Salami and Windrush Weave Words Quiz

Answer: Bang

"Get it On" is a song by T. Rex released in 1971, found on the album "Electric Warrior". Upon its US release, the song was retitled "Bang a Gong (Get it On)"; a song by Chase called "Get it On" was released in the same year, so the change helped avoid confusion between the two releases.

Eleven letter words are hard to come by, but keeping as many common letters as possible certainly helps! Playing "bang" awards one Word Weaver point and leaves Salami with a fairly decent OTNDEAOR for future possibilities...

Answer: Oleanders

Oleanders are very hardy shrubs with attractive flowers, but every part of the plant is poisonous. The oleander was blamed for the loss of a Roman legion in the Egyptian desert 2000 years ago; the story (which may or may not be true) is that the soldiers used oleander wood to build their camp fires to cook their evening meal, which became poisoned from the smoke and juices of the oleanders.

Seeing the letters NJAREDELSOTL, Salami suggested that Windrush pass on "oleanders", tempting though the word was; and simply trade in a four-letter word in hopes of snagging an elusive 11 or 12-letter word later. Salami suggested "jarl" (a high ranking noble in the distant past) but it seems it was too obscure a word, so Windrush settled for "jean" (presumably one half of a pair of Levis).

Answer: Bartender

With Salami's love of cocktails, seeing his letters IGBNOTNDEAOR tempted him greatly to play "bartending", though a ten-letter word is not his goal.

The Necromancer is a favorite drink of Salami's, but it is not for the faint of heart. This cocktail is a variation of the classic Corpse Reviver #2, with a bigger punch. Unlike the Corpse Reviver #2, which contains an absinthe rinsed glass, the Necromancer's predominant flavorer is absinthe. With a gin rinsed glass, a mixture of absinthe, elderflower liqueur, lillet blanc, and lemon juice, Salami finds it to be the perfect nightcap after a long day.

Don't worry, Bart Simpson, Moe Szyslak is also a bartender, not to be confused with a Bart Ender! Windrush groans, hoping not to encourage Salami's punny behavior.

Answer: Donner

In the 1964 television film "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", Donner is shown to be Rudolph's father. He is the lead reindeer, and when Rudolph is born, his red nose is a cause for concern. Donner tries to cover up the unique appendage with mud and a fake nose, so Rudolph wouldn't become an outcast.

Fortunately for Salami, "Donner" is a perfectly acceptable choice for a Word Weaver word as he has not before played any of the reindeer names.

Answer: Tortoise

The Galapagos tortoise, at nearly four feet, is the largest example of the genus Testudo, and has been known to live an incredibly long time. Harriet was a tortoise who died in 2006 in Australia Zoo aged about 175 years old, after being taken as an adult by Charles Darwin. "Wow!" exclaimed Salami, "she was almost as old as you!" Windrush expects Salami will eventually make a full recovery.

She ignored Salami's suggestion, which would have netted seven points in the mini-game. Instead she opted to trade the LT in for a vowel and was given another I, turning her into ITIWORDELSO. She's been warned that her W is a liability and should be traded in soon. Incidentally, she could have employed a 10-letter word meaning most experienced and sophisticated - "worldliest" - but is still holding out for that elusive 11-letter word so that just won't cut it.

Answer: Solicitor

A solicitor in Australia and the UK is the primary legal contact for clients who handles most legal matters outside a courtroom. In the USA, a solicitor is a public legal official, though more commonly known as a word for someone who sells something, typically from door to door.

Windrush, as clever as she is, found a four-letter word in her board of CITIWORDELSO that used both the least common letters. A "cowl" is a large, loose hood (such as those worn by some monks) or alternatively a cover fitted to enclose a car or aircraft engine space, or to a chimney to prevent draughts.

As for the incorrect options, a sociopath is a person who disregards good manners, and never feels empathy towards others or remorse for his/her bad behaviour; a southpaw is a left-hander (like Windrush and Salami both); and a sorceress is a female wizard/witch. Windrush is beginning to think that the Word Wizard (sorcerer?) is a sociopath; but she's been having a bad day.

Answer: Goofus

Poor Salami, forgot his entire upbringing with the "Goofus and Gallant" comic created in 1940 for "Children's Activities" (later moved to "Highlights for Children" when it was first published in 1946) and acted like a real Goofus. The comic strip features the same scenario for two characters, with a brief ethical teaching point for children; to be more like Gallant, and less like Goofus. Each picture has only a small quip about the situation, indicating the moral soundness of Gallant's actions versus Goofus'. If Salami were to make a "Goofus and Gallant" comic for his situation, the Goofus side might read "Goofus selfishly wakes up his friends," while the Gallant side he neglected would say "Gallant respects his friends in other time zones."

With his letters reading as FCEOAIOFGAUS, Salami thought Goofus was a perfect word to play. Unfortunately, he was unaware that, unlike the word "gallant", "Goofus" is only but a name, and not a word to be played for Word Weaver.

Answer: Erosion

Erosion can mean the wearing away of the earth's surface; alternatively it could refer to Windrush's gradual loss of confidence in the Word Wizard's good intentions. Salami points out that Windrush's very name is a cause of erosion in many areas; wind (especially a rushing one) is quite the force of nature.

After pointing out that, as the hardest working bartender in the USA, Salami NEVER propped up the bar, he took a look at Windrush's board, which contained four I's! He suggested she play "inti" (a former monetary unit of Peru), then build up her letters again. When she had done this he said, "I would now play "iris" (the French fleur-de-lis, or the ancient goddess of dawn), then you'll have cleared away that pesky vowel".

Answer: Interest

Besides being a bartender, Salami is an accountant by day, so the word "interest" jumped out at him right away. Interest rates vary widely, but these are the extra bits of money spent when a loan is being taken out, typically for a car, a house, or other larger purchases not done in a single payment. He also has a credit card he needs to pay to avoid all that excess accrued interest...

At last! An 11-letter word presented itself, unusual in the plural, which surprisingly the Wizard accepted - "notorieties". Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, and thinking "About time!" Windrush submitted the word for 30 points in the mini-game. Notoriety is the state of being widely known, usually for all the wrong reasons, such as for bad public behaviour. Windrush shudders to imagine what a person must do to invoke the term "notorieties".

Answer: Ornamenting

You could decorate a Christmas tree with all the items mentioned, but the act of decorating the tree with any or all of them can be considered "ornamenting". For instance, FunTrivia has now bestowed Windrush and Salami with their very own Word Weaver badge, ornamenting their profiles for earning their 11-letter words!

MNSNAOIGTNER - with both "nonmigrants" and "ornamenting" as options, Salami was left with a tough choice. To build up his rack of 12 letters, would he rather start with an E, or an S? He chose "ornamenting" as he believed the ability to pluralize a word with the S may come in handy later...