Escalators

I always loved riding escalators ever since I was a kid...oh so many years ago Each solution will consist of three words that increase by one letter and anagrammed. The number of letters in the answers are shown at the top of the group. The clues are in the order to agree with the letter count.

Example: (5-6-7) a small amount - red Bordeaux wine - concert = trace, c(l)aret, rec(i)tal

5-6-7

-1. part of a play - a medium meeting? - purify
-2. model - a sea hawk - people with this disease have been put in colonies
-3. pursue - hunt - retail worker
-4. like Marie Osmond's roses - come into view - clothing
-5. sing - firm - faithful

6-7-8

-6. attire - repeat - well-read
-7. sturdy - classifying - church musician
-8. source - household chore - snubbing
-9. sharp - prominence - douse

7-8-9

-10. anguish - utopia - fade
-11. fundamental - reed instrument- sure
-12. countertop material - slope - leaving
-13. continue - bakery sweets - leaches

8-9-10

-14. bewitch - citrus fruit - burn
-15. pledge - nutrition expert - coerce
-16. keep - liveliness - type of material used on a floating floor

4. paper, appe(a)r, appare(l)

1. scene, seance, cleanse

7. strong, sorting, organist

Hi Cue.

3 - chase, search, cashier

14. entrance, nectarine, incarcerate

15. initiate, (d)ietitian, inti(m)idate

Michele, the last word needs to be tweaked a tad

All others are Right On! I feel like I'm a teenager again.

oops...

last word for #14 -incinerate

You're forgiven.

12. Granite, Gradient, Departing.

16. Maintain, animation, lamination

10. despair, paradise, disappear

11. central ,clarinet , certainly

2. poser, osprey, leprosy

6 - attire iterate literate

8. origin, ironing, ignoring

13. persist, pastries, parasites

Excellent!

9. astute, stature, saturate

Very astute of you, Joan

Just the one left now.

I am trying to make 5 start with chant and end with staunch, but the middle word eludes me...

Looks right, Lex. The middle word lacks a "u"

5. Chant, Stanch, Staunch.

That's the one, Koala