Dog” (1997).

28 Cash in the music business : ROSANNE

Rosanne Cash is the eldest daughter of Johnny Cash, and is a successful singer in her own right.

30 Little, in Lyon : PEU

The city of Lyon in France is sometimes known as “Lyons” in English. It is the second-largest metropolitan area in the country, after Paris, and is located just to the north of the confluence of the Rhône and Saône Rivers.

31 Convent resident : SISTER

A convent is a community devoted to religious life, and especially a community of nuns. The term “convent” ultimately comes from the Latin “com” (with, together) and “venire” (to come).

34 One who’s been tapped on the shoulder : SIR

Kneel, and a monarch might “dub thee a knight” if you’re lucky. “Dub” is a specific term derived from Old English that was used to mean “make a knight”. As the knight was also given a knightly name at the same time, “dub” came to mean “give someone a name”.

37 Make ___ : HAY

Make hay while the sun shines … seize the opportunity.

38 Who says, in Shakespeare, “Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look” : CAESAR

Here are some lines spoken by the title character in the play “Julius Caesar” by William Shakespeare:

Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look.
He thinks too much. Such men are dangerous.

Caesar is referring to Cassius, one of the leading figures in the plot to assassinate him.

42 Highland wear : TARTANS

“Tartan” is sometimes called “plaid” over here in the US, and is a word not used in the same sense outside of this country. In Scotland, a plaid is a blanket or a tartan cloth slung over the shoulder.

52 Hautbois, en anglais : OBOE

The oboe is perhaps my favorite of the reed instruments. The name “oboe” comes from the French “hautbois” which means “high wood”.

55 Terminus of the Appian Way : ROME

We absorbed our word “terminus” (plural “termini”) from Latin, and in both languages it means “end, final goal”. The Roman god Terminus presided over landmarks and boundaries, and was the focus of the festival of Terminalia at the end of the Roman year.

The Appian Way has to be the most famous of the amazing roads of ancient Rome. It stretched from Rome right into the south of Italy, terminating in the city of Brindisi in the southeast. The first section of the military road was completed in 312 BC, by the Roman censor called Appius Claudius Caecus, who gave the road its name “Via Appia”, or “Appian Way”.

58 Confucius’ “Book of ___” : ODES

The sayings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius (anglicized from “K’ung Fu-Tse”) are collected in a work called “The Analects” or “Linyu”. It wasn’t Confucius who wrote down his thoughts though, but rather his pupils, some 40 or so years after his death in 479 BC.

59 Walled-off divisions, metaphorically : SILOS

“Silo” is a Spanish word that we absorbed into English. The term ultimately derives from the Greek “siros”, which described a pit in which one kept corn.

Down

5 Morsel : TIDBIT

A morsel is a small bite, a mouthful of food. The term “morsel” comes from the Latin “morsus” meaning “bite”.

6 Renaissance faire performer such as a lutenist or juggler, perhaps : MINSTREL

A Renaissance faire (Ren faire) is an outdoor public event in which many participants recreate historical settings by dressing in costume. Usually held in North America, many such fairs are set during the English Renaissance, and more particularly during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The definition of “Renaissance” is often stretched quite a bit, with fairs also set during the reign of Henry VIII, and maybe even during medieval times.

8 Only about 10% of human bodies have these : OUTIES

The navel is essentially the scar left behind when the umbilical cord is removed from a newborn baby. One interesting use of the umbilicus (navel, belly button) is to differentiate between identical twins, especially when they are very young.

9 Degs. with lab courses, often : BSS

Bachelor of Science (BS)

10 Famed archers : AMAZONS

The Amazons of Greek mythology were a tribe of female warriors who were the daughters of Ares and Harmonia.

12 Makes off with the goods, in a way : LOOTS

“Loot” is the name given to anything taken by dishonesty or force, particularly during war. The term came into English from the Hindi “lut” meaning “goods taken from an enemy”.

25 Abbr. at the end of a list : MISC

Out terms “miscellany” and “miscellaneous” ultimately come from the Latin verb “miscere” meaning “to mix”.

30 “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — ___” (2014 film) : PART I

“The Hunger Games” is a 2008 novel by Suzanne Collins, and the first in a series of titles that also includes “Catching Fire” (2009) and “Mockingjay” (2010). “The Hunger Games” was adapted into a very successful movie released in 2012, with the sequels following soon after. Amazon.com reports more sales of “The Hunger Games” series books than even the “Harry Potter” series.

33 Manhattan options : RYES

The cocktail called a manhattan is made from whiskey, sweet vermouth and Angostura bitters. I favor my own version of a brandy manhattan, using brandy, sweet vermouth and orange bitters.

35 Former attorney general Bill : BARR

William Barr was US Attorney General for two years in the administration of President George H. W. Bush before being appointed Attorney General by President Donald Trump in 2019. When not working, Barr is a very enthusiastic player of the Scottish bagpipes.

36 Doubloons : PISTOLES

The doubloon was a Spanish gold coin worth two escudos. The name comes from the Spanish “doblón”, which means “double”.

39 Prepared, as green beans : SAUTEED

“Sauté” is a French word. The literal translation from the French is “jumped” or “bounced”, a reference to the tossing of food while cooking it in a frying pan.

44 Units divided into 100 points : CARATS

The carat is a unit of mass equal to 200 mg (0.2 grams). It is used in sizing gemstones.

45 Verboten : TABOO

“Verboten” is German for “forbidden”, and is a word that we have imported into English.

46 Things on mason jars or racing cars : RIMS

Mason jars were invented in 1858 in Philadelphia by a tinsmith, a tinsmith named John Landis Mason.

47 “The Star-Spangled Banner” was written about one : FORT

The lyrics of “The Star-Spangled Banner” were written first as a poem by Francis Scott Key. Key’s inspiration was the bombardment by the British of the American forces at Fort McHenry that he witnessed during the Battle of Baltimore in September 1814. The words were then set to the tune of a popular British drinking song penned by John Stafford Smith called “The Anacreontic Song”, with the Anacreontic Society being a men’s club in London.

50 River through Florence : ARNO

The Arno is the principal river in the Tuscany region of Italy, and passes through the cities of Florence and Pisa. Famously the Arno flooded in 1966, the worst flood in the region for centuries. There were numerous deaths and extensive destruction of priceless art treasures, particularly in Florence.

Florence is the capital city of the Tuscany region in Italy. Something from or related to Florence is described as “Florentine”. The city is known as “Firenze” in Italian.

53 Carnival location : RIO

Rio de Janeiro is the second largest city in Brazil (after São Paulo). “Rio de Janeiro” translates as “January River”. The name reflects the discovery of the bay on which Rio sits, on New Year’s Day in 1502.

The Rio de Janeiro Carnival is the largest carnival celebration in the world. The city hosts about two million celebrants on its streets for the six days of the festival.

54 “I didn’t want to know that!” : TMI!

Too much information (TMI)