ConfuseÂ—or what to do to four common phrases to form this puzzle's theme answers

Question:

Answer:

ADDLE

Length:

Similar Crossword Questions:

Upright, and what's been removed to form this puzzle's theme answers
Number of times this puzzle's theme word appears diagonally in the grid (to complete the puzzle, shade those words plus the Down answers that begin where they meet)
What the theme answers have in common
Houses with sharply angled roofs, and what this puzzle's four longest answers literally have in common
Letters for the names "buried" in this puzzle's theme answers
Tip, and a hint to this puzzle's theme found in five answers
Structure of this puzzle's theme, hidden in five answers
Nanobot's hypothetical ability, and the process that's overtaken this puzzle's theme answers
Like the theme answers in this puzzle?
What one must have to solve this puzzle's theme answers
Second letters of this puzzle's five theme answers (seen in order)
Plummet ... or what this puzzle's theme answers do?
Reservoir, and hint to puzzle theme found in seven long answers
Bit of footwear that appears at both ends of this puzzle's theme answers
Agent "embedded" in this puzzle's theme answers
Shade from the sun that's inserted in this puzzle's theme answers
Finding from the "fifths" taken from this puzzle's theme answers
Country common to the theme answers
Grate, with "get," or what this puzzle's theme answers get
"Gosh!" (or, based on the starts of starred answers, one who is expert at solving this puzzle's theme?)
This puzzle's theme found in the answers to five asterisked clues
What this puzzle's theme answers contain (if you look closely enough)
They swing up and down in this puzzle's theme answers
Numerator for this puzzle's theme answers
Classic breakup line, and a hint to the formation of this puzzle's theme answers