Puzzle at a Glance
| |
|---|---|
Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29636 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Tuesday, March 30, 2021 | |
Setter
Unknown | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29636]
| |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Mr K | |
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
| |
Introduction
I whizzed through most of this until I got to the southwest corner where a trio of clues put up fierce resistance. I thought I was going to need recourse to electronic help but in a sudden flash of inspiration the three holdouts were vanquished.I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.
Big Dave's Site Down
6:30 pm EDT: Big Dave's Crossword Blog has been down since early this morning (Ottawa time). Around 9:30 am EDT, Big Dave tweeted "There is a problem with the site which is currently being investigated – watch this space!".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 | Aware // clubs are almost packed (7) |
| 5a | Profit // for returning salesmen (7) |
| 9a | Anxious // period guarding the Queen? On the contrary (5) |
"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.
hide
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
| 10a | Place for Holy Communion // had claret prepared (9) |
| 11a | Leave // for each expedition (10) |
| 12a | City name that is encapsulating 'charming' primarily (4) |
As Mr K points out in his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, the entire clue works as the definition (something that had not occurred to me) in which the wordplay is embedded.
Nice[5] is a resort city on the French Riviera, near the border with Italy.
| 14a | The state of being out of control? (12) |
| 18a | Gran turned me off // thong? (12) |
Scratching the Surface
| |
|---|---|
| Gran[5] is an informal British term* for one's grandmother. * Seems obvious but the term is not found in most of my US dictionaries. |
| 21a | Proper // piece of fishing equipment, we're told (4) |
| 22a | If PM lied, is having a reshuffle // made more understandable? (10) |
| 25a | Not confident // about following United Nations volunteers in Ireland (9) |
"volunteers " = TA [Territorial Army]
Erin[5] is an archaic or literary name for Ireland.
| 26a | Perfect // international trade (5) |
| 27a | Fail to take on board marine's // complaint (7) |
| 28a | Thrashings // concealed by popular heads of grammar schools (7) |
Down
| 1d | Rogues // steal shilling (6) |
In the British currency system used prior to the introduction of the current decimal currency system in 1971, a shilling[5] (abbreviation s[5]) was a coin and monetary unit equal to one twentieth of a pound or twelve pence.
| 2d | Consider // wine, eating fish (6) |
The gar[2] (another name* for garfish[2,10] or garpike[2,10]) is a slim fast-swimming fish with a long beak-like mouth containing many sharp teeth.
* It seems that, depending on species and location, various European, North American and Central American fish go by one or the other or all of these names.
| 3d | Craft is for green // aliens (10) |
| 4d | Wants // trousers but no top (5) |
| 5d | Favourite job? Er ... /producing/ oil (9) |
| 6d | Writer initially lost following old motorway // sign (4) |
"writer " = PEN
The use of the word "writer" to clue PEN is likely to be slightly more cryptic to the Brits than it is to us on this side of the pond. British solvers will see "pen" as being a writing implement rather than the person wielding that implement.
In addition to defining pen[3,11] as a writing implement, North American dictionaries also define it as a writer or an author ⇒
hide
The use of the word "writer" to clue PEN is likely to be slightly more cryptic to the Brits than it is to us on this side of the pond. British solvers will see "pen" as being a writing implement rather than the person wielding that implement.
In addition to defining pen[3,11] as a writing implement, North American dictionaries also define it as a writer or an author ⇒
a hired pen, British dictionaries do not list this meaning although they do show pen[2,4] (or the pen[5,10]) as symbolically representing writing as an occupation (a sense of the word not found in US dictionaries).
hide
"old " = O [linguistics]
In linguistics, O[12] is the abbreviation for Old ⇒ (i)
However, a second entry from this same source shows o (lower case) meaning old (not capitalized) suggesting that the use of this abbreviation may not necessarily be confined to the field of linguistics.
Another possibility arises from the British abbreviation OAP[5] standing for old-age pensioner.
hide
In linguistics, O[12] is the abbreviation for Old ⇒ (i)
OFr[Old French]; (ii)
OE[Old English].
However, a second entry from this same source shows o (lower case) meaning old (not capitalized) suggesting that the use of this abbreviation may not necessarily be confined to the field of linguistics.
Another possibility arises from the British abbreviation OAP[5] standing for old-age pensioner.
hide
Motorway[2,5] (abbreviation M[5]) is a British, Australian, and New Zealand term for a dual-carriageway road [divided highway] designed for fast-moving traffic, especially one with three lanes per carriageway [direction of travel] and limited access and exit points [controlled access].
| 7d | Shares // drink with son after no one turned up (8) |
| 8d | Liberated // doctor lived here having left hospital (8) |
| 13d | Criminal denied it if // recognised (10) |
| 15d | Kill // time and give orders heartlessly (9) |
| 16d | Guaranteed to take off last chunky // skirt (8) |
| 17d | A trip's bringing in five // loans (8) |
| 19d | Admit defeat: // I have to cut alcohol (4,2) |
| 20d | A student wearing earring upset // grown-ups (6) |
"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.
hide
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.
 |
| Automobile displaying an L-plate |
hide
| 23d | Judy's husband/'s/ magazine (5) |
Punch and Judy[5] is an English puppet show presented on the miniature stage of a tall collapsible booth traditionally covered with striped canvas. The show was probably introduced from the Continent in the 17th century. Punch is on the manipulator's right hand, remaining on stage all the time, while the left hand provides a series of characters—baby, wife (Judy), priest, doctor, policeman, hangman—for him to nag, beat, and finally kill.
Punch, or The London Charivari[7] (commonly known as Punch) was a British weekly magazine of humour and satire established in 1841. Historically, it was most influential in the 1840s and 1850s, when it helped to coin the term "cartoon" in its modern sense as a humorous illustration. After the 1940s, when its circulation peaked, it went into a long decline, closing in 1992. It was revived in 1996, but closed again in 2002.
| 24d | Somewhat major carnivore (4) |
This is an &lit. clue[7] (or, as some prefer to call it, all-in-one clue), a clue in which the entire clue is both wordplay and definition.
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
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.