Puzzle at a Glance
|
|---|
Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29207 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph
Wednesday, November 13, 2019 | |
Setter
Jay (Jeremy Mutch) | |
Link to Full Review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29207] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By
2Kiwis | |
BD Rating
| |
| 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
| |
Notes
| |
This puzzle appears on the Monday Diversions page in the Saturday, June 13, 2020 edition of the National Post.
| |
Introduction
Oh dear! I think I have too much on my plate to keep track of. I wrote this review and then forgot to post it.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.
| Markup Conventions | |
|
|
| Click here for further explanation and usage examples of markup conventions used on this blog. | |
Across
| 1a | Feeling /experienced by/ daughter after broken heart? (6) |
One might almost consider the entire clue to be the definition.
| 5a | Courage /and/ instinct about politician no one backed (8) |
Gut is usually encountered as a modifier (as in
gut reaction) and so would be synonymous with 'instinctive' rather than 'instinct'. However, I do believe the equivalence is valid in the following instance:
-
Everything appeared normal but my gut told me that something was drastically wrong
.
"politician " = MP
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
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
| 9a | New pine kitchen? An // awful bore (4,2,3,4) |
| 10a | Avoid /putting/ favourites back on team (8) |
"team " = SIDE
Side[5] is a British term for a sports team ⇒
* Note that, in Britain, a player is said to be "in a side" rather than "on a team" as one would say in North America.
In North America, the term side[3] is used in a very general fashion that can denote one of two or more opposing individuals, groups, teams, or sets of opinions. While this same general usage is also found in the UK, the term side[5] is also used there in a much more specific sense to mean a sports team, as we can clearly see from the following usage examples ⇒ (i)
hide
Side[5] is a British term for a sports team ⇒
there was a mixture of old and young players in* their side.
* Note that, in Britain, a player is said to be "in a side" rather than "on a team" as one would say in North America.
In North America, the term side[3] is used in a very general fashion that can denote one of two or more opposing individuals, groups, teams, or sets of opinions. While this same general usage is also found in the UK, the term side[5] is also used there in a much more specific sense to mean a sports team, as we can clearly see from the following usage examples ⇒ (i)
Previous England rugby sides, and England teams in many other sports, would have crumbled under the weight of such errors.; (ii)
They'll face better sides than this Monaco team, but you can only beat what's put in front of you.
hide
| 11a | Try blocking extremely spurious // cuts (6) |
| 12a | Small flat // sort of poker with one ring (6) |
Stud poker[10] (often shortened to stud) is a variety of poker in which the first card is dealt face down before each player and the next four are dealt face up (five-card stud) or in which the first two cards and the last card are dealt face down and the intervening four cards are dealt face up (seven-card stud), with bets made after each round.
Studio flat[5] (North American studio apartment) is a British term for a flat [apartment] containing one main room.
| 14a | During drinks, got up /for/ flowers (3,5) |
The tea rose[5] is a garden rose with flowers that are typically pale yellow with a pink tinge and have a delicate scent said to resemble that of tea.
| 16a | Manxman perhaps needing company to replace is // 23 (8) |
A Manxman[10]
(or feminine Manxwoman) is a native or inhabitant of the Isle of Man[5]
(abbreviation IOM[5]), an island in the Irish Sea (show more ).
The island is a British Crown dependency having home rule, with its own legislature (the Tynwald) and judicial system. It was part of the Norse kingdom of the Hebrides in the Middle Ages, passing into Scottish hands in 1266 for a time, until the English gained control in the early 15th century. Its ancient language, Manx, is still occasionally used for ceremonial purposes.
hide
The island is a British Crown dependency having home rule, with its own legislature (the Tynwald) and judicial system. It was part of the Norse kingdom of the Hebrides in the Middle Ages, passing into Scottish hands in 1266 for a time, until the English gained control in the early 15th century. Its ancient language, Manx, is still occasionally used for ceremonial purposes.
hide
The
numeral "23" is a cross
reference indicator to clue 23a (show more ).
To complete the clue, a solver must replace the cross reference indicator with the solution to the clue starting in the light* identified by the cross reference indicator.
The cross reference indicator may include a directional indicator but this is customarily done only in situations where there are both Across and Down clues originating in the light that is being referenced.
* light-coloured cell in the grid
hide
To complete the clue, a solver must replace the cross reference indicator with the solution to the clue starting in the light* identified by the cross reference indicator.
The cross reference indicator may include a directional indicator but this is customarily done only in situations where there are both Across and Down clues originating in the light that is being referenced.
* light-coloured cell in the grid
hide
| 19a | Temple // leaving returning sea-dog appalled (6) |
| 21a | Improve behaviour of // soldiers with criminal record (6) |
"soldiers " = RE [Royal Engineers]
The Corps of Royal Engineers[7], usually just called the Royal Engineers (abbreviation RE), and commonly known as the Sappers[7], is a corps of the British Army that provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces.
hide
The Corps of Royal Engineers[7], usually just called the Royal Engineers (abbreviation RE), and commonly known as the Sappers[7], is a corps of the British Army that provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces.
hide
Form[5] is an informal British term for a criminal record ⇒
they both had form.
| 23a | Riddle /of/ second coach (8) |
| 25a | Strikers // perhaps full of iron with time before games (6,7) |
The symbol for the chemical element iron is Fe[5] (from Latin ferrum).
I consider the definition to be a bit whimsical.
| 26a | Action taken about Welsh river estuary ultimately /is/ naive (4-4) |
The Dee[5] a river that rises in North Wales and flows into England, past Chester and on into the Irish Sea
| 27a | Busy editors, ignoring Independent, // walked purposefully (6) |
"Independent " = I [politician with no party affiliation]
I[1] is the abbreviation for independent, in all likelihood in the sense of a politician with no party affiliation.
hide
I[1] is the abbreviation for independent, in all likelihood in the sense of a politician with no party affiliation.
hide
Down
| 2d | Nominate // a parking issue (7) |
| 3d | Promote /and/ congratulate with no pressure (5) |
Although promote can mean raise in other contexts as well, many Brits are likely to see the word in a sports context, where promote[5] means to transfer (a sports team) to a higher division of a league ⇒
they were promoted from the Third Division [to the Second Division] last season.
Delving Deeper
| |
|---|---|
| Sports leagues in the UK typically operate on a process of promotion and relegation[7]
in which teams are transferred between two divisions based on their
performance for the completed season. The best-ranked teams in the lower
division are promoted to the division above, and the worst-ranked teams
in the higher division are relegated [moved down] to the
division below. This process can continue through several
levels, with teams being exchanged between levels 1 and 2, levels 2 and
3, levels 3 and 4, and so on. An alternate system of league organisation which is used in the US, Canada and Australia is a closed model which always has the same teams playing, with occasional admission of expansion teams and relocation of existing teams, and with no movement between the major league and minor leagues. |
| 4d | Current deal, say, // that's floating around (9) |
In the wordplay, drift[10] is used in the sense of a general tendency of surface ocean water to flow in the direction of the prevailing winds ⇒
North Atlantic Drift.
"deal " = WOOD
In Britain, deal[5] means:
In Britain, lumber[5] has a totally different meaning than it does in North America, being articles of furniture or other household items that are no longer useful and inconveniently take up storage space.
hide
In Britain, deal[5] means:
- fir or pine wood as a building material; or
- a plank made of fir or pine wood [what we in North America would commonly refer to as lumber].
In Britain, lumber[5] has a totally different meaning than it does in North America, being articles of furniture or other household items that are no longer useful and inconveniently take up storage space.
hide
| 5d | Fall apart, /having/ won kitty with nothing in (2,2,3) |
| 6d | Gathers // the writer set off (5) |
"the writer " = ME
It is a common cryptic crossword convention for the creator of the puzzle to use terms such as (the or this) compiler, (the or this) setter, (the or this) speaker, (this) author, (this) writer, or this person to refer to himself or herself. To solve such a clue, one must generally substitute a first person pronoun (I or ME) for whichever of these terms has been used in the clue.
hide
It is a common cryptic crossword convention for the creator of the puzzle to use terms such as (the or this) compiler, (the or this) setter, (the or this) speaker, (this) author, (this) writer, or this person to refer to himself or herself. To solve such a clue, one must generally substitute a first person pronoun (I or ME) for whichever of these terms has been used in the clue.
hide
| 7d | Seem upset wearing G-string /for/ such a melody (5,4) |
| 8d | This will produce a corn if fused (3,4) |
| 13d | Bore just netting female // insect (9) |
| 15d | Breaking up as a part /needed for/ equipment (9) |
| 17d | Finished second even without regulars // to supervise (7) |
| 18d | Took for granted going topless /and/ continued (7) |
| 20d | Shift editor // treated wounds (7) |
| 22d | Friendly // final check before end of day (5) |
In chess, mate[5] (short for checkmate[5]) is a position in which a player’s king is directly attacked by an opponent’s piece or pawn and has no possible move to escape the check. The attacking player thus wins the game.
Matey[5] (also maty) is an informal British term denoting familiar and friendly; sociable.
| 24d | Divine liquid // from Norwich originally (5) |
In Greek mythology, ichor[5] is the fluid that flows like blood in the veins of the gods.
Scratching the Surface
| |
|---|---|
| Norwich[5] is a city in eastern England, the county town of Norfolk. |
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 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)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.