Phi in his usual Friday slot. Link to the original puzzle: https://puzzles.independent.co.uk/games/cryptic-crossword-independent/?puzzleDate=20260807
A fairly typical Phi puzzle, with a few loose definitions as noted. I’m not convinced about the parsing of 26d but the rest seems to make some sort of sense. If I remember correctly, Phi often uses “one” to indicate I (Roman numerals) more than once in the same puzzle; we have no less than four instances of it today, which gets a little tedious. I liked 1a because for once “say” isn’t indicating either a sound-alike or a definition by example; the (presumably deliberate) pair of traditional crossword solving tools at 14a and 16a; and the appropriately vague 19d. Thanks Phi as always.
Definitions are underlined; BOLD UPPERCASE indicates letters used in the wordplay; square brackets [ ] indicate omitted letters.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | HOLIDAYS |
Breaks one in possession, say, being upset (8)
|
| I (one in Roman numerals) in HOLD (possession), then an anagram (upset) of SAY. | ||
| 5 | SUN GOD |
Dynasty celebration recalled deity (3,3)
|
| SUNG (also spelled Song: Chinese imperial dynasty about 1000 years ago), then DO (slang for a party = celebration) reversed (recalled). | ||
| 9 | FAREWELL |
Females initially exhibit health for so long (8)
|
| Initial letter of F[emales] + ARE WELL (appear to be in good health).
So long = informal phrase for goodbye. |
||
| 10 | DENIAL |
Failure to accept looking old may be reversed with injection of article (6)
|
| LINED (describing skin, wrinkled = looking old) reversed, with A (the indefinite article) inserted. | ||
| 12 | MANOR |
Staff officer cleared out base of operations (5)
|
| MAN (as a verb = staff = work as part of a team, as in “man the lifeboats!”) + O[ffice]R with the inner letters cleared out.
Manor = slang for the area where someone has authority, or the area in which a criminal operates. |
||
| 13 | SCINTILLA |
Wrong about start of clue – work to get a hint (9)
|
| SIN (wrong = misdeed) around the first letter of C[lue], then TILL (to work soil) + A. | ||
| 14 | NOTEPAD |
Well-known to involve secretary where comments may be made (7)
|
| NOTED (well-known), including PA (abbreviation for personal assistant, who would probably claim that the role involves more than just secretarial work). | ||
| 16 | PENCIL |
A lot of change applied to one Latin writer (6)
|
| PENC[e] (pennies = coins = change) without the last letter (a lot of . . .), then I (one in Roman numerals) + L (abbreviation for Latin). | ||
| 18 | ILL |
Not right to occupy village (3)
|
| Hidden answer (to occupy . . .) in [v]ILL[age].
Not right = feeling unwell. |
||
| 20 | HEROES |
This is keeping nothing for the lions (6)
|
| HERE’S (this is) containing O (zero = nothing). | ||
| 22 | EARNEST |
Serious attention given to collection of machine guns (7)
|
| EAR (attention, as in “give ear to”) + NEST (a machine-gun emplacement: I didn’t know that but the dictionaries did). | ||
| 25 | AMBROSIAL |
Arab limos going around? Sweet (9)
|
| Anagram (going around) of ARAB LIMOS.
Like ambrosia, the food of the gods in Greek mythology, or generally a term for sweet and pleasant. |
||
| 28 | ERASE |
French and English are backing excise (5)
|
| ES (French for “are” as in tu es = you are) + ARE (the English translation), all reversed (backing).
Excise = erase = remove completely. |
||
| 29 | MILTON |
Poet’s mostly gentle expression? Mostly (6)
|
| MIL[d] (gentle) + TON[e] (expression), each without the last letter (mostly).
17th-century English poet John Milton. |
||
| 30 | REKINDLE |
Type line in section of film that’s cut? Start again (8)
|
| KIND (type, as in “what kind of . . .”) + L (abbreviation for line), inserted into REE[l] (section of a film) without the last letter (cut). | ||
| 31 | COSMOS |
Everything to be found in quiet comments accepting kinky sex? (6)
|
| COOS (coo = something said quietly, especially to a baby) containing SM (S&M = abbreviation for sadomasochism = kinky sex).
Cosmos = the universe = everything. |
||
| 32 | MYTHICAL |
Imaginary gracious story largely about drunken comment? (8)
|
| MY (my! = gracious! = expression of surprise) + TAL[e] (story) without the last letter (largely), around HIC (sound of a hiccup, which someone may make when drunk). | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | HOFFMANN |
German writer of opera not working with husband after husband’s indiscretion, ultimately (8)
|
| OFF (not working, as in “the electricity is off”) + MAN (husband), after H (abbreviation for husband), followed by the last letter (ultimately) of [indiscretio]N.
E. T. A. Hoffmann, German writer and composer, perhaps best known as the title character in Offenbach’s opera The Tales of Hoffmann. |
||
| 2 | LORGNETTE |
Spectacles with rotten leg getting repair (9)
|
| Anagram (getting repair) of ROTTEN LEG.
Old-fashioned spectacles mounted on a handle for occasional use, rather than being hooked over the ears for continuous wear. |
||
| 3 | DEWDROP |
Climbing school joined up around top of range – that’s a sight for the morning (7)
|
| POD (school = a group of fish) + WED (joined up), all reversed (climbing), around the first letter (top, in a down clue) of R[ange].
A drop of water seen outdoors in the early morning. |
||
| 4 | YELLS |
Cries “Absolutely!,” embracing Lord Lieutenant (5)
|
| YES (absolutely! = an expression of agreement), containing LL (abbreviation for Lord Lieutenant). | ||
| 6 | UNEATEN |
Trim after last item on menu not yet served? (7)
|
| NEATEN (trim, as a verb = tidy up) after the last letter of [men]U.
I’d usually think of “uneaten” as describing something served up as part of a meal but not wanted. But I suppose it could also apply to something that didn’t even make it to anyone’s plate. |
||
| 7 | GRILL |
Cook finally receiving burn (5)
|
| Final letter of [receivin]G + RILL (burn = dialect word for a small stream). | ||
| 8 | DOLLAR |
Everyone in the staff picked up money (6)
|
| ALL (everyone) inside ROD (staff = a stick), all reversed (picked up = upwards in a down clue). | ||
| 11 | SIMPLE |
Not hard: soft in comparison I deleted (6)
|
| P (p = abbreviation for Italian piano in musical notation = soft = quiet), inserted into SIM[i]LE (a comparison such as “white as snow”) with the second I deleted. | ||
| 15 | DISTIL |
Condense source in dictionary, one even now incomplete (6)
|
| First letter (source) of D[ictionary] + I (one in Roman numerals) + STIL[l] (even now = continuously up to the present time) without the last letter (incomplete).
I’m sure chemists would argue that distilling something isn’t the same as concentrating it; but metaphorically either term can mean extracting the most important part of something. |
||
| 17 | ICELANDIC |
Reserve, after cut, repeatedly caging antelope from northern country (9)
|
| IC[e] (reserve = unfriendliness), without the last letter (after cut), twice (repeatedly), around ELAND (an African antelope). | ||
| 19 | ETHEREAL |
Somewhat here, there, always immaterial (8)
|
| Hidden answer (somewhat . . ) in [her]E THERE AL[ways].
Immaterial = insubstantial. |
||
| 21 | OLOROSO |
Old John, swallowing a lot of pink wine and sherry (7)
|
| O (abbreviation for old) + LOO (john = slang for toilet), containing ROS[e] (pink wine) without the last letter (a lot of . . .).
A dark variety of sherry. |
||
| 23 | RHENISH |
Former PM, not one consuming chicken and wine (7)
|
| RISH[i] (former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak) without the final I (one in Roman numerals), containing HEN (chicken).
Old name for German white wine produced near the River Rhine. |
||
| 24 | TARMAC |
River grass rising to surface (6)
|
| CAM (the river that flows through Cambridge) + RAT (grass = slang for an informer), all reversed (rising = upwards in a down clue).
Tarmac = road surface, or the material used to make it. |
||
| 26 | BOLUS |
Lump raised above me is rounded mass (5)
|
| I’m not sure of the wordplay here: perhaps LOB (lump = derogatory slang for a large slow-witted person) reversed (raised, in a down clue), before (above, in a down clue) US (used for “me” in dialect phrases such as “give us a hand” = please help me). Any better ideas? | ||
| 27 | LEERY |
Dodgy look, unknown quantity? That’ll make you cautious (5)
|
| LEER (to look at someone in a sexual way = dodgy look) + Y (mathematical symbol for an unknown quantity).
Leery = slang for cautious or suspicious: one might be leery of accepting an invitation from a stranger. |
Bolus: us as vernacular for me is pretty standard, but I only know lob as the looping throw or tennis shot.
BOLUS
The top-grade C thing has “a lump” for “lob”. me=US as the blogger and Grant say. So, all seems good.
Thanks Phi and Quirister.
For COSMOS, I took the definition as “everything to be found”.
Didn’t give it much thought at the time, Hovis @3, but I’m with you.
Quality setting as expected, but UNEATEN, 6(d) is a bit iffy, for me…”not served”? “Not consumed” is more accurate, but that would render the solution too easy. Better that, than one that’s off.
BOLUS, 25(d): in my neck of the woods, Birkenhead, “LUMP it over to us” was vernacular when asking for a heavy object, such as a brick or hammer etc., to be chucked across to one, so both LOB and US work nicely for me.
COSMOS: I’m not fussy whether it’s “everything”, or “everything to be found”, both work, but the surface is clumsy either way.
Notwithstanding my harumphs, it’s an excellent puzzle, and blog to match, so the customary big thanks to P + Q
Had to reveal BOLUS. Otherwise ok. Tx for the blog.
Thanks both. I became despondent once I’d sought help with a couple that were unknowns, and then there were more. BOLUS went in okay, but me=us being grammatically incorrect may have deserved a word such as ‘informally’ in there. Former PM (there have been a few!) in RHENISH as simply Rish(i) – you won’t get away with that one for much longer.
I found this well on the harder end of the spectrum for the Friday Phi slot, but looking back, I’m not sure why. I needed Google help for the sherry, which was what it took to open up the whole SW corner, my last chunk in. So there was that.
Am I the only one who tried thinking of a word with the sequence ESX or XES in it when the clue for COSMOS mentioned kinky sex?
Ten theme words and no Dormouse to spot them…
Phi @9: sorry, I still can’t see it. Anyone else?
Well, I completed it but never spotted any theme.