Cluing ETS
Loving the alien.
ETS is one of those words where cluing divides my loyalties a little bit.
My first thought when I see the string is always gonna be aliens. “E.T.’s” isn’t quite an everyday term (and despite my hopes, EETEE is a sci-fi word that never reached the mainstream). But thanks to Spielberg, it’s a popular enough usage for headlines. And space aliens are fun to talk about, even when they’re scary.
On the other hand, the Educational Testing Service has to claim some of my heart for how much work my brother and I have done for it over the years…I helped check its testing material as a freelance job and he’s worked with its data processing. Anyone who’s dealt with the SAT in any way has dealt with ETS.
An emissions trading system is not a widely known concept in the States, because, you know, we’d rather discuss Hunter Biden. But ETS’s are in practice here as in Europe, and they represent some progress on the environmental front.
French and Latin “and”-s are awkward to pluralize, but “et” is a foreign-language word that a lot of literate people have picked up, so sometimes its worth the trouble. Et al.! Rogue et noir! Dieu et mon droit! Ora et labora!
Emergency temporary standards (ETS) is something we all learned to follow during the COVID-19 epidemic, and will be ready to follow again should another threat to world health arise. Right? Right…?
-ets is a diminutive plural suffix found in anklets, cabinets, spinnerets, and most importantly, Raisinets.
Essential tremors (ET’s) are/is a neurological disorder, similar on the surface to Parkinson’s but not related. It can likewise be alleviated but not cured, although unlike Parkinson’s, it sometimes goes away on its own. Pretty serious stuff, but if you are or know someone who has it, you might like to see it represented a little better. (L-DOPA is part of the crossword lexicon already.)
Military members and their families know all about the expiration term of service (ETS)—the point where a soldier’s tour runs out and they come home. If you want some feel-good vibes, search “soldiers come home” videos.
Estimated time of sailing/shipping is sometimes useful for stuff you’ve ordered, though even in that context, ETS gets mixed up with ETD. I can't really recommend this one, but at least it’s better than what Adrian Powell came up with, that one time.
