1: 'Take your homework home in your book ______.'

3: A Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Christ.

7: Verbal abuse; a crude substitute for argument; it's not nice to call people ______.

9: Opposite of deteriorate

10: Charge with a function; charge to be; 'She was ______ Head of the Committee.'

12: Synonym of 'grateful'

14: Indian term of respect

16: The organ of sight.

17: Solution: Abbr.

18: '______ of you are invited.'

19: It might follow a dot

20: Once thought to be one of four elements composing the universe; dirt.

22: Short-tailed Old World burrowing rodent with large cheek pouches.

23: Antonym of 'initial.'

24: 'The mail has not yet ______.'

25: Give permission.

27: Synonym for 'workers.'

28: Give money, usually in exchange for goods or services.

1: Long yellow fruits.

2: A preparation for chewing; hard to get out of hair.

3: Today's albums

4: Hat for a computer user?

5: Past tense of 'save.'

6: Small and pulpy fruits; often used for making jams and jellies.

8: Owe

11: Taj __

13: Plural form of 'goose.'

15: The organic process of bearing flowers.

17: Spelling, who produced the five series in this puzzle

18: Prior to a specified time.

21: Equally distant from the extremes.

22: A framework for holding wood that is being sawed.

25: Sounds of understanding

26: The upper side of the thighs of a seated person.