Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 28884 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph
Wednesday, October 31, 2018 | |
Setter
Jay (Jeremy Mutch) | |
Link to Full Review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28884] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By
Miffypops (subbing for the 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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Notes
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This puzzle appears on the Monday Diversions page in the Saturday, April 20, 2019 edition of the National Post.
The National Post did not publish an edition on Friday, April 19, 2019
and has skipped the puzzle which would normally have appeared on that
date, DT 28883 which was published in The Daily Telegraph on Tuesday,
October 30, 2018. You can find the missing puzzle in my
Friday, April 19, 2019 — DT 28883 (Good Friday Bonus Puzzle) blog posting.
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Introduction
A gentle Easter Monday workout geared toward those whose brain is still on a sugar high from overindulging in Easter eggs.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 Moved en masse /from/ fighting in southern Mediterranean (7)
The Med[5] is an informal, British name for the Mediterranean Sea.
5a Approximate in weight, /and/ forged (7)
9a Helps to chase runs /and/ attacks (5)
"runs" = R [cricket notation] (show explanation )
10a The majority of ladies must accept predicaments /can be/ healthy (9)
The kind of predicaments that one digs oneself into.
11a Irritation includes concerns /for/ this literary form (10)
Picaresque[1,10] is an adjective denoting of or relating to a type of fiction in which the hero, a rogue, goes through a series of episodic adventures. The genre originated in Spain in the 16th century and was much in vogue in the 17th century.
12a Reacted emotionally to // such material (4)
I would say that the word "to" is — or, at least, can be — part of the definition. Were one to have felt someone's pain, they reacted emotionally to that pain.
14a Grouchy // old American chasing tin vessel (12)
18a Just out of the medals facing Spain, say // the press (6,6)
"Spain" = E [IVR code] (show explanation )
The fourth estate[5] is another term for the press or the profession of journalism ⇒
she is reticent when it comes to members of the fourth estate. The term was originally used humorously in various contexts. Its first usage with reference to the press has been attributed to British man of letters and Whig politician Edmund Burke (1729–1797) but this remains unconfirmed.
The term is an extension of the concept of an estate[5] (also estate of the realm) as a class or order regarded as forming part of the body politic, in particular (in Britain), one of the three groups constituting Parliament, now the Lords spiritual (the heads of the Church), the Lords temporal (the peerage), and the Commons. They are also known as the three estates.
21a Evil king/'s/ ruin (4)
"king" = K (show explanation )
K[5] is an abbreviation for king that is used especially in describing play in card games and recording moves in chess.
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K[5] is an abbreviation for king that is used especially in describing play in card games and recording moves in chess.
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22a Ephemeral // spirit Old Nick rejected (5-5)
Short[5] (noun) is a British term for a drink of spirits served in a small measure* or, as Collins English Dictionary puts it, a short[10] is a drink of spirits as opposed to a long drink such as beer**.
* A measure[5] is a container of standard capacity used for taking fixed amounts of a substance.
** Collins English Dictionary rather bizarrely defines a long drink[10] as a drink containing a large quantity of non-alcoholic beverage. Perhaps Oxford Dictionaries Online hits the mark by defining a long drink[5] as a large and refreshing cold drink in which alcohol, if present, is not heavily concentrated.
Old Nick[2] is another name for the devil.
25a Suitable // work left on board with a Parisienne (9)
"work" = OP (show explanation )
In music, an opus[5] (Latin 'work', plural opuses or opera) is a separate composition or set of compositions.
The abbreviation Op.[5] (also op.), denoting opus, is used before a number given to each work of a particular composer, usually indicating the order of publication. The plural form of Op. is Opp..
Opus[5] can also be used in other contexts to denote an artistic work, especially one on a large scale ⇒
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In music, an opus[5] (Latin 'work', plural opuses or opera) is a separate composition or set of compositions.
The abbreviation Op.[5] (also op.), denoting opus, is used before a number given to each work of a particular composer, usually indicating the order of publication. The plural form of Op. is Opp..
Opus[5] can also be used in other contexts to denote an artistic work, especially one on a large scale ⇒
he was writing an opus on Mexico.
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Port[5] is the side of a ship or aircraft that is on the left when one is facing forward ⇒ (i)
the ferry was listing to port; (ii) [as modifier]
the port side of the aircraft.
Origin: probably originally the side containing an entry port or facing the port (quayside) for loading
"a Parisienne" = UNE (show explanation )
26a Within earshot, guarding // approaches (5)
27a Furthest from the centre -- /and/ high in intensity (7)
28a The girl has gone for a drink here! (7)
Following Miffypops' lead, above I have marked this clue as a cryptic definition with embedded wordplay although I think one might well be able to make an argument for the cryptic definition being merely "a drink here":
- The girl has gone /for/ a drink here! (7)
Especially in Ireland, Scotland and South Africa, a shebeen[5] is an unlicensed establishment or private house selling alcohol and typically regarded as slightly disreputable.
Down
1d Band // bare all and leave at last (6)
2d In America, a gun // each (6)
From a British perspective, piece[5] is an informal North American term for a firearm.
3d Names sit awkwardly, keeping credit /for/ offenders (10)
4d Drinks /in/ one area of rolling hills (5)
The term down[10] (also called downland) refers to rolling upland*, especially in the chalk areas of southern Britain, characterized by lack of trees and used mainly as pasture.
* how ironic is that, down or downland is a British term for upland?
The Downs[10,12] are two parallel ranges of low, grassy chalk hills (North Downs & South Downs) in southeastern England.
5d Mystery // perplexed Hindu town (9)
6d Witches needing no lid /for/ this cooker (4)
Possibly, an oven is a "cooker".
Cooker[12] is a British term for a stove used for cooking food. While some dictionaries restrict the term cooker[5] to only appliances heated by gas or electricity, others extend the term cooker[10] to also include devices using oil and solid fuel.
From a British perspective, an oven[5] is an enclosed compartment, usually part of a cooker, for cooking and heating food.
Although an oven is "usually part of a cooker", the definition clearly allows exceptions (self-contained microwave or convection ovens, perhaps) that might qualify as "cookers" in their own right.
On the other hand, it is also possible that the setter may have used cooker a bit whimsically (compare 17d).
7d Waterfowl work on good // fruit (8)
"good" = G [academic result] (show explanation )
Goosegog[5] is an informal British name for a gooseberry.
8d Composition /needing/ delicacy is English (8)
13d Plague /caused by/ coppers covering steps in field (10)
Copper is a British[5] or chiefly British[12] (or, perhaps, not so British[3,11]) term for brown coins of low value made of copper or bronze.
Pence[5] is a plural form* of penny[5], a British bronze coin and monetary unit equal to one hundredth of a pound and the smallest denomination in Britain's modern decimal currency system.
* Both pence and pennies have existed as plural forms of penny since at least the 16th century. The two forms now tend to be used for different purposes: pence refers to sums of money (five pounds and sixty-nine pence) while pennies refers to the coins themselves (I left two pennies on the table). The use of pence rather than penny as a singular (the chancellor will put one pence on income tax) is not regarded as correct in standard English.
15d Criminal here to use // superior accommodation (4,5)
Superior[10] is used in the sense of placed higher up or situated further from the base.
16d Away and certain to be heard -- // not far from the coast (8)
I have reservations concerning the correctness of this definition. Offshore[5] means situated at sea some distance from the shore. Inshore[5], on the other hand, means at sea but close to the shore.
17d Go with son and tip up // cooker on fire (8)
While there may be uncertainty whether the word "cooker" is being used in a whimsical fashion at 6d, there is no doubt here.
Historically, a turnspit[10] was:
- a servant or small dog (the latter using a treadmill) whose job was to turn the spit on which meat, poultry, etc, was roasting
- a spit that could be so turned
19d A struggle to pack a ton /and/ fly (6)
20d Likely to win // strange spoon, oddly (4-2)
What did he say?
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In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops directs us toRum[5] is a dated informal British term meaning odd or peculiar ⇒Begin with a word meaning strange or rum. it’s a rum business, certainly. |
23d Raise charge in case of rapids /or/ rocks (5)
24d Encourage // rapid growth, ignoring head (4)
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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