aire [eə]. Dictionary definition: obsolete spelling of “air” or an old Irish word for a nobleman (although I thought it was just French for “motorway service station”). Sometimes you have to allow rather suspicious words when they just fit in so beautifully (especially at Christmas). I love it when letters just slot in between existing words, and this (I, R and E placed vertically from the A of BANG) is one of the best I’ve ever seen, making a solid 3 by 4 block. I’m going to keep quiet about OIN: it looks like the name of a dwarf from Lord of the Rings and is also used to mean “annoy”, but only in Burnley, a small town in the northwest of England. I’m not sure it would be allowed in the World Championships. Total score 21.

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