Think of a pair of five-letters words are used frequently around Christmas. They’re not synonyms, but they’re close. You can rot-7 one of the words to get the other. That is, you can shift each letter in one word 7 spots down the alphabet to get the other

What 20th century figure’s last name is made up of three consecutive U.S. state abbreviations?

The TV show LOST has all its letters in alphabetical order. Name two Oscar-winning movies — both five letters long — that also have this property.

What mountain’s name, when anagrammed, is not the name a of river in Africa?

Name a food in 7 letters. Change one letter, anagram it, and you’ll have an activity that this food will allow you to do more of, according to a certain person.

Take a famous 20th century author. Combine a common nickname for his first name with the first letter of his last name, and the result will be the name of a retail store. What names are these?

Name something that you might walk on in the forest. Replace one of the letters with something you might walk on at the beach. The result will be something you might walk on around an angry person.

Name a famous 20th century musician. Change one letter in his first name to get the first name of a 20th century TV character. Change one letter in the musician’s last name to get the first name of the actor who played that character. Who are these people?

Name a professional baseball team. Swap the first two letters and — phonetically — you’ll end up with the name of a different pro baseball team. Which two teams are these?

Think of someone who has won multiple Oscars. Change one letter in their first name, anagram it, and you’ll end up with the number of Oscars that person won. This is also possible with a different person’s last name. Who are these people?

Name a noun in four letters. Like most nouns, you can turn this noun into its adjective form by adding a Y, but in this case you first have to swap the noun’s last two letters. What noun & adjective are these?

Name two actors who played father and son in a recent movie. One actor shares his last name with a popular brand. The other’s last name is a word used to describe a person who uses that brand. Who are they?

Name something you find in nature, in six letters. Take the first syllable, say it twice, and you’ll end up with the name of a TV character. Do the same for the second syllable, and you’ll end up with the name of another TV character. What is it

Name a titular character from 20th century American fiction, first and last name, nine letters total. Rotate one letter 180°, then anagram to get the names of two adjacent countries. What character and countries are these?

Name a longtime TV personality. Remove three consecutive letters from the middle of his name, along with the space, and you’ll get the last name of a modern American writer. Who are these people?