GYLES BRANDRETH, WORD PLAY — Aegilops... is the longest word whose letters are... in alphabetical order. Seven-letter words with this property include beefily and billowy. Six-letter words include... accent, access, almost, biopsy, bijoux,... chintz and effort.
Aegilops, with eight letters, is the longest word whose letters are arranged in alphabetical order. Seven-letter words with this property include beefily and billowy. Six-letter words include abhors, accent, access, almost, biopsy, bijoux, billow, chintz and effort.
| A. | "____ means boy" (line from a waitress in "Pulp Fiction") | GARCON |
| B. | Dice game similar to Kismet | YAHTZEE |
| C. | Rival of Tetley and Twinings | LIPTON |
| D. | What a red card leads to | EJECTION |
| E. | Loosely woven silk product | SPIDERWEB |
| F. | Wild drinking sprees | BENDERS |
| G. | Bounces off the walls | RICOCHETS |
| H. | Given to thrusting oneself forward | ASSERTIVE |
| I. | Number one lover? | NARCISSIST |
| J. | Subject of Wordsworth's "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" | DAFFODILS |
| K. | Thin, delicate wrapping for a spring roll (2 wds.) | RICEPAPER |
| L. | Outstanding, of surpassing worth | EXCELLENT |
| M. | Fire-starting kit; powder keg | TINDERBOX |
| N. | Strongly caffeinated, as coffee (hyph.) | HIGHTEST |
| O. | "Now, looky what we've got here!" (2 wds.) | WELLWELL |
| P. | Land from which most Americans emigrated (2 wds.) | OLDWORLD |
| Q. | Court comeback | REBUTTAL |
| R. | Feeling blue, crestfallen | DOWNCAST |
| S. | Move stealthily; shrink from commitment | PUSSYFOOT |
| T. | Too-too pure, perhaps (hyph.) | LILYWHITE |
| U. | Member of the category cited in this puzzle's quotation | ABHORS |
| V. | "I'll do whatever" (3 wds.) | YOUNAMEIT |