Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 28904 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph
Friday, November 23, 2018 | |
Setter
Giovanni (Don Manley) | |
Link to Full Review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28904] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By
Deep Threat | |
BD Rating
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| Difficulty - ★★★ | Enjoyment - ★★★ |
Falcon's Experience
┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐
███████████████████████████████████
└────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘
Legend:
█ - solved without assistance
█ - incorrect prior to use of puzzle solving tools
█ - solved with assistance from puzzle solving tools
█ - solved with aid of checking letters provided by puzzle solving tools
█ - solved but without fully parsing the clue
█ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's Crossword Blog
█ - solved with aid of checking letters provided by solutions from Big Dave's Crossword Blog
█ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's Crossword Blog
█ - yet to be solved
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Notes
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This puzzle appears on the Monday Diversions page in the Saturday, May 18, 2019 edition of the National Post.
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Introduction
This puzzle certainly provided a vigorous mental workout. While Deep Threat rated it at only three stars for difficulty, I would say that in my case it was nudging into four star territory.I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.
Notes on Today's Puzzle
This commentary is intended to serve as a supplement to the review of this puzzle found at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.
Click here for an explanation of conventions and symbols used in explaining the parsing of clues.
The purpose of this article is to explain the conventions and symbols that I use on this blog in explaining the parsing of clues.
| Legend: The following symbols are used in reviews:
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The review of a clue takes the following general structure:
#a/d Clue containing parsing markup (num*)
* num = numeration
Explanations pertaining to the wordplay (or first definition in a double definition)
(Horizontal separator)
Explanatory Box
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| An explanatory box provides additional information about the clue. In most cases this information will not necessarily help in solving the clue but provides information about the clue. In the case of the weekday syndicated Daily Telegraph puzzles, such information is often intended to help the North American solver appreciate how the clue may be perceived by a British solver. These boxes may also provide information on people, places, films, television program, works of art and literature, etc. mentioned in the clue. Although the titles of these boxes will usually be drawn from a standard list, I do occasionally throw in a title specifically suggested by the subject at hand. The standard titles include:
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Note that there are many types of cryptic crossword clue and it is not my intention to exhaustively go through all of them here. I will only deal with clue types to the extent necessary to explain the conventions and symbols used on the blog. Furthermore, be aware that, in the world of cryptic crosswords, there seems to be an exception to every rule.
With one exception that I can think of, cryptic crossword clues provide two routes to the solution. These are commonly referred to as the definition and wordplay. While these terms serve well for most clues, there are some cases where the more formal terms of primary indication and subsidiary indication may be more appropriate.
Most cryptic crossword clues consist of a definition (primary indication) and wordplay (subsidiary indication). The definition may be:
- a "precise definition": a definition that is either taken directly from a dictionary or at least phrased in a non-misleading fashion similar to one that would be found in a dictionary
- a "cryptic definition": a definition misleadingly phrased so as to misdirect the solver either with respect to the meaning of the definition as a whole or to an incorrect sense of a word used in the definition (for example, defining topiary as "clip art")
- a "whimsical definition": a definition "invented" by the setter often by extrapolating a non-existent meaning for a word from a similar word (for example, defining a bird as a "winger" [something possessing wings] or a river as a ''flower" [something that flows] or to extrapolate that, since disembowel means 'to remove the innards of ', that discontent must mean 'to remove the contents of')
- a "definition by example": the presence of one of these is often flagged with a question mark (for example, defining atoll as "coral?" where an atoll is but one form that coral may take).
I identify precise definitions by marking them with a solid underline in the clue and other varieties of definition (such as cryptic definitions, whimsical definitions, definitions by example, etc.) by marking them with a dotted underline.In clues in which both definition and wordplay are present, the two parts of the clue combine to provide an overall meaningful statement (the surface reading) which usually bears no relationship to the underlying cryptic reading of the clue. In some cases, an extra word or phrase will be inserted into the clue to create a meaningful link between the definition and wordplay. I define clues which contain such a link word or link phrase as having an explicit link and clues which contain no link word or link phrase as having an implicit link.
I mark the existence of an explicit link by enclosing the link word or link phrase between forward slashes (/link/) and mark the existence of an implicit link with double forward slashes (//) positioned between the definition and wordplay.
ExamplesI also use distinctive underlining to mark &lit.[7] and semi-&lit. clues. Note that the reviewers on Big Dave's Crossword Blog generally prefer to refer to these clue types by the less pretentious names of all-in-one or semi-all-in-one clues respectively.
A few examples may help to illustrate these points more clearly.
The first example is a clue used by Jay in DT 28573:
Here the definition is "a failure" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as F (fellow; abbrev.) + L (left; abbrev.) + OP (work; abbrev. used in music) which gives us the solution F|L|OP. The double forward slashes (//) between the definition and wordplay indicate the existence of an "implicit link" between the two parts of the clue (that is, no extra words are inserted into the clue to form the link).
- 4d Fellow left work // a failure (4)
The second example is a clue used by Giovanni in DT 28575:
Here the definition "female going to match" is cryptic (the setter is attempting to misdirect our thoughts to a sports event rather than a marriage ceremony) and thus is marked with a a dotted underline. The wordplay is {RIDES (travels) + (with) MA (mother)} contained in (in) BID (advance) giving us the solution B(RIDES|MA)ID. As in the first example, the double forward slashes indicate the presence of an implicit link.
- 29a Female going to match // travels with mother in advance (10)
The third example is a clue used by Rufus is DT 28583:
Here the definition is "staggering" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as N ([chess symbol for] knight) contained in (caught in) an anagram (misplaced) of BIG BLOW producing the solution WOBBLI(N)G. Finally, forward slashes mark the link word (/is/).
- 18d Knight caught by misplaced big blow /is/ staggering (8)
In an &lit. clue[7] (or all-in-one clue) the entire clue provides not only the definition (when read one way), but under a different interpretation also serves as the wordplay.
In future, I will mark such clues with a combined solid and dashed underline. Although this is a departure from past practice, it would seem to make more sense than using a dotted underline as I have in the past). Henceforth, the dotted underline will be reserved for cryptic definitions.In a semi-&lit. clue (or semi-all-in-one clue), either:
- the entire clue acts as the definition while a portion of the clue provides the wordplay; or
- the entire clue acts as the wordplay while a portion of the clue provides the definition.
For these clues, I will mark the definition with a solid underline and the wordplay with a dashed underline. This means that a portion of the clue may have a solid underline, a portion of the clue may have a dashed underline and a portion of the clue may have a combined solid and dashed underline.One final clue type is what I characterize as a cryptic definition comprised of a precise definition combined with cryptic elaboration. For example, in DT 28560 (setter unknown) the following clue appears:
- 26d Heroic exploit, whichever way you look at it (4)
Given the numeration, the precise definition could give rise to at least two solutions, DEED or FEAT. However, the 'cryptic elaboration' ("whichever way you look at it") indicates that the solution is a palindrome thereby immediately eliminating one of the two obvious choices.
Note that the part of the clue that I have called 'cryptic elaboration' does not provide a second independent route to the solution (as the wordplay would do in most other types of clue). Rather it merely provides a piece of additional information (elaboration) related to the 'precise definition'.
Again, this approach is a departure from past practice, but like the other changes mentioned previously is intended to remove inconsistencies in the way that I have been applying parsing markup to clues. The markup rules that I have been using until now evolved bit-by-bit over a long period of time resulting in some degree of internal inconsistency.
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Across
1a County team/'s/ disadvantage (8)
Down[5] is one of the Six Counties of Northern Ireland.
"team" = SIDE (show explanation )
Side[5] is a British term for a sports team ⇒
* Note that, in Britain, a player is said to be "in a side" rather than "on a team" as one would say in North America.
In North America, the term side[3] is used in a very general fashion that can denote one of two or more opposing individuals, groups, teams, or sets of opinions. While this same general usage is also found in the UK, the term side[5] is also used there in a much more specific sense to mean a sports team, as we can clearly see from the following usage examples ⇒ (i)
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Side[5] is a British term for a sports team ⇒
there was a mixture of old and young players in* their side.
* Note that, in Britain, a player is said to be "in a side" rather than "on a team" as one would say in North America.
In North America, the term side[3] is used in a very general fashion that can denote one of two or more opposing individuals, groups, teams, or sets of opinions. While this same general usage is also found in the UK, the term side[5] is also used there in a much more specific sense to mean a sports team, as we can clearly see from the following usage examples ⇒ (i)
Previous England rugby sides, and England teams in many other sports, would have crumbled under the weight of such errors.; (ii)
They'll face better sides than this Monaco team, but you can only beat what's put in front of you.
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5a Catholic services /getting/ lots (6)
Mass[5] is the celebration of the Christian Eucharist*, especially in the Roman Catholic Church.
* Eucharist[5] (also known as Communion[5]) is the Christian service, ceremony, or sacrament commemorating the Last Supper, in which bread and wine are consecrated and consumed.
9a Favourite child /in/ difficult situation in African country (8)
In the Old Testament, Benjamin[10] is the the youngest and best-loved* son of Jacob and Rachel. (Genesis 35:16–18; Genesis 42:4)
* presumably best-loved by his father as Rachel died in giving birth to him
10a Arrive at // total (4,2)
12a Various bits of velour /in/ art gallery (6)
The Louvre[5] is the principal museum and art gallery of France, in Paris, housed in the former royal palace built by Francis I. The Louvre holds the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo.
13a Those who criticise // devices to attract attention of residents (8)
15a Shook /as/ one shown the way ahead (7)
The conjunction qua[5] means in the capacity of or as being ⇒
shareholders qua members may be under obligations to the company.
You Be The Judge
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| Has the setter, perchance, confused quake with quail? Does cower or flinch denote the same action as shake? |
16a North African // place of desolation? (4)
A Moor[5] is a member of a northwest African Muslim people of mixed Berber and Arab descent. In the 8th century they conquered the Iberian peninsula, but were finally driven out of their last stronghold in Granada at the end of the 15th century.
Moor[5] is a chiefly British term for a tract of open uncultivated upland, typically covered with heather.
20a Contemptible person? // Just a bit, hiding love (4)
"love" = O [tennis term] (show explanation )
In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒
Although folk etymology has connected the word with French l'oeuf 'egg', from the resemblance in shape between an egg and a zero, the term apparently comes from the phrase play for love (i.e. the love of the game, not for money).
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In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒
love fifteen. The resemblance of a zero written as a numeral (0) to the letter O leads to the cryptic crossword convention of the word "love" being used to clue this letter.
Although folk etymology has connected the word with French l'oeuf 'egg', from the resemblance in shape between an egg and a zero, the term apparently comes from the phrase play for love (i.e. the love of the game, not for money).
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Although the particulars vary from one dictionary to another, toad would seem to be a term of contempt on both sides of the pond (show more ).
Toad is defined in various dictionaries as:
Toad is defined in various dictionaries as:
- The Chambers Dictionary[1]: a hateful or contemptible person or animal
- Chambers 21st Century Dictionary[2]: an obnoxious or repellent person
- Collins English Dictionary[4,10] : a loathsome person
- Oxford Dictionaries[5]: a contemptible or detestable person (used as a general term of abuse) ⇒
you're an arrogant little toad
- American Heritage Dictionary[3]: a person regarded as repulsive
- Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary[11]: a disgusting person or thing
- Webster’s New World College Dictionary[12]: a person regarded as loathsome, contemptible, etc.
21a The curt drunk /in/ foreign city (7)
Utrecht[5] is a city in the central Netherlands, capital of a province of the same name.
25a Fish /and/ chips mostly cooked with lard (8)
The pilchard[5] is a small, edible, commercially valuable marine fish of the herring family.
26a Composer /to give/ a verse new setting (6)
Edgard Varèse[5] (1883–1965) was a French-born American composer. His music explored dissonance, unusual orchestration, and (from the 1950s) tape-recording and electronic instruments.
What is an "ARVE Error"?
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| Those who visit Big Dave's Crossword Blog will see an "ARVE Error" message in place of the video that Deep Threat presumably included in his review. ARVE (Advanced Responsive Video Embedder) is a plugin for the WordPress content management system — the platform on which Big Dave's Crossword Blog operates. I would guess that parameter values that were valid at the time that Deep Threat's review was written in November 2018 are no longer supported, thus causing the error message to be displayed. |
28a Pull number back /getting/ ahead (6)
29a Assign numbers to // a drink to be stored by head (8)
30a 'Essential to get eastern money back' // (economist) (6)
The sen[5] is a former* monetary unit in Japan, equal to one hundredth of a yen.
* Like the Canadian penny, the Japanese sen and rin (a coin worth one thousandth of a yen) are no more. These Japanese coins were taken out of circulation[7] at the end of 1953.
John Maynard Keynes[5] (1883–1946) was an English economist. (show more )
He laid the foundations of modern macroeconomics with The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money (1936), in which he argued that full employment is determined by effective demand and requires government spending on public works to stimulate this.
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He laid the foundations of modern macroeconomics with The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money (1936), in which he argued that full employment is determined by effective demand and requires government spending on public works to stimulate this.
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31a Reportedly hung around /to be/ given a handicap (8)
Weight[5] means to assign a handicap* weight to (a horse).
* A handicap[5] is the extra weight allocated to be carried in a race by a racehorse on the basis of its previous form [record] to make its chances of winning the same as those of the other horses.
Down
1d Tool /in/ stream of liquid not beginning to rust (6)
A dibble[5] is a pointed hand tool for making holes in the ground for seeds or young plants.
2d Worried person is said to have this // finish (4,2)
Put (or have) the wind up[5] is an informal British expression meaning to alarm or frighten (or be alarmed or frightened) ⇒
Frank was trying to put the wind up him so that he would be too agitated to think clearly.
3d Fish // are stout swimming around (3,5)
Here and There
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| In Britain, the fish known as sea trout[5] (also called salmon trout) is a European brown trout (Salmo trutta trutta) of a salmon-like migratory race. North Americans, on the other hand, use the name sea trout[5] for several species of marine fish of the drum family occurring in the western Atlantic. |
4d Welshman's // platform (4)
Dai[7] is a Welsh masculine given name, a diminutive form of Dafydd (David).
6d Affirm, /using/ Bible with an expression suggesting pain (6)
Authorized Version[5] (abbreviation AV)[5] is a chiefly British name for the King James Bible*, an English translation of the Bible made in 1611 at the order of James I and still widely used, though never formally ‘authorized’.
* the name by which it is known in North America
Avouch[5] is an archaic term meaning affirm or assert ⇒
the locket contains ringlets which he avouches to be relics of a Spanish girl.
7d Description of key // scheme reduced to essentials (8)
8d Supporters /making/ tracks with eleven players finally inside (8)
11d Woman, no longer one looking after paper /that's/ taken over (7)
14d Imagine // member of ancient tribe on Yorkshire river (7)
The Picts[5]
were an ancient people inhabiting northern Scotland in Roman times. (show more )
Roman writings of around 300 AD apply the term Picti to the hostile tribes of the area north of the Antonine Wall. Their origins are uncertain, but they may have been a loose confederation of Celtic tribes.
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Roman writings of around 300 AD apply the term Picti to the hostile tribes of the area north of the Antonine Wall. Their origins are uncertain, but they may have been a loose confederation of Celtic tribes.
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The River Ure[7] is a stream in North Yorkshire, England, approximately 74 miles (119 km) long from its source to the point where it changes name to the River Ouse.
17d Valve // head of plumbing company installed in store (8)
18d Horse /with/ energy carrying everyone over street? (8)
The Galloway pony[7] is an extinct* horse breed, once native to Scotland and northern England. It died out through crossbreeding because its crossbred progeny were such useful animals.
* An article entitled "The Galloway Horse" published in 1830 describes the horse even then as being "nearly extinct".
19d Beginning to stand trial /for/ activity on farm (8)
22d Cleaner gets only half // what customer pays (6)
Char[5] is an informal British term for charwoman[5] (or charlady[5]), a dated British name for a woman employed as a cleaner in a house or office.
23d Occupant dealt with by letter (6)
A letter[1,5] is a person who lets [offers for rent] a room or property.
24d Have another look at // what could turn out to be dearer (6)
A Reverse Anagram With A Wrinkle
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| In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Deep Threat terms this clue "a reverse anagram". It is, sort of — but one with a difference. First, look at the structure of a standard anagram. In the clue we find an anagram indicator (an operation to be performed) and anagram fodder (the material on which the operation is performed). In the solution, we find the result of executing the anagram operation on the fodder. An example of such a clue is 21a in today's puzzle. In what is commonly called a reverse anagram, we find the result of executing the anagram operation in the clue (rather than in the solution) and the anagram indicator and anagram fodder in the solution (rather than in the clue). The following example is from DT 28627 (published in the National Post on May 2, 2018):
In today's clue, we find the result (DEARER) in the clue and the fodder (REREAD) in the solution. However, the anagram indicator does not appear explicitly in either the solution or the clue. The reverse anagram indicator (what could turn out to be) merely tells us that some unspecified anagram indicator operating on the fodder (REREAD) found in the solution would produce the result (DEARER) found in the clue. |
27d Upset /produced by/ iron-bound extremist characters (4)
The symbol for the chemical element iron is Fe[5] (from Latin ferrum).
Key to Reference Sources:Signing off for today — Falcon
[1] - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
[2] - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
[3] - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
[4] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
[5] - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
[6] - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
[7] - Wikipedia
[8] - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
[9] - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
[11] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary)
[12] - CollinsDictionary.com (Webster’s New World College Dictionary)
[13] - MacmillanDictionary.com (Macmillan Dictionary)
[14] - CollinsDictionary.com (COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary)
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