Tuesday, May 3, 2011 (DT 26465)

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26465
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Setter Jay
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26465]
Big Dave's Review Written By Big Dave
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ Legend: █ - solved without assistance █ - incorrect prior to use of puzzle solving tools █ - solved with assistance from puzzle solving tools █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog

Introduction

Today we have a pleasant enough - but not overly difficult - offering from Jay. My Tool Chest enjoyed a rare day off. However, there were a couple of new British expressions that I was able to work out from the wordplay whose existence I did need to confirm.

Today's Glossary

Selected abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions appearing in today's puzzle.

[An asterisk beside an entry merely indicates that it has been taken it from a Cumulative Glossary of entries which have previously appeared, in either this blog or its companion blog, the Ottawa Citizen Cryptic Crossword Forum.]

Appearing in Clues:

Meanings listed in this section may reflect how the word is used in the surface reading of the clue. Of course, that meaning may be contributing to the misdirection that the setter is attempting to create.

Geordie - adjective relating to Tyneside, its people, or their accent or dialect: Geordie humour.

Tyneside - an industrial conurbation on the banks of the River Tyne, in NE England, stretching from Newcastle upon Tyne to the coast.

ladies - singular and plural noun a lavatory in a restaurant, pub, etc for women only; a women's public lavatory.

Appearing in Solutions:

A² - [6^th entry] abbreviation answer: Q: What is a hung parliament? A: One in which no single party has an overall majority.

backhander - noun 2 British informal a secret and illegal payment; a bribe: a fortune had been paid in backhanders to local officials.

Note: This word is spelled backhander in Oxford Dictionaries Online (from whence this definition is taken) as well as Search Chambers (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary), but is spelled back-hander in The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition.

buck¹ - [Collins English Dictionary] noun 3 US informal a young man. 4 Archaic a robust spirited young man. 5 Archaic a dandy; fop.

buck⁴ - [Collins English Dictionary] noun 1 Poker a marker in the jackpot to remind the winner of some obligation when his turn comes to deal.

*c - abbreviation Cricket (on scorecards) caught by: ME Waugh c Lara b Walsh 19

cub - noun 1 [2^nd entry] archaic a young man, especially one who is awkward or bad-mannered.

earner - noun [2^nd entry] an activity or product that brings in income of a specified kind or level: tobacco is a major foreign currency earner.

The above definition is from Oxford Dictionaries Online, which also gives the following:

• a nice little earner - phrase British informal a profitable activity. 

while Search Chambers has:

• earner - noun  slang an easy and sometimes dishonest way of making money.

fl. - [3^rd entry] abbreviation fluid.

*GI¹ - noun a private soldier in the US army.

*I³ (I.)- abbreviation [1^st entry] Island(s) or Isle(s) (chiefly on maps).

L - [The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition] abbreviation Latin.

lights² - [Collins English Dictionary] plural noun the lungs, especially of sheep, bullocks, and pigs, used for feeding pets and occasionally in human food [referring to the light weight of the lungs]

loo¹ - noun British informal a toilet.

Qu. - abbreviation 2 question.

t - abbreviation 3 ton.

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

This commentary should be read in conjunction with the review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.

6a  Under a strain to retain head of state (4)

The definition is "head of state" having the solution TSAR. The word "retain", meaning to 'hold back' acts simultaneously as both a hidden word indicator (hold) and a reversal indicator (back). Thus the solution is reversed and hidden in "undeR A STrain".

26a   Perfect husband described in this way (4)

Here is another hidden word clue - but this time not reversed. The definition is "in this way" with the solution being THUS which is hidden (described) in "perfecT HUSband". I believe that the hidden word indicator, "described", is used in the sense of "traced the form or outline of" as in the phrase "described a circle with a compass". It still seems a bit of a stretch to say that "perfect husband" describes (traces the outline of) "thus" - but this is not the first time that I have encountered a clue using this device.

Signing off for today - Falcon