Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29646 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Saturday, April 10, 2021 | |
Setter
Chris Lancaster (Telegraph Puzzles Editor) | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29646 – Hints]Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29646 – Review] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
crypticsue (Hints)Rahmat Ali (Review) | |
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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Notes
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As this was a Saturday "Prize Puzzle" in Britain, there are two entries related to it on Big Dave's Crossword Blog — the first, posted on the date of publication, contains hints for selected clues while the second is a full review issued following the entry deadline for the contest. The vast majority of reader comments will generally be found attached to the "hints" posting with a minimal number — if any — accompanying the full review.
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Introduction
With several instances of what I regard to be very stretched synonyms, this puzzle definitely calls for lateral thinking.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 | Wet bear hid nuts /for/ food (5,5) |
| 6a | Annoy leaving parking // place (4) |
| 9a | Name // European plant in allotment (10) |
"European " = E [as in E number]
E[1,2] is the abbreviation for European (as in E number*).
* An E number[1,4,10,14] (or E-number[2,5]) is any of various identification codes required by EU law, consisting of the letter E (for European) followed by a number, that are used to denote food additives such as colourings and preservatives (but excluding flavourings) that have been approved by the European Union.
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E[1,2] is the abbreviation for European (as in E number*).
* An E number[1,4,10,14] (or E-number[2,5]) is any of various identification codes required by EU law, consisting of the letter E (for European) followed by a number, that are used to denote food additives such as colourings and preservatives (but excluding flavourings) that have been approved by the European Union.
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Scratching the Surface
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| In the surface reading, allotment[5] is used in the sense of a British term for a plot of land rented by an individual for growing vegetables or flowers. This term is also used in Canada — at least in Ottawa — although one would be more apt to hear the longer version of the name, allotment garden[7]. |
| 10a | Member/'s/ loveless dance (4) |
"love " = O [nil score in tennis]
In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒
Although folk etymology has connected the word with French l'oeuf 'egg', from the resemblance in shape between an egg and a zero, the term apparently comes from the phrase play for love (i.e. the love of the game, not for money).
hide
In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒
love fifteen. The resemblance of a zero written as a numeral (0) to the letter O leads to the cryptic crossword convention of the word "love" being used to clue this letter.
Although folk etymology has connected the word with French l'oeuf 'egg', from the resemblance in shape between an egg and a zero, the term apparently comes from the phrase play for love (i.e. the love of the game, not for money).
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The limbo[5] is a West Indian dance in which the dancer bends backward to pass under a horizontal bar that is progressively lowered to a position just above the ground.
| 12a | Place to sleep /in/ empty room after party (4) |
"party " = DO
Do[5,12] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[12] term* for a party or other social event ⇒
* Although one US dictionary (Webster’s New World College Dictionary[12]) supports the contention by Lexico (Oxford Dictionary of English)[5] that this usage is at least chiefly British, two other US dictionaries[3,11] do not.
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Do[5,12] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[12] term* for a party or other social event ⇒
the soccer club Christmas do.
* Although one US dictionary (Webster’s New World College Dictionary[12]) supports the contention by Lexico (Oxford Dictionary of English)[5] that this usage is at least chiefly British, two other US dictionaries[3,11] do not.
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| 13a | Close friend // certain East will go for ace (9) |
Scratching the Surface
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| The surface reading likely alludes to play in the card game bridge where North[5] (N) and South[5] (S) comprise one partnership and play against East[5] (E) and West[5] (W) who form the other partnership. |
| 15a | Druidess occasionally left mixture of gin /and/ wine (8) |
Riesling[5] is a dry white wine made from the Riesling grape, a variety of wine grape grown in Germany, Austria, and elsewhere.
| 16a | Seem confused about church // plan (6) |
| 18a | Runners on this // small step (6) |
Here and There
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| In North America, sledge[1,2,3,4,5,10,11,12,14]
would clearly be considered to be a less commonly — perhaps even rarely — used name for a sled[1,2,3,4,5,10,11,12,14]
while, in the UK, the situation would appear to be reversed*. |
| 20a | Potter's friend // mostly solitary and single (8) |
Solitary[5] is used as a noun meaning a recluse or hermit ⇒
he had something of the solitary about him.
Hermione Granger[7] is a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. She first appears in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone as a new student on her way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry where Harry Potter and his friend Ron Weasley are students. After Harry and Ron save her from a mountain troll, she becomes best friends with them and often uses her quick wit, deft recall, and encyclopaedic knowledge to lend aid in dire situations.
| 23a | See pin has damaged // letter (9) |
Epistle to the Ephesians[5] (commonly referred to as Ephesians) is a book of the New Testament ascribed to St Paul consisting of an epistle to the Church at Ephesus.
| 24a | Flatter // fizzy drinks for the audience (4) |
| 26a | Greek character tense /and/ strained (4) |
Tau[5] is the nineteenth letter of the Greek alphabet (Τ, τ).
| 27a | Make first // monk that is welcoming sit back (10) |
A prior[10] is a monk ranking immediately below an abbot. A prior may serve as the head of a small monastery (which would be known as a priory[5]) or as the deputy head of a large monastery (which would be known as an abbey and be led by an abbot).
| 28a | Charge // judge (4) |
| 29a | Oppose // token performance (10) |
Down
| 1d | Part of speech /that's/ hummed out loud (4) |
| 2d | Press // learning to support naughty child (7) |
| 3d | Bug lover /with/ awkward set-to looming (12) |
| 4d | Brett, Nick and René all discovered time /is/ backward (8) |
| 5d | Number // initially applauded on stage (6) |
| 7d | Take off // some Chinese tat I'm ironing when upset (7) |
Scratching the Surface
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Tat[5] is an informal British term for tasteless or shoddy clothes, jewellery, or ornaments ⇒ the place was decorated with all manner of gaudy tat. |
| 8d | Sour // beer found in Eastern Mediterranean (10) |
Bitter[5] is a British name for beer that is strongly flavoured with hops and has a bitter taste ⇒ (i)
a pint of bitter; (ii)
the company brews a range of bitters.
The Med[5] is an informal, British name for the Mediterranean Sea.
| 11d | Limit // short show with clowns, medium and writer (12) |
| 14d | Fortune-hunter // in favour of area seizing power (10) |
| 17d | Stirring part of service (8) |
Creating a Stir
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This type of service didn't come readily to mind. Once I realized what
the clue is referring to, I began to wonder if this item is really
considered to be part of the service. A survey of several British and US
dictionaries shows that teaspoons are either not specifically mentioned
in the definition of tea service or, in most cases, either implicitly or explicitly excluded. (show more )
British dictionaries:
hide However, spoons could seemingly be included in the definition found in Wikipedia which defines a tea set or tea service[7] is a collection of matching teaware and related utensils used in the preparation and serving of tea. The traditional components of a tea set may vary between societies and cultures. Finally, 18th century Swiss painter Jean-Étienne Liotard (1702–1789) appears to have thought the spoons should be included:
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| 19d | Tax // producer of emissions (7) |
| 21d | Something blown // from retro car in accident (7) |
An ocarina[10] is an egg-shaped wind instrument with a protruding mouthpiece and six to eight finger holes, producing an almost pure tone.
| 22d | Shock arrangement? (6) |
| 25d | Hurry, // hide! (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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