Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 28704 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph
Wednesday, April 4, 2018 | |
Setter
Jay (Jeremy Mutch) | |
Link to Full Review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28704] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By
2Kiwis | |
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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Introduction
Today's puzzle is a fairly gentle mental workout from Jay.I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.
A Note on Last Week's Puzzles
On Friday, August 3, 2018, the National Post skipped puzzles DT 28694 and DT 28695. Unfortunately, this date happened to coincide with the first day of a camping vacation in an area with very limited Internet access. In anticipation of my retreat from civilization, I had prepared a number of reviews in advance based on the long-established publication pattern* of the National Post. As a result of these two puzzles being omitted, my reviews appeared several days late for puzzles published from August 3 to August 13. I have retitled those reviews to reflect the date on which the puzzles were actually published by the National Post.* Prior to August 3, I believe that the National Post had not skipped a puzzle since Tuesday, December 19, 2017 on which date two puzzles (DT 28529 and DT 28530) were skipped.
In addition, I have posted the two missing puzzles as "Bonus Puzzles" which you can find here:
I hope you enjoy solving these "extra" puzzles.
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 programmes, 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 straight from a dictionary or at least phrased in a non-misleading fashion) or it may be 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).
The only type of clue that I can think of where there are not two ways of finding the solution are those in which the entire clue is a cryptic definition.
I identify precise definitions by marking them with a solid underline in the clue and cryptic definitions 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.
hide explanation
Across
1a French food /from/ person elected to be admitted by queen? (9)
"person elected" = MEMBER (show explanation )
In Britain (as in Canada), a politician elected to the House of Commons is known as a Member of Parliament[10] (abbreviation MP[5]) or, informally, as a member[5].
hide explanation
In Britain (as in Canada), a politician elected to the House of Commons is known as a Member of Parliament[10] (abbreviation MP[5]) or, informally, as a member[5].
hide explanation
A queen[5] is an adult female cat that has not been spayed.
6a Lawyer /in/ pants with the rear cut out (5)
In Britain, the word pants[5] does not mean trousers as it does in North America. Rather, it refers to underwear — specifically men's undershorts or women's panties (the latter otherwise known as knickers[5] to the Brits).
Thus were you to remove your pants in the UK, you would be far more exposed than were you to do so in North America!
it was only his brief's eloquence that had saved him from prison.
9a Gather /there's/ a mother ship (5)
"ship" = SS (show explanation )
In Crosswordland, a ship is almost invariably a steamship, the abbreviation for which is SS[5] ⇒
hide explanation
In Crosswordland, a ship is almost invariably a steamship, the abbreviation for which is SS[5] ⇒
the SS Canberra.
hide explanation
10a River by motorway -- point out /that will get/ discharge (9)
The River Exe[7] rises on Exmoor in Somerset, 8.4 kilometres (5 mi) from the Bristol Channel coast, but flows more or less directly due south, so that most of its length lies in Devon. It reaches the sea at a substantial ria, the Exe Estuary, on the south (English Channel) coast of Devon.
Motorway[2,5] (abbreviation M[5]) is a British, Australian, and New Zealand term for a dual-carriageway road [divided highway] designed for fast-moving traffic, especially one with three lanes per carriageway [direction of travel] and limited access and exit points [controlled access].
11a Nice cooking for a gourmet? (5,7)
Nice[5] is a resort city on the French Riviera, near the border with Italy.
chefs well versed in haute cuisine.
Origin: French, literally ‘high cookery’.
14a University professor's first true // post (7)
16a Draw // a wagon back in case of theft (7)
17a That man wants the heart of one // female (3)
Besides being a female bird, especially a domestic fowl, hen[5] can also mean:
- (British) a term for a woman who is about to get married and is attending a celebration with female friends and relatives ⇒
today's naughty hens don't want to share the stories with their other halves
- (Scottish) an affectionate term of address to a girl or woman ⇒
and I really like you too, hen
18a Skill of arranging flowers // somewhat like bananas (7)
Ikebana[5] is the art of Japanese flower arrangement, with formal display according to strict rules.
20a Part of lock /that's/ glass (7)
22a Toothache must develop, consuming mostly cold // drink (3,9)
26a Blackmail // former lover not bothered about riot developing (9)
27a Saw // a daughter mature (5)
28a Disturbances /may mean/ obligations (2-3)
29a Talk absorbs one after collecting forest // flowers (9)
The Forest of Arden[10] is region of northern Warwickshire, England. Part of a former forest, it is the scene of William Shakespeare's play As You Like It.
Down
1d Bloke /getting/ hot in Panama, for example (4)
A panama[5] (also panama hat) is a man’s wide-brimmed hat of straw-like material, originally made from the leaves of a particular tropical palm tree.
Several of those making comments at Big Dave's Crossword Blog are justifiably sceptical whether a panama qualifies as a cap.
A cap[5] is a kind of soft, flat hat without a brim and typically with a peak.
he’s a nice bloke.
* Very British, but certainly also very familiar to anyone on this side of the pond who has ever watched a British film or television programme
Chap[3,4,11] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[3] term for a man or boy (show more ) — although a term that is certainly not uncommon in Canada.
Chap[3,4,11] is a shortened form of chapman[3,4,11], an archaic term for a trader, especially an itinerant pedlar[a,b].
[a] Pedlar is the modern British spelling of peddler[14] which, in most senses, is a US or old-fashioned British spelling. The exception is in the sense of a dealer in illegal drugs which the Brits spell as drug peddler.
[b] The current meaning of chap[2] dates from the 18th century. In the 16th century, chap meant 'a customer'. The dictionaries do not explain how a shortened form of 'chapman' (pedlar) came to mean 'customer'.
hide explanation
Chap[3,4,11] is a shortened form of chapman[3,4,11], an archaic term for a trader, especially an itinerant pedlar[a,b].
[a] Pedlar is the modern British spelling of peddler[14] which, in most senses, is a US or old-fashioned British spelling. The exception is in the sense of a dealer in illegal drugs which the Brits spell as drug peddler.
[b] The current meaning of chap[2] dates from the 18th century. In the 16th century, chap meant 'a customer'. The dictionaries do not explain how a shortened form of 'chapman' (pedlar) came to mean 'customer'.
hide explanation
2d Intended to finish early /to get/ tight (4)
3d Sucker pinching small brown // horse (7)
Mug[5] is an informal British term for a stupid or gullible person ⇒
they were no mugs where finance was concerned.
4d Vote in // the Spanish on European court (5)
"the Spanish" = EL (show explanation )
"court" = CT (show explanation )
Ct[2] is the abbreviation for Court in street addresses — and possibly in other contexts as well.
hide explanation
Ct[2] is the abbreviation for Court in street addresses — and possibly in other contexts as well.
hide explanation
5d Cutting // teacher after vacation, with delight (9)
The phrase "after vacation" is an indication to remove the contents (interior letters) from the word T(eache)R. Vacation[10] is used in the sense of the act of departing from or abandoning property, etc. Thus the setter seems to be suggesting that the interior letters get up and leave.
6d Bishop past it, woolly // sort of Christian (7)
"bishop" = B (show explanation )
B[5] is an abbreviation for bishop that is used in recording moves in chess.
A bishop[5] is a chess piece, typically with its top shaped like a mitre, that can move any number of spaces in any direction along a diagonal on which it stands. Each player starts the game with two bishops, one moving on white squares and the other on black.
hide explanation
B[5] is an abbreviation for bishop that is used in recording moves in chess.
A bishop[5] is a chess piece, typically with its top shaped like a mitre, that can move any number of spaces in any direction along a diagonal on which it stands. Each player starts the game with two bishops, one moving on white squares and the other on black.
hide explanation
As an anagram indicator, woolly[2] is used in the sense of vague and muddled; lacking in clarity ⇒ (i)
woolly thinking: (ii)
woolly-minded: (iii)
woolly argument.
7d Unique // car put up on one stand (10)
Mini[7] is an automobile brand, currently owned by BMW, but originally introduced as a model under the Austin and Morris marques by the now defunct British Motor Corporation (BMC).
8d A new line in bonds /may get/ plaudits (3,7)
"line" = L (show explanation )
12d Like a play on words intended to be voiced /as/ retribution? (10)
13d Found bearings /to be/ rotten idea, strangely (10)
15d Yon feature -- good // for covering roof! (9)
"good" = G (show explanation )
The abbreviation G[a] for good comes from its use in education as a mark awarded on scholastic assignments or tests.
[a] Collins English to Spanish Dictionary
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The abbreviation G[a] for good comes from its use in education as a mark awarded on scholastic assignments or tests.
[a] Collins English to Spanish Dictionary
hide explanation
In a clue such as this, the implied definition is "[something] for covering roof".
Thatching[10] is straw or reeds used to make a roof ⇒
The supports should be stout, as they will need to bear most of the thatching.
19d Notice the girl's energy with son // is gripping (7)
"energy" = E (show explanation )
21d Gas // meant he has to change (7)
23d Business located on river // vessel (5)
24d Two-and-six regularly used /to get you/ a dry bed (4)
In certain Arabic-speaking countries, a wadi[5] is a valley, ravine, or channel that is dry except in the rainy season.
Scratching the Surface
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| Before decimalisation of the British currency system[7] in 1971, the pound was divided into 20 shillings and each shilling into 12 pence, making 240 pence to the pound. The symbol for the shilling was "s."—not from the first letter of the word, but from the Latin solidus. The symbol for the penny was "d.", from the French denier, from the Latin denarius (the solidus and denarius were Roman coins). A mixed sum of shillings and pence, such as 3 shillings and 6 pence, was written as "3/6" or "3s. 6d." and spoken as "three and six" or "three and sixpence" except for "1/1," "2/1" etc., which were spoken as "one and a penny", "two and a penny", etc.). |
25d Stock enclosures /for/ writers (4)
Here and There
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The setter has almost certainly used "writer" in the sense of an implement used for writing. While North American dictionaries also define pen[3,11] as a writer or an author ⇒ a hired pen, British dictionaries do not list this meaning although they do show pen[2,4] (or the pen[5,10]) as symbolically denoting writing as an occupation. |
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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