Brain Teasers
Tom Swift Returns From Australia
Language
Language brain teasers are those that involve the English language. You need to think about and manipulate words and letters.Language
A Tom Swifty is a play on words. Tom speaks, and the way he is said to speak is a pun. Both meanings of the pun could be true.
e.g. "Really! You don't know how to start a model-T Ford?" asked Tom crankily.
- Crankily describes his tone of voice and suggests how it might be done (with a crank handle!)
Choose one of the listed words below to fill each gap.
** CLUES **
1. "I had a go at throwing a boomerang," said Tom ____.
2. "The camp ground had blood-sucking insects in the outhouse," said Tom ____.
3. "I got sick after a seafood meal in Alice," said Tom ____.
4. "I loved the food in the in the uranium miners' café at Mount Painter," said Tom ____.
5. "Tourists in Australia often put on weight," said Tom ____.
6. "Anyway, I bought cuddly koala toys for you all," said Tom ____.
** WORD LIST **
aloofly, emphatically, gingerly, glowingly, grandiosely, hopelessly, officiously, perniciously, presently, slowly, triflingly
Remember that Tom Swifties don't have to make perfect grammatical sense!
e.g. "Really! You don't know how to start a model-T Ford?" asked Tom crankily.
- Crankily describes his tone of voice and suggests how it might be done (with a crank handle!)
Choose one of the listed words below to fill each gap.
** CLUES **
1. "I had a go at throwing a boomerang," said Tom ____.
2. "The camp ground had blood-sucking insects in the outhouse," said Tom ____.
3. "I got sick after a seafood meal in Alice," said Tom ____.
4. "I loved the food in the in the uranium miners' café at Mount Painter," said Tom ____.
5. "Tourists in Australia often put on weight," said Tom ____.
6. "Anyway, I bought cuddly koala toys for you all," said Tom ____.
** WORD LIST **
aloofly, emphatically, gingerly, glowingly, grandiosely, hopelessly, officiously, perniciously, presently, slowly, triflingly
Remember that Tom Swifties don't have to make perfect grammatical sense!
Answer
1. Triflingly2. Aloofly
3. Officiously
4. Glowingly
5. Emphatically
6. Presently
And, for those who insist on an explanation ...
1. Try (to) fling (it)
2. A loo fly!
3. Off fish! (The fish was off - or he's off fish now!)
4. Tom is radiant!
5. - fat -
6. He bought presents for you.
Note:
Tom Swift was an adventure hero created by American writer Victor Appleton. In the books, almost all of Tom's remarks were written with an adverb or adverbial phrase. From this style, the term "Tom Swifty" has come to be used for this form of word play.
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