Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29439 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Tuesday, August 11, 2020 | |
Setter
Unknown | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29439]
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Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Mr K | |
BD rating
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| Difficulty - ★★ | Enjoyment - ★★★ |
Falcon's experience
┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐
███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ | |
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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
Today's puzzle delivered a fairly gentle workout but the British ship at 3d always seems to elude me.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 | |
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| Click here for further explanation and usage examples of markup conventions used on this blog. | |
Across
| 1a | Els teed off, welcoming clubs // chosen (8) |
Scratching the Surface
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| Ernie Els[7] is a South African professional golfer, who has been one of the top professional players in the world since the mid-1990s — and one who makes frequent visits to Crosswordland. |
| 5a | Bishop rushed /to get/ prepared (6) |
| 9a | Secret eastern river // boat (9) |
Historically, a privateer[5] was an armed ship owned and crewed by private individuals holding a government commission and authorized for use in war, especially in the capture of merchant shipping.
| 11a | Confess // in court I'm dangerous revolutionary (5) |
| 12a | Difficult situations, losing first // matches (6) |
| 13a | Motivation // limits current working (8) |
| 15a | Begin destroying main tent /for/ fun (13) |
| 18a | Notice // blokes in a test drive spinning (13) |
| 22a | The chap's flipping rubbish and in charge? // Great! (8) |
"chap " = MAN; thus "The chap's" = HIS
Chap[3,4,11] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[3] term for a man or boy — although a term that is certainly not uncommon in Canada. It is a shortened form of chapman[3,4,11], an archaic term for a trader, especially an itinerant pedlar[a,b].
[a] Pedlar is the modern British spelling of peddler[14] which, in most senses, is considered by the Brits to be a US or old-fashioned British spelling. The exception is in the sense of a dealer in illegal drugs which the Brits spell as drug peddler.
[b] The current meaning of chap[2] dates from the 18th century. In the 16th century, chap meant 'a customer'. The dictionaries do not explain how a shortened form of 'chapman' (pedlar) came to mean 'customer'.
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Chap[3,4,11] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[3] term for a man or boy — although a term that is certainly not uncommon in Canada. It is a shortened form of chapman[3,4,11], an archaic term for a trader, especially an itinerant pedlar[a,b].
[a] Pedlar is the modern British spelling of peddler[14] which, in most senses, is considered by the Brits to be a US or old-fashioned British spelling. The exception is in the sense of a dealer in illegal drugs which the Brits spell as drug peddler.
[b] The current meaning of chap[2] dates from the 18th century. In the 16th century, chap meant 'a customer'. The dictionaries do not explain how a shortened form of 'chapman' (pedlar) came to mean 'customer'.
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Rubbish[3,4,11] and rot[3,4,11] are used in the sense of nonsense (foolish or pointless words or speech).
Historic[10] is used with the connotation of significant.
| 23a | Run off with // thin, short woman (6) |
| 26a | Quickly // walk after adult (5) |
"adult " = A [former British film certificate]
The A (Adult) certificate is a former film certificate[7] issued by the British Board of Film Classification. This certificate existed in various forms from 1912 to 1985, when it was replaced by the PG (Parental Guidance) certificate. [Despite its demise in the real world, it continues to find widespread use in Crosswordland.]
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The A (Adult) certificate is a former film certificate[7] issued by the British Board of Film Classification. This certificate existed in various forms from 1912 to 1985, when it was replaced by the PG (Parental Guidance) certificate. [Despite its demise in the real world, it continues to find widespread use in Crosswordland.]
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| 27a | Collected university certificate // with marks on the side? (9) |
| 28a | Spain broadcasts // competitions (6) |
| 29a | Bound // to go without food with aim to restrict energy (8) |
Down
| 1d | Drink used /to be/ provided (8) |
"drink " = SUP
As a verb, sup[5] is a dated or Northern English term meaning to take (drink or liquid food) by sips or spoonfuls ⇒ (i)
As a noun, sup[5] means
As a verb, sup[5] is a dated or Northern English term meaning to take (drink or liquid food) by sips or spoonfuls ⇒ (i)
she supped up her soup delightedly; (ii)
he was supping straight from the bottle.
As a noun, sup[5] means
- a sip of liquid ⇒
he took another sup of wine
- (in Northern England or Ireland) an alcoholic drink ⇒
the latest sup from those blokes at the brewery
| 2d | Yankee catching fish? On the contrary // -- fibbing (5) |
Contrarian Convention
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| The phrase "on the contrary" tells the solver to reverse the logic or meaning of the statement immediately preceding it. Doing so leads one to reinterpret the wordplay as "fish catching Yankee". |
A ling[5] is any of a number of long-bodied edible marine fishes including a large eastern Atlantic fish of the genus Molva related to the cod, in particular Molva molva, which is of commercial importance.
| 3d | Vessel -- /and/ what might go under one (7) |
Scratching the Surface
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| The first thought to occur to me was CHARTER and, naturally, once it was embedded in my brain, I could not shake it despite being virtually certain that it was not correct. However, it took only a gentle nudge from my electronic aids to get me back on course. |
Coaster[10] is a British term for a vessel or trader engaged in coastal commerce.
| 4d | You and I picked up the Queen/'s/ jug (4) |
"the Queen " = ER [regnal cipher of Queen Elizabeth]
The regnal ciphers (monograms) of British monarchs are initials formed from the Latin version of their first name followed by either Rex or Regina (Latin for king or queen, respectively). Thus, the regnal cipher of Queen Elizabeth is ER[5] — from the Latin Elizabetha Regina.
* A cipher[5] (also cypher) is a monogram[5] or motif of two or more interwoven letters, typically a person's initials, used to identify a personal possession or as a logo.
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The regnal ciphers (monograms) of British monarchs are initials formed from the Latin version of their first name followed by either Rex or Regina (Latin for king or queen, respectively). Thus, the regnal cipher of Queen Elizabeth is ER[5] — from the Latin Elizabetha Regina.
* A cipher[5] (also cypher) is a monogram[5] or motif of two or more interwoven letters, typically a person's initials, used to identify a personal possession or as a logo.
hide
| 6d | Grasp each student in lift (7) |
"student " = L [driver under instruction]
The cryptic crossword convention of L meaning learner or student arises from the L-plate[7], a square plate bearing a sans-serif letter L, for learner, which must be affixed to the front and back of a vehicle in various jurisdictions (including the UK) if its driver is a learner under instruction.
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The cryptic crossword convention of L meaning learner or student arises from the L-plate[7], a square plate bearing a sans-serif letter L, for learner, which must be affixed to the front and back of a vehicle in various jurisdictions (including the UK) if its driver is a learner under instruction.
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| Automobile displaying an L-plate |
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Lift being a synonym of rise as in
Once it has gained sufficient speed, the aircraft will lift off the the ground.
Scratching the Surface
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| Is the surface reading suggestive of serial groping occurring in an elevator (lift[10] being the British* name for an elevator[10])? Or, perhaps, it is a reference to an instructor demonstrating ballet or figure skating moves. |
| 7d | Company wasted time and met // group for specific business (9) |
| 8d | Seeing // District Attorney can lead to grief (6) |
"District Attorney " = DA
| 10d | Misrepresenting Macron -- it/'s/ soppy (8) |
Soppy[10] is an informal British term* meaning silly or sentimental.
* However, while the term is regarded as British by one US dictionary[15], it appears not to be seen as such by others[3,11,12].
Scratching the Surface
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| Emmanuel Macron[5] is a French statesman who has been president of France since 2017. |
| 14d | Transporting // automobile by railway and paying only 50% (8) |
| 16d | Change // locomotives, leaving one delayed (9) |
| 17d | Took part in // American bike race and finished (8) |
"bike race " = TT [Tourist Trophy (motorcycle time trials)]
The Tourist Trophy[5] (abbreviation TT[5]) is a motorcycle-racing competition held annually on roads in the Isle of Man since 1907.
For many years, the Isle of Man TT[7] was the most prestigious motorcycle race in the world. The race is run in a time-trial format on public roads closed for racing. Since, in a time trial, each competitor races alone against the clock, the event could be described as a "series of races".
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The Tourist Trophy[5] (abbreviation TT[5]) is a motorcycle-racing competition held annually on roads in the Isle of Man since 1907.
For many years, the Isle of Man TT[7] was the most prestigious motorcycle race in the world. The race is run in a time-trial format on public roads closed for racing. Since, in a time trial, each competitor races alone against the clock, the event could be described as a "series of races".
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| 19d | Wild // flower around bottom of garden (7) |
| 20d | A tux he's ordered // to wear out (7) |
| 21d | Style // clashes, we're told (6) |
Style[10] (verb) is used in the sense of to make (written work) consistent or correct according to a printing or publishing style.
| 24d | Licked, not initially // chewed (5) |
| 25d | Information // a little upsetting (4) |
Key to Reference Sources:
[1] - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
[2] - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
[3] - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
[4] - TheFreeDictionarycom (Collins English Dictionary)
[5] - Lexico (formerly Oxford Dictionaries Online) (Oxford Dictionary of English)
[6] - Lexico (formerly Oxford Dictionaries Online) (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)
[15] - CollinsDictionary.com (Penguin Random House LLC/HarperCollins Publishers Ltd )
Signing off for today — Falcon
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