Wordsmiths this one’s for you.

Our head scratcher comes from the Guinness Book of Words by Martin Manser. In 1878, the writer Lewis Carroll invented the doublet, a puzzle in which a word is changed, letter by letter, into another word of the same length.

1.       HEAD  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - TALK

2.       APE  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ -  _____ -  MAN

3.       WORD  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ -  DEED

4.       PITCH  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ -  _____ -  TENTS

5.       SLEEP  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ -  _____ -  _____ -  DREAM

Answer:

1.       HEAD – heal – teal – tell – tall – TALK

2.       APE – apt – opt – oat – sat – mat – MAN

3.       WORD – woad – road – read – dead – DEED

4.       PITCH – pinch – winch – wench – tench – tenth – TENTS

5.       SLEEP – sheep – cheep – creep – creek – creak – cream - DREAM

Can you complete the following doublets in five or fewer steps?   

1.       PIG  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ -  STY

2.       FLOUR  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - BREAD

3.       FISH  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - MEAT

4.       HAND  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - FOOT

5.       RICH  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - POOR

6.       COAL  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - MINE

7.       TEARS  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - SMILE

8.       LIVE  - _____ - _____ - _____ - _____ - DEAD

Answers:

1.       PIG  - wig – wag – way – say – STY

2.       FLOUR  - floor – flood – blood – brood – broad – BREAD

3.       FISH – fist – list – lest – best – beat – MEAT

4.       HAND – hard – lard- lord – ford – fort – FOOT

5.       RICH – rick – rock – rook – book – boor – POOR

6.       COAL – coat – moat – most – mist – mint – MINE

7.       TEARS – sears – stars – stare – stale – stile – SMILE

8.       LIVE – line – lint – lent – lead – DEAD