What connects Moon, Flu, Espresso, Jump, and "Not by a long" in Pinpoint #566?
Each clue forms a common phrase when followed by the word “shot”: moon shot, flu shot, espresso shot, jump shot, long shot.
Permanent Pinpoint answer & analysis (Pinpoint Today archive)
Published on 11/17/2025
This Pinpoint answer guide asks what shared idea links Moon, Flu, Espresso, Jump, and Not by a long. Follow the spoiler-safe hints one by one, then see how each clue clicks into the final answer.
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Detailed Pinpoint answer breakdown continues just below - keep scrolling
Pinpoint 566 tosses together Moon, Flu, Espresso, Jump, and the fragment "Not by a long"—a wild mix of space headlines, doctor visits, café orders, basketball moves, and idioms. The only way to corral them is to tack on the same noun after every clue and notice that each phrase suddenly becomes a familiar type of ”
Moon immediately whispered "Moon shot," but I wrote it off as a coincidence until Flu arrived and begged for "Flu shot."
Espresso and Jump forced the pattern into focus, because both pair cleanly with “shot” in completely different contexts.
The idiom fragment "Not by a long" sealed it: finish it as "Not by a long shot" and every clue locks into the same suffix.
Moon, Flu, Espresso, Jump, and the idiom fragment "Not by a long" all resolve into familiar phrases once you append the word "shot", so the shared connector is the repeated suffix rather than a topical trivia set.
LinkedIn Pinpoint #566 is pure compound spotting—notice that each clue begs to be followed by "shot" and the board resolves immediately.
The answer was Words that precede 'shot'.
Words that precede 'shot'
| Clue | Early read | Resolved read | Why it works |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moon | Same first broad read as the rest of the board | "Moon" | A "moon shot" describes an ambitious goal or, in basketball, an arcing attempt—both rely on the word shot after moon. |
| Flu | Same first broad read as the rest of the board | "Flu" | A flu shot is the seasonal vaccine against influenza. |
| Espresso | Same first broad read as the rest of the board | "Espresso" | Coffee bars pull espresso shots, single servings of concentrated coffee. |
| Jump | Same first broad read as the rest of the board | "Jump" | A jump shot is a basketball scoring move taken while leaping. |
| Not by a long | Same first broad read as the rest of the board | "Not by a long" | The idiom "not by a long shot" means “not even close,” again hinging on the same final word. |
Test repeated suffixes
When clues look like stray nouns, try slotting the same word after each one to see if natural phrases emerge.
Mix literal and metaphor
A solid connector can span literal shots (vaccines, espresso) and figurative ones (moon shot, long shot) if the phrasing stays consistent.
Reject partial categories fast
If a theory fails on even two clues, move on—only “shot” explained all five without exceptions.
Each clue forms a common phrase when followed by the word “shot”: moon shot, flu shot, espresso shot, jump shot, long shot.
Those labels only cover a subset of clues, whereas adding “shot” after every word works universally.
Yes—finishing the idiom gives “long shot,” which still uses the same suffix as the other clues.