Posted by jetdoc on 3rd August 2008
A challenging solve, especially for those unfamiliar with Paul’s somewhat libertarian approach; but plenty of fun, and I got through it pretty quickly once I’d solved about four.
All answers begin with the letters W,O,R,D, in four groups of seven. The clue at each location gives a definition of the answer to be entered. The subsidiary indication for each answer, minus its first letter, is given in another clue in the same group.
My main quibble is that, given the format, too many of the subsidiary indications are additional definitions; a few more like those for REMOVAL MAN or OUTBIDDING would have made this a better puzzle for me. And I think that a few of the definitions, though obvious enough in context, are a bit questionable (e.g. 9a, 22a). But please feel free to disagree.
Also, I don’t seem to have picked up on any of Paul’s usual risqué references (or, as Tilsit puts it, the ‘nudge-nudge-wink-wink’ factor). ‘Urine/pee’ seems a bit tame. Have I missed something — for example, in the wordplay at 22a, for 6d?
| Across |
|
Solution |
Definition |
Subsidiary part |
| 8 |
WIRELESS |
On which was heard
I’m not sure about this as a definition, but I suppose, given the wordplay and the checking letters… |
25a: IRELESS = ‘Calm’. Double definition? Hmm… |
| 9 |
ROARS |
hoots
Not a great definition, I think. |
12a: OARS= ‘essential to Oxford and Cambridge’, i.e. the Boat Race. |
| 10 |
DRIP |
Something wet |
5d: ‘late message’ = RIP. Double definition |
| 11 |
REMOVAL MAN |
shift worker |
3d: M = Middlesex opener; OVAL = test venue (a cricket ground in Kennington, South London; also in the names of other test cricket gounds, e.g. in Barbados and Adelaide); in NAME, reversed = ‘call for retreat’. |
| 12 |
RETORT |
Answer |
14a: E = ‘people’s conclusion’; TORT = wrong. |
| 14 |
ROWDIEST |
Most loud |
19d: DIES = stops; inside TWO = figure, reversed (‘backing’). |
| 15 |
DISTURB |
Shake |
10a: IS; BRUT (= dry) reversed (‘on the contrary’). |
| 17 |
DYNAMOS |
Energetic types |
1d: SO MANY (‘masses’) reversed (‘to the left’).
Already, I seem to be writing ‘reversed’ rather a lot here, though with a variety of indications for it |
| 20 |
DOMINATE |
control |
2d: [n]OMINATE = ‘suggest, rubbing out leader’. |
| 22 |
WADDLE |
Duck
Chambers gives: ‘(vi) to take short steps and sway from side to side in walking, as a duck does; to move in a way suggestive of this; (n) the act of waddling; a clumsy, rocking gait’. To me, that doesn’t make ‘duck’ a valid definition for ‘waddle’, but maybe someone can enlighten me.
See comments |
23a: ADDLE = go off. Double definition. |
| 23 |
WINDOW SILL |
the edge, domestically |
22d: *(is down) ‘doctor’ being the anagram indicator; ILL = sick |
| 24 |
OPAL |
stone |
24d: PAL = person liked. Double definition. |
| 25 |
WINDY |
[Calm] — or not?
The ‘Calm’ here does double duty, as an implied part of the definition, and as the subsidiary indication for 8a. |
8a: motor racing. Double definition — ‘a form of motor racing in which cars complete many laps of a high-speed oval circuit; a motor race of this kind’. So ovals aren’t just for cricket. |
| 26 |
WHACKING |
great
See also 22d: where does the ‘is’ fit in? |
6d: HACKING = using axe. Double definition. |
|
| Down |
| 1 |
DISRAELI |
Old Tory |
20a: ISRAELI = National. Double definition. |
| 2 |
DEEP |
Low |
15a: EEP = ‘pee’ reversed. |
| 3 |
REGRET |
disappointment
I’m not sure where the ‘showing’ fits in. |
9a: EGRET = bird. Double definition. |
| 4 |
OSTMARK |
old money (the standard monetary unit of East Germany, before German unification). |
13d: M = thousand; in STARK = total. |
| 5 |
DRIVEWAY |
Postman’s approach |
17a: RAY = beam; about IVE = this setter’s; W = wife. |
| 6 |
WALL LIZARD |
Climber scaled (i.e. with scales) |
22a: I’m not sure about this — the subsidiary part is ‘heading off to eat Taylor, as it goes’. ‘Taylor’ gives LIZ, but I can’t quite work out the ALL…ARD bit. Maybe a road goes… I’m sure someone will explain how obvious this is, in a way that makes me feel silly.
See comments |
| 7 |
OSCARS |
glitzy occasion
A slightly weak definition, maybe? But valid enough… |
4d: SCARS = defaces. Double definition. |
| 13 |
OUTBIDDING |
Offering more than |
21d: UT = hut (shed) minus its first letter (‘scalping’); BIDING = staying; D = end of crossword. Shed is also another Guardian crossword setter, so the initial capital gives additional surface reading. |
| 16 |
ROADWAYS |
Routes |
11a: O = round; *(was day). |
| 18 |
OIL PAINT |
medium for colours |
24a: I L = one pound (L being the symbol for ‘pound’ in pre-decimal UK currency); PINT = measure (we still have those, especially for beer but also for Pimm’s); about A. |
| 19 |
REVIEWS |
reports |
16d: VIE = compete; in EWS = three directions (east, west, south). The first clue I solved from the wordplay. It took me a while to find a definition; ‘reports’ just about fits the bill. |
| 21 |
OJIBWA |
Native American |
18d: JIB = part of crane; WA = ‘was almost’. |
| 22 |
WALLAH |
Indian businessman |
26a: ALLAH = God… presumably, double definition, Where does the ‘is’ fit in (see above)? |
| 24 |
OIKS |
dislikeable people |
7d: IKS = ‘ski’ (runner) reversed. |
Posted in Guardian | 8 Comments »
Posted by jetdoc on 3rd August 2008
A more demanding puzzle than some of Azed’s recent ones; and, to me, all the better for that. As usual, I learnt a few new words, though I’m not sure when I’ll ever use them.
My favourite clue this week is 12a, because it is so concise and has a deceptive surface reading. I like the wordplay in 8d, too.
| Across |
| 1 |
CASCHROM |
SUCH minus U; in CAROM = ‘short form of carambole, a cannon in billiards’. A caschrom, according to Chambers, is a sort of spade with a bent handle, formerly used in the Scottish Highlands for tilling the ground (also ‘cas crom’). Wikipedia has it as foot plough. In any case, it could be a useful word for crossword setters wanting a slightly unusual sequence of letters. |
| 7 |
CHAI |
CHA = tea; I = ‘number one’ (dominant place). A slightly strange clue (is it an &lit? it doesn’t feel quite right). I don’t like tea anyway, but I will assume that chai tastes very different from rooibos, which is not tea at all, despite being know as ‘bush tea’. |
| 10 |
PRE-EXILIAN |
PREEN (clean and arrange); about X = ten; ILIA =bones. ‘Before the exile, used of Old Testament writings prior to the Jewish exile (c.586–538BC).’ |
| 11 |
WEEM |
WEE; M = marks (former German currency). A weem, in Scotland, is a subterranean dwelling. |
| 12 |
ACINUS |
Nice clue. An acinus is a pip (in a fruit). AC (= bill, account) IN US. |
| 14 |
KOCHIA |
*(a hoick). Kochia scoparia is the burning bush. |
| 16 |
SPINAL |
SPIAL (old word for ‘scout’), penning N. Refers to the spinal column. |
| 17 |
KANGHA |
Hidden in ‘sleek Angharad’. One of the Five Ks, worn by baptised Khalsa Sikhs as items of faith. |
| 18 |
ICE-ACTION |
*(SIATIC ONCE) — ‘not as’ indicates that AS must be removed to get the anagram. |
| 19 |
EGOMANIAC |
OMANI = Gulf Arab; in ‘cage’ reversed. |
| 24 |
EIDENT |
DEN = study; in ‘tie’ reversed. Another Scottish word, meaning ‘busy, diligent’. |
| 25 |
TROUSE |
T = end of belt; ROUSE. Irish close-fitting breeches. |
| 27 |
HABITS |
BIT = part of tackle, in the sense of a horse’s harness — specifically the part of the bridle that goes in the horse’s mouth (though Chambers does not actually give this sense under ‘tackle’); HAS = gets (which rings BIT). |
| 29 |
LEPERS |
Hidden in ‘despisable persons’. An &lit clue, though I find it a bit offensive that those unfortunate enough to be inflicted by Hansen’s disease should be used metaphorically for people to be despised. |
| 30 |
SHEA |
‘SHEAthing’ minus ‘thing’. Butyrospermum parkii is a very useful tree. |
| 31 |
EVITERNITY |
*(Ivy in tree t). A new word for me, with no real etymological explanation in Chambers. |
| 32 |
GAEA |
A = dialect personal pronoun; in *(AGE). The Greek goddess personifying the Earth. |
| 33 |
SIGNLESS |
*(s Lessing), with ‘novel’ as the anagram indicator. Doris Lessing is a much-esteemed Nobel Laureate whose works I have always found almost completely unreadable. Apologies to her admirers, who greatly outnumber me. |
|
| Down |
| 1 |
CAWK |
Cawk is ‘an opaque, compact variety of barite, or heavy spar’, a definition I got via Google rather than in Chambers. It also sounds a bit like ‘cork’, which can be used to seal bottles (though I reckon screw-tops are much better). The implication of ‘we heah’ is that people who talk posh might pronounce it like that (see the very wonderful Steve Bell’s phonetic renderings of the way the British royal family talk). |
| 2 |
AREOPAGITE |
*(OPERA); on A GIT E. The Areopagus functioned as the chief homicide court of Athens. Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite is also worth a look. |
| 3 |
SPECIE |
*(pieces), with ‘minted’ as the anagram indicator. A concise example of an &lit clue — ‘specie’ is ‘coined money’. |
| 4 |
HELIAC |
ELIA (= essayist); in H C (+hot and cold). In crossword clues, ‘essayist’ more often than not refers to Charles Lamb, best known for his Essays of Elia (‘Elia’ being the pen name Lamb used as a contributor to the London Magazine). |
| 5 |
REVALENTA |
‘laver’ (edible seaweed) reversed; *(a net). Revalenta is lentil-meal |
| 6 |
MICMAC |
Hidden in ‘totemic mackinaws’. A Native Canadian people of eastern Canada; a member of it; the Algonquian language of this people. |
| 7 |
CLIENT |
LIEN = right; in CT (first letters of ‘commercial textbooks’). |
| 8 |
HING |
[w]HING[e] — edges cut from ‘beef’ in the sense of ‘complaint’. Hing is asafoetida, which does smell a bit alarming, but is surprisingly useful in cooking. |
| 9 |
INSTANCE |
STANCE = posture; after IN = wearing. ‘Instance‘ can mean ‘law suit’ |
| 13 |
UPHOLSTERS |
*(poultr she’s), ‘whacked’ being the anagram indicator. ‘Supplies e.g. stuffing’ is the definition, as upholsterers supply, among other things, stuffing for furniture. |
| 15 |
SKAITHING |
*(gas I think). ‘Skaith’ is another Scottish word, meaning ‘to injure; to blast; to scorch with invective’. |
| 16 |
SHEER-LEG |
SHEER = vertically; LEG = ‘gel’ (set) reversed. |
| 20 |
MESETA |
E = Spain; SET = arrayed; in MA = borders of Murcia. A meseta is ‘a plateau, specif that of central Spain’ so there’s an element of &lit in here. |
| 21 |
ANTRES |
Hidden in ‘unpleasant residences’. A poetic word for ‘cave’. |
| 22 |
ARABIN |
RABI = the spring grain harvest in India, Pakistan, etc.; in AN. Arabin is the essential principle of gum arabic, used as a thickener. |
| 23 |
QUI-HYE |
QUI = French for ‘who’ (a relative pronoun); HYE = obsolete form of ‘high’. A prosperous Anglo-Indian, especially in Bengal, during British colonial rule. |
| 26 |
SPIE |
Initial letters of ‘some passionate intercourse eventually’. ‘Spie’ is an old word meaning ‘look’ (spy). |
| 28 |
SANS |
Double definition — ‘without’ (as in sans-serif) = ‘save’; short form of ‘sanatoria’ = hospitals. |
Posted in Azed | 5 Comments »
Posted by Uncle Yap on 3rd August 2008
From Prize Crossword 24451 - 26th July 2008
dd = double definition
cd = cryptic definition
rev = reversed or reversal
ins = insertion
cha = charade
ha = hidden answer
*(fodder) = anagram
Yet another entertaining Saturday puzzle from the Master. You always get a sense of achievement when you complete one of his puzzles even though I only got 8Down using Chambers.
Across
1 CHINA SHOP Ins of I Nash in CHOP (sack). Richard (Beau) Nash (1674-1762) was a celebrated dandy and leader of fashion in 18th-century Britain.
6 EMILY Ins of M1 (One of the largest motorways in Europe described as road) in ELY (see, a cathedral town) and, of course, a sister of Anne Bronte
9 CAPON Cap on
10,15 WUTHERING HEIGHTS Ins of The Ring (one of Wagner’s works) in WUH (rev Hu, A Welsh boy’s name, W = with) + Eights (8’s). Wuthering Heights is Emily Brontë’s only novel. It was first published in 1847 under the pseudonym Ellis Bell (see 28 Across)
11 ANTIBIOTIC Cha of ANT (insect) + ins of B in and removal of D from IDIOTIC (very stupid)
12 THOR ha
14 CONSOLE cd
17 ASEPTIC Cha of A SEPT (month) I/C (in charge)
19 NATURAL dd
20 LOCK cd The other lock being found in canal system
22 HEATHCLIFF The male lead in WH
25 TARQUINIA Ins of Quin (one of five) I (first) in Tara (Scarlett Ohara’s home in Gone with the Wind) Tarquinia, formerly Corneto and in Antiquity Tarquinii, is an ancient city in the province of Viterbo, Lazio, Italy.
26 FRAUD Frau + D (Deutschland)
27 EASEL Ease (stand at ease) L (live)
28 ELLIS BELL Ins of IS S (second) in ELL-ELL (measures); Emily Bronte’s pseudonym
Down
1 COCOA Co-co (companies or firms) A
2 IMPOTENCE Ins of OT (to change) in IM (one thousand) pence. Ten quid will get you 1000 pees.
3 ANNE BRONTE Ins of N(i)NE + Bro (brother) in ANTE (stake)
4 HOW COME My favourite clue of the set. How come no water closet in the home? What a quaint olde worlde word for loo, gents, rest room, bog, et al
5 PETTISH Sounds like petition without the final syllable
6 EDEN E (English) (gar)DEN
7 IRISH Iris (Murdoch) H (the last letter of Murdoch) The irish are said to be always happy and luck; how true that is, I have no idea
8 YGGDRASIL When I came to this last clue, I fed the letter into my electronic Chambers and hey presto! out came Yggdrasil, Yggdrasill or Ygdrasil noun the ash tree binding together heaven, earth and hell, and extending its branches over the whole world and above the heavens.
I have absolutely no idea how one pronounces this word
13 FISTICUFFS Ins of IC (99 in Roman numerals) in FI(=some fighting)
+ STUFFS (forces)
14 CHARLOTTE Ins of harlot (not a good girl) in CTE (rev of etc, the rest)
16 HURRICANE *(urchin are)
18 CLEANSE Ins of Leans (is inclined) in CE (church)
19 NETBALL A game that requires you to net the ball
21 CERES ha
23 FIDEL *(field)
24 BULL cd of the investor hopeful of rising prices. Beware of him in a china shop (see 1 across)
Posted in Guardian | 6 Comments »