A + B = C is one of the most common topics for 3-letter rounds, but many players misplay it.
It's supposed to be "taking two things, which when
put together become a third".
The A and B should both
be the same part of speech, either both nouns (most commonly),
or both adjectives or verbs, with the result being a third of the same kind.
The canonical example often given is:
Dog + Cat = Fight
Take two sworn enemies, put them together, and a fight ensues.
It should NOT be a two-word phrase with a plus sign stuck in the middle of it. Or worse, a three word phrase with both punctuation marks just added.
A good test is:
If it works just as well WITHOUT the plus sign, it's not a 'real'
A+B=C acro.
Here are some examples, showing not-so-good acros, followed by improvements to them:
Flawed Acro | Reason | Improved |
---|---|---|
Dirty + Dog = Mud |
Most Adjective + Noun acros fail the "you don't need the plus sign" test. |
Dirt + Dog = Mess |
Cold + Day = Shivering | Make it two adjectives rather than just "cold day". | Cold + Disrobed = Shivering. |
Foreign + trip = Romania. |
You can't "add" 'foreign' to a trip, it's a 'foreign trip'. |
France + Trip = Romance |
Spill + Porridge = Mess | Verb + Noun acros are still just two-word phrases. | Stage + Porridge = Mess |
Observe + Fossils = Paleontologist | SO close .... just make both parts nouns. | Observer + Fossils = Paleontology |
Broken + Head = Headache |
Again, this doesn't need the plus sign; use a noun instead of an adjective. |
Bat + Head = Headache |
Donald + Lies = Always | Here, all the punctuation is simply inserted, since lies can be read as a verb. | Donald + Lie = Alibi |
Duplicate acros (or near dups) are fairly common. But as the number of letters increases, the frequency DEcreases.
Tonight was one of those extremely unlikely cases.
For the topic of "Describe a perfect vacation", KLJ and MrPuzzle both wrote, word-for-word:
"Somewhere nice, good food, money's not used."
I put an exclamation point at the end, she used a period. That was the only difference.
Weird only begins to describe it.
Alphabetical By Frequency Occurrences in 10 Round Game * 0.86% T 8.12% 4.1 A 7.80% A 7.80% 3.9 B 6.56% S 7.77% 3.9 C 5.27% H 7.34% 3.7 D 4.29% W 7.32% 3.7 E 2.14% B 6.56% 3.3 F 5.20% M 6.08% 3.0 G 4.35% C 5.27% 2.6 H 7.34% F 5.20% 2.6 I 4.82% I 4.82% 2.4 J 0.03% O 4.82% 2.4 K 0.08% P 4.36% 2.2 L 4.34% G 4.35% 2.2 M 6.08% L 4.34% 2.2 N 4.33% N 4.33% 2.2 O 4.82% D 4.29% 2.1 P 4.36% R 2.38% 1.2 Q 0.03% E 2.14% 1.1 R 2.38% U 1.61% 0.8 S 7.77% * 0.86% 0.4 T 8.12% K 0.08% 0.04 U 1.61% V 0.06% 0.03 V 0.06% J 0.03% 0.02 W 7.32% Q 0.03% 0.02 X 0.00% Y 0.02% 0.01 Y 0.02% Z 0.02% 0.01 Z 0.02% X 0 0.00 (X is not used)
The sequence of letters ends in a vowel, in percentage terms, the sum of the numbers above for the 5 vowels: a + e + i + o + u = 7.8 + 2.14 + 4.82 + 4.82 + 1.61 = 21.2% For just i and o, it's 9.64% of the time.
17:34 T..... logged in
17:34 T..... logged out
17:35 S..... logged in
17:35 S..... logged out
17:39 k1.... logged in
17:39 k1.... logged out
These were a little farther apart, but might have joined a game the other 3 started.
18:02 k2.... logged in
18:03 k2.... logged out
18:17 a..... logged in
18:17 a..... logged out
18:35 r..... logged in
18:35 r..... logged out
The next person might do the same thing, possibly seconds later, each not knowing about the other.
Ships passing in the night.
To meet, they'd have to have split-second timing, and arrive at virtually the same time.
They want to join an ongoing game, or go find something else to do.
But think for a moment, How did that game get going?
Someone was the first to arrive, and found no one there. But instead of leaving, they waited a little while, and pretty soon another and another showed up and they could start.
BE THAT PERSON - and make it so others don't find that same empty lobby - they find YOU there!
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