| PRNDL | Gearshift letters, in the order they're shifted in the starred answers |
| GEARS | They're shifted often in cities |
| GEAR | Word that's "shifted" in the first four letters of the four longest answers |
| THISTLE | Emblem shifted in the list |
| TYPOS | Mistakes in the starred answers? (read the "wrong" letters in order for a bonus!) |
| CANTERBURYTALES | Story collection (with "The") in which the surnames in the starred answers are characters |
| FUEL | From Latin for "hearth, fireplace", word that has shifted in meaning from where the fire was laid, to the coal, kindling, logs or peat burnt in it (4) |
| CAROL | "Deck the Halls," for one ... or a hint to the first two letters of each word in the starred answers |
| LOCH | Body of water whose letters are found in the starred answers (look inside those letters to spell out the monster within) |
| LATIN | Like the alphabet in Vatican City ... or each letter in the starred answers |
| GREEK | Like the alphabet in Athens ... or each letter in the starred answers |
| FLIESSOUTH | Migrates for the winter, and a hint to the shift in the starred answers |
| CYRILLIC | Like the alphabet in Moscow ... or each letter in the starred answers |
| DAYANDNIGHT | All the time, as well as a hint to the abbreviations hidden in the starred answers |
| R2D2 | "Star Wars" droid whose alphanumeric name is represented in the starred answers in the bottom half of this puzzle |
| C3PO | "Star Wars" droid whose alphanumeric name is represented in the starred answers in the top half of this puzzle |
| NEWSLANG | 2001 single by The Shins (and a hint to the synonyms in the starred answers' shaded squares) |
| GROUPCHAT | Conversation among friends ... or a hint to the animal collectives in the starred answers and the conversations that follow them |
| INNERCITY | Densely populated area, and a hint to the capitals in the starred answers |
| THISANDTHAT | Miscellany, and a hint to the hidden words in the starred answers |
