| Clue | Source | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Octopus' absurd failures to face difficulties (3,4) | ||
| Cheap excuses | ||
| Cowardly evasions | Premier Sunday | 21 Apr 2019 |
| Bad rationalizations | New York Times | 02 Apr 2019 |
| Bad rationalizations | ||
| Weak excuses | The Washington Post | 26 Sep 2018 |
| Weak excuses | LA Times Daily | 26 Sep 2018 |
| Weak excuses | ||
| Poor excuses | Newsday | 19 Jun 2016 |
| Feeble excuses | ||
| Lame excuses | ||
| Lame excuses | ||
| Sketchy excuses | ||
| Lousy excuses | ||
| Feeble excuses | ||
| Lousy excuses | ||
| Flimsy excuses | ||
| Phony pretexts | ||
| Lame excuses |