Sunday Puzzle: TransformeR

I'm going to give you clues for two four-letter words. Put an "r" between them to complete a common nine-letter word.

Ex. World's Fair / tiny bell sound —> EXPORTING

1. Penny / friend in war

2. Shape of a frisbee / to change, as text

3. Take a breather / a variant of "isn't" that isn't considered grammatical

4. 18-wheeler / Russia's ___ Mountains

5. Jump into water headfirst / lady's partner, informally

6. Arrived / word said at the end of a prayer

7. To exist / place to swim [city name]

8. Sharp part of a wire fence / pointed tools used for punching holes [two words]

Last week's challenge

Last week's challenge came from Tom Streit, of Crozet, Virginia. A man said to a friend: "I'm thinking of a nine-letter word that contains my name, Ian (I-A-N), embedded somewhere inside it. If you replace my three-letter name with your four-letter name, you'll get a familiar word in 10 letters." What are the two words, and what is the name of Ian's friend?

Challenge answer

The first word is "appliance." If you change the "Ian" to "Esau" you get "applesauce."

This week's challenge

This week's challenge comes from Greg VanMechelen, of Berkeley, California. Name something you don't want to have at night using two words (3,5). Shift each of the letters of the second word nine spaces later in the alphabet. If your count reaches the end of the alphabet, continue counting from the start. The result will name a famous singer.

If you know the answer to the challenge, submit it below by Thursday, February 26 at 3 p.m. ET. Listeners whose answers are selected win a chance to play the on-air puzzle.