07.27.14 — Woe Is I — the Acrostic

Allegory of Grammar, Laurent de La Hyre, 1650

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Sunday, July 27, 2014

ACROSTIC, Puzzle by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon

Edited by Will Shortz

This Sunday’s fine acrostic draws a quotation from Woe is I:  The Grammarphobe’s Guide to Better English in Plain English by Patricia T. O’Conner.

Patricia T. O’Conner unties the knottiest grammar tangles and displays the same lively humor that has charmed and enlightened gateful readers for years.  With new chapters on spelling and punctuation, and fresh insights into the rights, wrongs, and maybes of English grammar and usage, Woe Is I offers down-to-earth explanations and plain-English solutions to the language mysteries that bedevil all of us. ~ amazon.com

The quotation:  [Y]OUR SPELL-CHECKER … DOESN’T CARE WHETHER SOMEONE’S A GUERRILLA OR A GORILLA, LIVES IN A DESERT OR A DESSERT, HAS A SWEET TOOTH OR A SUITE TOOTH. … SO DON’T… HIT REPLACE EVERY TIME THE PROGRAM TELLS YOU TO (OAR YULE BEE SARI).

The author’s name and the title of the work:  PATRICIA O’CONNER, “WOE IS I”

A. Eighty-six in stages (2 wds.), PHASE OUT
B. Figures ridiculed in “Bleak House”, ATTORNEYS
C. Shake a stick, THREATEN
D. Host of the first intercollegiate football game (1869), RUTGERS
E. One driven by theory more than, IDEOLOGUE
F. Where people seeking relationships might click? (2 wds.), CHAT ROOM
G. Vexing, apt to get under one’s skin, IRKSOME
H. Lover of the arts, AESTHETE
I. Specification to a breakfast cook (2 wds.), OVER EASY
J. Four-line verse poking fun at a famous person, CLERIHEW
K. Originally, the circle where a chorus sang and danced, ORCHESTRA
L. Above-the-line figure, NUMERATOR
M. Target of a pounding, NAILHEAD
N. Common feature of subway stations and multilevel department stores, ESCALATOR
O. Philosopher who wrote “Why  Am Not a Christian” and “In Praise of Idleness”, RUSSELL
P. Epitome of a crushing defeat, WATERLOO
Q. The study of correct pronunciation, ORTHOEPY
R. Villains, baddies, agents or perfidy, EVILDOERS
S. Like a signature finger-written on a screen, often, ILLEGIBLE
T. Took the road less traveled by, STRAYED
U. Relatives of a fundamental sort, ISOTOPES

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