Saturday, October 5, 2019 — Opposing Tastes

Introduction

Today's puzzle from Cox & Rathvon is a flavourful offering that should stimulate the taste buds.

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^*)

---

^* num = numeration

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

(Horizontal separator)

---

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 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: 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 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).

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 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.

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.

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Across

1a	Trouser features accommodating to // some jeans (3-4)

CU(T-O)FFS — CUFFS (trouser features) containing (accommodating) TO (†)

5a	Smashed El Cid at // fortress (7)

CITADEL* — anagram of (smashed) EL CID AT

Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar (c.1043–1099), known as El Cid^[10] (also the Cid), was a Spanish soldier and hero of the wars against the Moors.

9a	Aberdeen terrier holds // record (5)

_EN|TER_ — hidden in (holds) AberdeEN TERrier

Scratching the Surface
Aberdeen terrier[5] is another name for Scottish terrier.

10a	Absorbing one word of action, row /and/ land beside a stream (9)

R(I|VERB)ANK — RANK (row) containing (absorbing) {I ([Roman numeral for] one) + verb (word of action)}

11a	Darling // little article, one right in street (10)

S(WEE|THE|A|R)T — {WEE (little) + THE ([definite] article) + A (one) + R(ight)} contained in (in) ST (street; abbrev.)

12a	Move paid for by // thug (2,2)

GO|ON — GO (move) + ON (paid for by; Drinks are on me!)

14a	One joining society is skirting piece of railroad // wreckage (6)

DEB(R)IS — {DEB (one joining society; shortened form of 'debutante') + IS (†)} containing (skirting) R (piece [initial letter] of Railroad)

16a	Adopting name, made fun of // privileged, somehow (5-3)

SPOO(N)FED — SPOOFED (made fun of) containing (adopting) N(ame)

18a	Approach, /and/ stick together around me (4,4)

CO(ME) HERE — COHERE (stick together) containing (around) ME (†)

Approach is used as a directive ⇒ I command thee, approach and bow down.

19a	Remained // sober for audition (6)

STAYED~ — sounds like (for audition) STAID (sober)

22a	Following // piece of writing online (4)

POST — double definition

23a	Cut by criticism, so incites // resentful disparagement (4,6)

SO|UR G(RAP)ES — {SO (†) + URGES (incites)} containing (cut by) RAP (criticism)

26a	Preventing // blemish in object (9)

TH(WART)ING — WART (blemish) contained in (in) THING (object)

27a	Line dance // can go wandering (5)

CONGA* — anagram of (dancing) CAN GO

28a	Lousy at shuffling // decks (4,3)

{LAYS OUT}* — anagram (shuffling) of LOUSY AT

Decks is used in the sense knocks down, as a boxer decking an opponent.

29a	Harmony mastered in vocal performance (7)

CONCORD~ — the setters seem to believe that this sounds like (in vocal performance) CONQUERED (mastered)

The main issue with this homophone is that the emPHASis is on different sylLABles.

Down

1d	Set of principles about a society /that’s/ folded (7)

CRE(A|S)ED — CREED (set of principals) containing (about) {A (†) + S(ociety)}

2d	It’s included in the // donation (5)

T(IT)HE — IT (†) contained in ('s [is] included in) THE (†)

3d	Trees densely packed around lake // when dawn arrives (5,5)

FIRS|T (L)IGHT — FIRS (trees) + TIGHT (densely packed) containing (around) L(ake)

4d	Ogre stifling one/’s/ scream (6)

SHR(I)EK — SHREK (ogre) containing (stifling) I ([Roman numeral for] one)

Shrek^[7] is a 2001 American computer-animated, comedy film loosely based on the 1990 fairytale picture book of the same name by William Steig. The title character is an ogre.

5d	Attempts to hide // extra in chalices (5-3)

C(OVER)-UPS — OVER (extra) contained in (in) CUPS (chalices)

6d	Heard shorebird // change direction (4)

TURN~ — sounds like (heard) TERN (shorebird)

7d	Trail just occupied by female insect (9)

DRAG|ON(F)LY — DRAG (trail) + ONLY (just) containing (occupied by) F(emale)

8d	Compared green with symbiotic growth in the ear (7)

LIKENED~ — sounds like (in the ear) LICHENED (green with symbiotic growth)

13d	One of the headliners I remove // from Central America (5,5)

COSTA R|I|CAN — CO-STAR (one of the headliners) + I (†) + CAN (remove; dismiss from employment)

15d	Battle cry // witnessed in Indian city (5,4)

BOMB(S AW)AY — SAW (witnessed) contained in (in) BOMBAY (Indian city; former name for Mumbai)

"Bombs away"^[7] is a phrase indicating that unexploded ordnance/projectile/bomb has been armed and released. I would interpret it to be a signal from the bombadier to the pilot that the weapon had been delivered and the pilot no longer needed to maintain the course required for the bombing run.

17d	Tree specialist // Pasternak included in creative work (8)

AR(BORIS)T — BORIS (Pasternak; Russian writer Boris Pasternak^[7]) contained in (included in) ART (creative work)

18d	A deep hole in California/’s/ chief city (7)

C(A|PIT)AL — {A (†) + PIT (deep hole)} contained in (in) CAL(ifornia)

20d	Taking mark, completed // pitch (7)

DI(SCAR)D — DID (completed) containing (taking) SCAR (mark)

21d	Sad // time set back Havana, perhaps (6)

T|RAGIC< — T(ime) + reversal of (set back) CIGAR (Havana, perhaps)

24d	Get attached to // horse of a certain colour (5)

PIN|TO —PIN (get attached) + TO (†)

25d	So // I split by mid-afternoon (4)

E(R)GO — EGO (I) containing (split by) R (mid-afternoon; middle letter of afteRnoon)

Epilogue

The theme of today's puzzle is provided by 11a and 23a.

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 Advanced 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