Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 28909 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph
Thursday, November 29, 2018 | |
Setter
RayT (Ray Terrell) | |
Link to Full Review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28909] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By
Falcon | |
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
Believe it or not, I solved this entire puzzle without recognizing it as one that I had reviewed on Big Dave's Crossword Blog!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 Break to take secretary /for/ dinner, say (6)
PA[5] is an abbreviation used in Britain* for personal assistant.
* It is the use of the abbreviation that is British, not the term itself. Even in North America, I think the abbreviation may not be entirely unheard of.
4a Lust and ardour's about // normal (8)
9a Better // person to steer boat (6)
Punter[5] is an informal British term for a person who gambles, places a bet, or makes a risky investment.
A punter[5] is a person who propels or travels in a punt*.
* A punt[5] is a long, narrow flat-bottomed boat, square at both ends and propelled with a long pole, used on inland waters chiefly for recreation.
10a They work up past top of tight // pants (8)
As an initial letter indicator, top[10] is used in the sense of beginning ? (i)
the top of the hour; (ii)
at the top of the programme; (iii)
let's run through the piece one more time from the top.
Pants or Trousers?
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| It has been my understanding (which is supported Rabbit Dave in Comment #1 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog) that, 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). However, you will see that Lincoln Latic offers a contrary opinion in the following response to Rabbit Dave: I didn’t see this [pants used as a synonym for trousers] as an Americanism. I grew up in the northwest of England (before the big influx of Americanisms into the language) and ‘pants’ was the usual term for trousers. You had short pants as a real youngster then progressed into long pants as you got older which for most of us was when you were nearly at the end of primary school probably around aged 9 or 10. What most people consider ‘pants’ refers to now, were called underpants because they went under your pants. |
12a Good hand /is/ shipshape (8)
In the card game poker, a straight[5] is a continuous sequence of five cards.
13a Deserter hiding in oddly clear // hollow (6)
A rat[10] is a person who deserts his or her friends or associates, especially in time of trouble.
15a Mingled // molecules, as in liquid (13)
Synonyms of miscellaneous listed in Collins English Thesaurus include mixed, mingled, assorted, jumbled, etc.
18a One new copper accepting hollow tale/'s/ true (13)
22a Resurrect // former buzz with sweetheart (6)
"sweetheart" = E (show explanation )
A common cryptic crossword construct is to use the word "sweetheart" to clue the letter 'E', the middle letter (heart) of swEet.
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A common cryptic crossword construct is to use the word "sweetheart" to clue the letter 'E', the middle letter (heart) of swEet.
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24a Old lady's right tantrum taking one /in/ matrimony (8)
26a Hazard /seen in/ rough and green ... (8)
Hazard[5] (verb) means to put (something) at risk of being lost ? (i)
the cargo business is too risky to hazard money on; (ii)
You hazard your good name and very nearly ruin the reputation of others.
27a ... local // putting green round tee (6)
28a Doubt // American power's constrained by wisdom (8)
"power" = P [symbol used in physics] (show reference )
Doubt[5] and suspense[5] both denote a feeling of uncertainty; however, the former is caused by mistrust of knowledge one already has while the second is due to lacking knowledge that is yet to be revealed.
29a Puzzle/'s/ unusual meaning when noun's omitted (6)
Down
1d Rest // made progress snatching record (6)
"record" = EP (show explanation )
EP[10] (abbreviation for extended-play) is one of the formats in which music is sold, usually comprising four or five tracks. An EP contains more cuts than a single[5] but fewer than an LP or long-playing[5] record.
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EP[10] (abbreviation for extended-play) is one of the formats in which music is sold, usually comprising four or five tracks. An EP contains more cuts than a single[5] but fewer than an LP or long-playing[5] record.
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2d Extensive // frenzy purchasing old stuff (9)
3d Sort /of/ spots around middle of neck (7)
5d Farmer's opening furrow, turning // sod (4)
6d One turns, endlessly spinning // particle (7)
7d Bond perhaps, // a smart chap (5)
James Bond[5] (known also by his code name 007) is a fictional British secret agent in the spy novels of English author Ian Fleming (1908–1964). Bond[7] is an intelligence officer in the Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6.
8d Upset // from revolting desserts I devoured (8)
11d Trump's first covered taking First Lady/'s/ stole (7)
"First Lady" = EVE (show explanation )
In the Bible, Eve[5,10] is the first woman, mother of the human race, fashioned by God from the rib of Adam, companion of Adam and mother of Cain and Abel* [Genesis 2:18-25].
* not to mention Seth and her other sons and daughters [Gen 5:4]
Disobeying God, Eve[7] succumbs to the serpent's temptation to eat the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and shares the fruit with Adam. As a result, the first humans are expelled from the Garden of Eden.
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In the Bible, Eve[5,10] is the first woman, mother of the human race, fashioned by God from the rib of Adam, companion of Adam and mother of Cain and Abel* [Genesis 2:18-25].
* not to mention Seth and her other sons and daughters [Gen 5:4]
Disobeying God, Eve[7] succumbs to the serpent's temptation to eat the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and shares the fruit with Adam. As a result, the first humans are expelled from the Garden of Eden.
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14d Rubbish // celebrity almost pocketing loads (7)
16d Choosing to save time // working (9)
17d Similarity // seen with silk pants (8)
As an anagram indicator, pants[5] is used in an informal British sense meaning rubbish or nonsense ?
he thought we were going to be absolute pants.
19d One standing, hoping to have a seat? (7)
20d Stop strong drink taking a // pledge (7)
Bargain[5] is used in the sense of an agreement between two or more people or groups as to what each will do for the other ?
bargains between political parties supporting the government.
21d Former Spanish capital (6)
Until the introduction of the euro in 2002, the peseta[5] was the basic monetary unit of Spain, equal to 100 centimos.
23d Cloaks /made of/ skins (5)
25d The woman's // husband, the Queen's (4)
"the Queen" = ER [regnal cipher of Queen Elizabeth] (show more )
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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