Saturday, September 1, 2018 — Rollicking Revelry

Introduction

I trust you r-r-really r-r-relished today's puzzle from Cox & R-R-Rathvon.

I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.

Solution to Today's Puzzle

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 █ - yet to be solved

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: "*" anagram "~" sounds like "<" indicates that the preceding letters are reversed "( )" encloses contained letters "_" replaces letters that have been deleted "†" indicates that the word is present in the clue

The review of a clue takes the following general structure:

#a/d   Clue containing parsing markup (num^*)

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^* num = numeration

Explanations pertaining to the wordplay (or first definition in a double definition)

(Horizontal separator)

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Explanations pertaining to the definition (or second definition in a double definition) and solution.

Explanatory Box

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: Scratching the Surface - an explanation of the surface reading of the clue Delving Deeper - in-depth information pertaining to a subject mentioned in an explanation The Story Behind the Picture - for weekday puzzles, information about an illustration found on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What did he/she/they say? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a remark made in a review or comment on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What are they talking about? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a discussion on Big Dave's Crossword Blog One box that may provide information that could prove helpful in solving the clue is the following: Here and There - for weekday puzzles, discusses words whose British meaning differs from their North American meaning

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.

Examples

A few examples may help to illustrate these points more clearly.

The first example is a clue used by Jay in DT 28573:

• 4d   Fellow left work // a failure (4)

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).

The second example is a clue used by Giovanni in DT 28575:

• 29a   Female going to match // travels with mother in advance (10)

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.

The third example is a clue used by Rufus is DT 28583:

• 18d   Knight caught by misplaced big blow /is/ staggering (8)

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/).

I 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.

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)

As the entire clue is a cryptic definition, it is marked with a dotted underline. The 'precise definition' is "heroic exploit" and is indicated by a solid underline.

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   Rhode Island braggart’s claim about piece of raw // meat (3,5)

RI|B (R)OAST — RI (Rhode Island; abbrev.) + BOAST (braggart's claim) containing (about) R (piece [initial letter] of Raw)

5a   Everyone involved in wager // dancing in tights and tutus (6)

B(ALL)ET — ALL (everyone) contained in (involved in) BET (wager)

9a   Luggage carrier // OK for car if modified (4,4)

{ROOF RACK}* — anagram (if modified) of OK FOR CAR

10a   Be in love with Ronald, // king of fairyland (6)

O|BE|RON — BE (†) contained in (in) {O (love; nil score in tennis) + RON ([diminutive of] Ronald}

Oberon^[7] is a king of the fairies in medieval and Renaissance literature. He is best known as a character in William Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream, in which he is Consort to Titania, Queen of the Fairies.

12a   Spinning Side B, // lingers (5)

BIDES* — anagram (spinning) of SIDE B

13a   Movie actress // playing Nurse Rose (4,5)

{RENE RUSSO}* — anagram (playing) of NURSE ROSE

Rene Russo^[7] is an American actress, producer, and former model.

Scratching the Surface
Nurse Rose[7] is a character (played by Lauren Stamile) who appeared in 12 episodes during seasons 4 and 5 of the television series Grey's Anatomy.

14a   Worthless // essay about burning debris (6)

TR(ASH)Y — TRY (essay) containing (about) ASH (burning debris)

16a   Game // concerning herder of livestock (3,5)

RE|D ROVER — RE (concerning) + DROVER (herder of livestock)

Red rover^[7] (also known as forcing the city gates and octopus tag) is a game played primarily by children on playgrounds. This 19th-century children's group game (requiring 10+ players) is thought to have originated in the United Kingdom and then spread to Australia, Canada, and the United States.

18a   To old Egyptians, the sun follows // daily struggles (3,5)

RA|T RACES — RA (to old Egyptians, the sun; Egyptian sun god) + TRACES (follows)

20a   Somewhat tipsy chemist/’s/ spirit (6)

_PSY|CHE_ — hidden in (somewhat) tiPSY CHEmist

23a   Book written by Updike/’s/ religious teacher before wrong turn (6,3)

RABBI(T RUN)* — RABBI (religious teacher) preceding (before) anagram (wrong) of TURN

Rabbit, Run^[7] is a 1960 novel by American writer John Updike (1932–2009). The novel depicts three months in the life of a 26-year-old former high school basketball player named Harry "Rabbit" Angstrom who is trapped in a loveless marriage and a boring sales job, and his attempts to escape the constraints of his life.

25a   Fight // me and Spike in film (5)

ME|LEE — ME (†) + (and) LEE (Spike in film; American film director, producer, writer, and actor Spike Lee^[7])

26a   Loved // valuable rock included in tally (6)

AD(ORE)D — ORE (valuable rock) contained in (included in) ADD (tally; verb)

27a   Changing gear, a rod // driver’s ire (4,4)

{ROAD RAGE}* — anagram (changing) of GEAR A ROD

Scratching the Surface
In the surface reading, I presume "rod" is short for "hot rod".

28a   Live behind southern // bigot (6)

S|EXIST — EXIST (live) following (behind) S (southern; abbrev.)

29a   Tenant’s payment // torn more roughly (4,4)

{ROOM RENT}* — anagram (roughly) of TORN MORE

Down

1d   Abstract Brie art: // something cheesy (7)

RAREBIT* — anagram (abstract) of BRIE ART

Rarebit^[5] (also Welsh rarebit) is a dish of melted and seasoned cheese on toast, sometimes with other ingredients. The name is an alteration of Welsh rabbit^[5] (probably originally used humorously).

Scratching the Surface
Brie[5] is a kind of soft, mild, creamy cheese with a firm white skin.

2d   Second-rate group of actors taking in street // show (9)

B(ROAD)CAST — {B (second-rate) + CAST (group of actors)} containing (taking in) ROAD (street)

3d   Some horrible bosses // essential to progress (5)

_OGRES_ — hidden in (essential to) prOGRESs

4d   Tie up // mutt kept by spy (6)

SE(CUR)E — CUR (mutt) contained in (kept by) SEE (spy; verb)

6d   In the morning, floating ice is found around right // whale secretion (9)

AM|BERG(R)IS — AM (in the morning; ante meridiem) + {BERG (floating ice) + IS (†)} containing (around) R (right; abbrev.)

Ambergris^[5] is a wax-like substance that originates as a secretion in the intestines of the sperm whale, found floating in tropical seas and used in perfume manufacture.

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Origin: The word comes from Old French ambre gris 'grey amber', as distinct from amber jaune 'yellow amber' (the resin).

7d   Frolics /in/ large flat-bottomed boats (5)

L|ARKS — L (large; abbrev. found on clothing tags) + ARKS (flat-bottomed boats)

Ark^[12] is a US term for a large, flat-bottomed boat formerly used on rivers.

8d   Indian oven/’s/ sun-baked hatch (7)

TAN|DOOR —TAN (sun-baked; as the skin of a sunbather) + DOOR (hatch)

A tandoor^[5] is a clay oven of a type used originally in northern India and Pakistan.

11d   Formerly // on both sides of canoe (4)

ON|CE — ON (†) + {C + E} (both sides of [initial and final letters of] CanoE)

15d   He’s holding a climber’s // weight (9)

HE(A|VINE|S)S — HES (he's) containing (holding) { A (†) + VINE (climber) + S ('s)}

17d   Amid split, I’ll // waver with indecision (9)

VAC(ILL)ATE — ILL (I'll) contained in (amid) VACATE (split; take one's leave or depart)

18d   Again peruses // two notes and messages (7)

RE|RE|ADS — {RE + RE} (two [musical] notes) + (and) ADS ([commercial] messages)

19d   Pronounced vase/’s/ merit (4)

EARN~ — sounds like (pronounced) URN (vase)

21d   High point // always established (7)

EVER|EST — EVER (always) + EST (established; abbrev.)

Mount Everest^[5] is a mountain in the Himalayas, on the border between Nepal and Tibet. Rising to 8,848 m (29,028 ft), it is the highest mountain in the world; it was first climbed in 1953 by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay.

22d   Wholly // popular dog in a Baum story (2,4)

IN TOTO — IN (popular) + TOTO (dog in a Baum story)

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz^[7] is an American children's novel written by author L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow, originally published in 1900. It has since been reprinted on numerous occasions, most often under the title The Wizard of Oz, which is the title of the popular 1902 Broadway musical as well as the iconic 1939 musical film adaptation.

The story chronicles the adventures of a young farm girl named Dorothy in the magical Land of Oz, after she and her pet dog Toto are swept away from their Kansas home by a cyclone^*.

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^* Baum uses the word cyclone while describing a tornado.

24d   Some of New York/’s/ wild horses heard (5)

BRONX~ — sounds like (heard) BRONCS (wild horses)

The Bronx^[5] is a  borough in north-eastern New York City..

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Origin: Named after Jonas Bronck, a Dutch settler who purchased land there in 1641.

25d   Words of praise in 2000 /for/ internet-connecting device (5)

M(ODE)M — ODE (words of praise) contained in (in) MM ([Roman numeral for] 2000)

Epilogue

A Scot could r-r-really get his tongue r-r-round this puzzle.

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[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)

Signing off for today — Falcon