10
$\begingroup$

The following list of items has been altered. They all use some form of wordplay originating from the item, with some being very literal and straightforward, while others are obscure and challenging. You need not solve all of the items (but congrats if you do!), the answer is the category of the original items. Good luck!

  • ">->o"
  • A hose
  • A test question
  • Art
  • The NFL (if everyone wore red helmets)
  • Dirt on a hand?
  • A political TV show filmed at Charles University
  • 0.0697564737
  • Two "Sonic the Hedgehog" characters
  • .- / -... .- -. -..
  • Harry, Hermione, & Ron
  • A typical LEGO minifigure head
Improve this question
$\endgroup$

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
11
$\begingroup$

This is a list of:

stories by Arthur Conan Doyle featuring his detective, Sherlock Holmes.

The clues should be interpreted as follows:

">->o"

Possibly The Adventure of the Crooked Man, since the symbols form the shape of a man lying down. (Alternatively, he may be Creeping instead, since the quotation marks might suggest movement lines...)

A hose

The Adventure of the Empty House - since if we 'empty' the word HOUSE by removing its middle letter, we get HOSE!

A test question

The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter (sounds like a question in a mathematics test)

Art

Possibly The Adventure of the Retired Colourman, since a 'colourman' is an art supply dealer.

The NFL (if everyone wore red helmets)

The Red-Headed League (the 'L' in NFL stands for 'League')

Dirt on a hand?

The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb (which would potentially be covered in grease)
(The OP reveals in comments that their intention was actually The Adventure of the Second Stain, which might sound like the second hand of a clock is dirty...)

A political TV show filmed at Charles University

A Scandal in Bohemia (Charles University is found in the historic region of Bohemia in modern-day Czechia)
(Thanks to @JerryDean in comments)

0.0697564737

The Sign of the Four - this number is $sin(4)$ i.e. the 'sine of 4'.

Two "Sonic the Hedgehog" characters

The Adventure of Silver Blaze

.- / -... .- -. -..

The Adventure of the Speckled Band - the Morse code decoded spells 'A BAND'.

Harry, Hermione, & Ron

The Adventure of the Three Students (Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley are all students together at Hogwarts in the books by J.K. Rowling)

A typical LEGO minifigure head

The Adventure of the Yellow Face (traditionally the colour of LEGO minifigure heads)

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
5
  • $\begingroup$ Wow, that was fast! I will point out that rot13("Qveg ba n unaq?" jnf zrnag gb or Gur Frpbaq Fgnva (nf va gur frpbaq unaq ba n pybpx)), but that does also make sense. Good luck with the rest of them! $\endgroup$
    – WoomyRogue
    Commented Jun 22, 2021 at 15:15
  • $\begingroup$ @WoomyRogue Ah, okay - I'm still thinking about the others though... :) $\endgroup$
    – Stiv
    Commented Jun 22, 2021 at 15:17
  • $\begingroup$ "A political TV show filmed at Charles University" may be rot13("N Fpnaqny va Oburzvn"), since rot13(Gur Xvat bs Oburzvn jrag sebz Centhr gb frr Fureybpx Ubyzrf, naq Puneyrf Havirefvgl vf xabja uvfgbevpnyyl nf gur Havirefvgl bs Centhr.) It's a pretty wild guess, though. $\endgroup$
    – Jerry Dean
    Commented Jun 22, 2021 at 15:57
  • $\begingroup$ @JerryDean Ah, you're right! The TV show is just Scandal and Charles University is in Czechia which is formerly Bohemia - good thinking :) $\endgroup$
    – Stiv
    Commented Jun 22, 2021 at 16:00
  • $\begingroup$ @Stiv Thanks! As for the hose one, I have a hypothesis: rot13(N flabalz sbe "ubfr" vf "cvcr", juvpu vf cerggl fvzvyne gb "cvc", naq pbhyq or ersreevat gb Svir Benatr Cvcf. Ubjrire, V guvax guvf zvtug abg or pbeerpg, nf vg fnvq "n ubfr" vafgrnq bs "svir ubfrf" be fbzrguvat yvxr gung.) $\endgroup$
    – Jerry Dean
    Commented Jun 22, 2021 at 16:16

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.