Unraveling the Mystery: The Sunday Puzzle's Common Denominator Challenge

Welcome back to another thrilling session of the NPR Sunday Puzzle! Each week, puzzle master Will Shortz captivates listeners with his ingenious wordplay, inviting us all to put on our thinking caps. This week promises a mind-bending journey into connections, as we tackle the 'Common Denominator' challenge.

Before we dive into today's brain-teaser, let's take a quick look back at last week's intriguing puzzle.

The challenge was to identify a four-letter word that, when placed after each of the following words – 'LIGHT,' 'HOUSE,' 'FIELD' – creates a common compound word or phrase. The clever solution, as many of you correctly deduced, was 'BOX.' (Lightbox, Playhouse, Field box). Congratulations to all who cracked that code!

And now, for this week's main event! Joining us as always is the brilliant Will Shortz, puzzle editor of The New York Times.

Will, what delightful linguistic labyrinth have you prepared for us today?

Will Shortz: 'Good morning! This week, the challenge is to find a single word that acts as a 'common denominator' for a given set of words. I'll give you a list of words, and your task is to identify one word that can logically follow all of them to create a common phrase or compound word.'

Will Shortz: 'For example, if I gave you the words: 'HIGH,' 'LOW,' 'TIDE.' What single word could follow all three to form common phrases?'

The answer, of course, would be 'WATER.' (High water, Low water, Tidewater).

Will Shortz: 'Now that you have the hang of it, here is your official Sunday Puzzle challenge for the week:

Find a word that can follow each of the following words to create a common phrase or compound word:

1.

BOOK

2. FRONT

3. HEAD

4. BACK

5. DOOR

Think carefully about the associations and common sayings. What single word ties all these together?'

Listeners are encouraged to submit their answers by Thursday of the upcoming week. Head over to our website, find the Sunday Puzzle page, and submit your solution for a chance to be featured on next week's show.

Good luck, and happy puzzling!