Wednesday, Mar 19, 2025 Tara Holland

div>Theme:  Each theme clue today is the same word, in search of different ways of expressing its meaning.  This is called a definition theme, or, in Corner parlance, a clecho [clue echo.]. The theme word here is MOLE.  Let's dig into it.

17. Mole: BEAUTY MARK.  A benign (non-cancerous) growth on the skin, often appearing as a small, dark spot. It is formed by clusters of pigment-producing cells called melanocytes, and can be brown, tan, black, blue, red, or pink.  I've had one on my left cheek forever.  It does not make me feel pretty.

23. Mole: SLEEPER AGENT.  A sleeper agent is a spy or operative who infiltrates a target country or organization, living undercover for an extended period, often years, to act as a potential asset if activated in the future.  A mole is a person who works for an organization or government and secretly gives information to its competitor or enemy.  These are related ideas of someone working under cover, but not really identical.

37. Mole: UNIT OF SUBSTANCE.   It's the base unit in the International System of Units (SI) for the amount of a substance, representing 6.022 × 10²³  of elementary entities (atoms, molecules, etc.). of that substance (Avogadro's number).  It is used to express the concentration of substances in solutions (moles per liter).   The molecular weight of a substance is the weight of one mole of molecules.

59. Mole: GARDEN PEST.  A small, burrowing mammal with velvety fur, small eyes and ears, and powerful forelimbs adapted for digging.   Moles live in tunnels underground, primarily in North America, Europe, and Asia.  They are insectivores, feeding on earthworms and other small invertebrates.   They aerate the soil and help control insect populations, while messing up your lawn.

48. Mole: MEXICAN SAUCE.   In contemporary Mexico the term is used for a number of sauces, some quite dissimilar.  They can contain fruits, nuts, chili peppers, and spices like black pepper, cinnamon, or cumin.

Hi Gang, JazzBumpa here to disambiguate the various meanings of today's repeated theme clue.  Let's see what else we can uncover.

Across:

1. Maker of the first graphing calculator: CASIO.  This was the model FX-7000G, introduced in 1985.  

6. Mediterranean volcano: ETNA.  This is an active volcano that erupted just last month.

10. Tournament passes: BYES.  In a tournament, a "bye" means a player or team advances to the next round without playing a match in the current round, often awarded to top-seeded participants or when there's an uneven number of competitors. 

14. Acrylic fiber: ORLON.  My first thought was Nylon, but that's a polyamid.   Orlon is known for it's  known for its softness, durability, and resistance to sunlight, chemicals, and mildew.  Alternatively, an R&B group that formed in 1960.

Probably not 1960

 
15. Blistex targets: LIPS.  Blistex Medicated Lip Balm helps prevent dryness and chapping. They tell us that its easy glide formula also soothes irritated lips.

16. Goddess born to the Titans Coeus and Phoebe: LETO.  In Greek mythology, Leto is the Titan goddess of motherhood, childbirth, and modesty. She is the mother of Artemis and Apollo, 

19. Lots and lots: A TON.  A non-specific large quantity.

20. Wager: BET.  Risk something, usually a sum of money, against someone else's on the basis of the outcome of a future event, such as the result of a race or game.

21. Declare with confidence: AVER.  Assert that something is true.

22. Pressing into service: USING.   Taking, holding, or deploying something as a means of accomplishing a purpose or achieving a result;

27. Not as expensive: LESS.  Not costing as much.

28. "U slay me!": LOL. Expressions of mirth.

29. Ornamental pond fish: KOI.   In Japan, the koi is a symbol of luck, prosperity, and good fortune, and also of perseverance in the face of adversity. Ornamental koi are symbolic of Japanese culture and are closely associated with the country's national identity.

32. 6-Across output: LAVA.  Molten rock.  Refer to the video above.

35. Pines, e.g.: CONIFERS.   Trees that bear cones and needle-like or scale-like leaves that are typically evergreen. Conifers are of major importance as the source of softwood, and also supply resins and turpentine.

41. Rose up: REBELLED.  Rose in opposition or armed resistance to an established government or ruler.

42. Wine quality: NOSE.  The "nose" of a wine is the wine's aroma or smell. It's a term used by wine experts and enthusiasts to describe the scents that come from the wine. 

43. Wool producer: EWE.  A female sheep.

44. Not exactly talkative: MUM.  "Be silent," 1560s, from a verb mum (Middle English mommen) "make silent" (c. 1400); "be silent" (mid-15c.), from mum, mom (late 14c.), "an inarticulate closed-mouth sound" indicative of unwillingness or inability to speak, probably imitative. As an adjective meaning "secret" or "silent" from 1520s. Phrase mum's the word is recorded by 1704.

45. "Hold on!": WAIT.  I'll be right there.

53. Open mic night figure: COMIC.  Stand up comedian.

56. Palo __, California: ALTO.   Palo Alto (Spanish for 'tall stick') is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto.  The city of Palo Alto was incorporated in 1894 by the American industrialist Leland Stanford and his wife, Jane Stanford, when they founded Stanford University in memory of their only child, Leland Stanford Jr. 

57. Skillet: PAN.  A skillet is a type of pan, often called a frying pan, characterized by a flat bottom, slightly sloped or flared sides, and a long handle, making it suitable for various cooking methods like frying, sautéing, and searing. 

58. North __ Sea: Central Asian lake: ARAL.  The Aral Sea was an endorheic [has no outflow to the sea or ocean, instead, water is lost primarily through evaporation or seepage into the ground] lake lying between Kazakhstan to its north and Uzbekistan to its south, which began shrinking in the 1960s and had largely dried up into desert by the 2010s. It was in the Aktobe and Kyzylorda regions of Kazakhstan and the Karakalpakstan autonomous region of Uzbekistan.   The North Aral Sea is the portion of the former Aral Sea that is fed by the Syr Darya River. It split from the South Aral Sea in 1987–1988 as water levels dropped due to river diversion for agriculture.

62. Demolish: RAZE.  Completely destroy a building, town, or other site.   Etymologically "to scratch, slash, scrape, erase," from Old French raser "to scrape, shave," from Medieval Latin rasare.

63. Advantage: EDGE.  An improved position or advantage in some sort of competition.

64. Soeur de la mére: TANTE.  The clue indicates the mother's sister.  The fill indicates a mature or elderly woman who is related or well known to the speaker (often used as a respectful form of address).  None of tis was known to me.

65. Cold drafts: ALES.  Move away from the window and enjoy one sitting by the fire.

66. Once in a blue __: MOON.  Rarely.  Alternatively,  a wheat beer brewed with tangerine peel. Not an ale.

67. General delivery?: ORDER.  Hmmm.  An authoritative command issued by a high ranking military officer. 

Down:

1. Some hearty salads: COBBS.  An American garden salad typically made with chopped salad greens (authentically romaine lettuce), tomato, bacon, chicken breast, hard-boiled eggs, avocado, chives, blue cheese or other cheeses and red wine vinaigrette.

2. Staggering: AREEL.  Walking unsteadily - perhaps from too many ales.

3. Roof option: SLATE.  A roof made of natural stone tiles

4. Letters for debtors: IOU.  A phonetic acronym of the words "I owe you," that is a document that acknowledges the existence of a debt. 

5. Recorded: ON TAPE.  In the language, but probably anachronistic by now.  Does anybody actually record on tape these days?

6. Big name in glue: ELMER'S.  Elmer's Products, Inc. or simply Elmer's, is an American-based company that has a line of adhesive, craft, home repair, and office supply products. 

7. Diadem: TIARA.  Each is jeweled head band.  A diadem can also be more crown- like, symbolizing royalty. 

8. "Fresh Air" airer: NPR.  National Public Radio.

9. "That's a pretty big __": ASK.  Something you request someone to do that will be difficult for them.

10. Really fun time: BLAST. An enjoyable experience or lively party.

11. Himalayan recluse: YETI.    A mythical creature that's said to live in the Himalayan mountains.

12. Historic English school: ETON.   Eton College is a public school providing boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated prime ministers, world leaders, Nobel laureates, Academy Award and BAFTA award-winning actors, and generations of the aristocracy, and has been referred to as "the nurse of England's statesmen"

13. "Call Me" or "Call Me Maybe": SONG.  

18. __ Saint Laurent: YVES.   Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent 1936 – 2008)better known as Yves Saint Laurent or YSL, was a French fashion designer who, in 1962, founded his eponymous fashion label. He is regarded as being among the foremost fashion designers of the twentieth century.

22. Like birthday candles during dinner: UNLIT.  This assumes the dinner precedes the dessert, which the natural order of things.  But somebody once said - life is uncertain, eat dessert first.

24. Absolutely delight: ELATE.  Make someone ecstatically happy.

25. Goopy lump: GLOB.  An amorphous and possibly sticky mass.

26. Ages and ages: EONS.  A long, non-specific time period.

29. Lotto game: KENO.   Keno is a lottery-like gambling game often played at modern casinos, and also offered as a game in some lotteries.

30. Middle-earth menaces: ORCS.   

31. "Understood": I SEE.  Got it.

32. Fishing aid: LURE.   An artificial bait, often made of plastic or metal, designed to attract fish by mimicking prey or triggering their instincts, and is used to catch fish during angling

33. Once more: ANEW.  Starting over.

34. General feeling: VIBE.  The overall feeling, atmosphere, or energy of a place, person, or situation, often used to describe a positive or negative feeling or mood. 

35. Bovine mouthful: CUD.   Partly digested food returned from the first stomach of ruminants to the mouth for further chewing.

36. Crush alternative: FANTA.  Fanta is an American-owned brand of fruit-flavored carbonated soft drinks.  Crush is a brand of carbonated soft drinks owned and marketed internationally by Keurig Dr Pepper, originally created as an orange soda, Orange Crush. Crush competes with Coca-Cola's Fanta.

38. Early Mesoamerican civilization: OLMEC.   he Olmec were an ancient Mesoamerican civilization that flourished in the Gulf Coast states of Veracruz and Tabasco, modern-day Mexico, between roughly 1200 and 400 BCE.  The Olmec are often considered the "mother culture" of Mesoamerica because their practices and beliefs influenced later civilizations like the Maya and Aztec. 

39. __ capacitor: "Back to the Future" device: FLUX.   A piece of technology in the 1985 time-travel film Back to the Future and its sequels. Although it's described as the thing that makes time travel possible, the precise mechanism it works by isn't ever explained.  It's a bit of fun sci-fi technobabble made up of two pieces of genuine scientific terminology. In physics, flux is the amount of something (like electricity) that’s passing through a given object’s surface and a capacitor is a device that stores electronic charge.

40. Final Four game: SEMI.  The two winners advance to the final, to determine the champion.

45. Thoreau work subtitled "Life in the Woods": WALDEN.  An 1854 book by American transcendentalist writer Henry David Thoreau. The text is a reflection upon the author's simple living in natural surroundings. The work is part personal declaration of independence, social experiment, voyage of spiritual discovery, satire, and—to some degree—a manual for self-reliance

46. Stake: ANTE.   The initial wager in a poker game.

47. Can't be fooled by: IS ON TO.  Has it figured out.

48. Marathon units: MILES.  A unit of linear measure equal to 1,760 yards (approximately 1.609 kilometres).

49. __ pants: CARGO.  Loosely cut pants originally designed for rough work environments and outdoor activities, distinguished by numerous large utility pockets for carrying tools.

50. Overturn: UPEND.  Turn something over so that it ends up upside down; alternatively, to abolish, invalidate, or reverse a previous system, decision, situation, etc.

51. Isabel Wilkerson book that inspired the Ava DuVernay film "Origin": CASTE.   A nonfiction book by the American journalist Isabel Wilkerson, published in August 2020 by Random House. The book describes racism in the United States as an aspect of a caste system—a society-wide system of social stratification characterized by notions such as hierarchy, inclusion and exclusion, and purity. 

52. "Come in!": ENTER.  Go into a building or other structure.

53. "Scars to Your Beautiful" singer Alessia: CARA.  Alessia Caracciolo, known professionally as Alessia Cara, is a Canadian singer and songwriter who was discovered on YouTube at age 13 for her covers and impressions of artists like Lorde and Alanis Morissette. She has won 25 awards out of 74 nominations, including being Canada's first Grammy winner for Best New Artist. Cara is known for encouraging support for real music and artists. 

54. Spoken: ORAL.  As opposed to written.

55. Puzzle with paths: MAZE.  a network of paths and hedges designed as a puzzle through which one has to find a way.

59. Peridot, for one: GEM.   A precious or sometimes semiprecious stone cut and polished for ornament

60. Fuss: ADO.  And now, without further ----

61. __ for the course: PAR.  An average or normal amount or result; just what one might expect.  This term comes from golf, where it refers to the number of strokes needed by an expert golfer to finish the entire course.

That finishes another Wednesday.  Hope you enjoyed the adventure.

Cool Regards!

JzB