Comments on: Guardian 25,824 – Chifonie

By: Vin

Vin — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 10:30:45 +0000

Re “ought” @ 2, 4 and 9, Dickens’s Mr. Micawber famously says: “Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen pounds nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.”

I thought this was a very easy puzzle, except for LENDER – because I couldn’t think what the beheaded word could be – and CALL (just no idea). Enjoyed it, though.

By: Paul B

Paul B — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 00:33:09 +0000

And so you should: slender = meagre, and that’s poor in anyone’s language.

By: RCWhiting

RCWhiting — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 23:38:38 +0000

OK I give in.

By: Brendan (not that one)

Brendan (not that one) — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 23:01:29 +0000

Well!!! Two cracking crosswords, one even nominated for crossword of the year followed by this.

Must be the easiest crossword of the year. Not expected on a Thursday.

Thanks to Manehi.

P.S. Accidentally posted this om Bonxie’s blog!! Whooops

By: Sil van den Hoek

Sil van den Hoek — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 23:00:06 +0000

RCW @21:
The ODE gives for ‘slender’ as its second definition: ‘barely sufficient in amount or basis’ plus as an example ‘people of slender means’.
I think that comes close enough.
Somewhere else I saw ‘slender wages’.

By: muffin

muffin — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 19:30:28 +0000

I agree, izzythedram – not as close as it might be.

By: izzythedram

izzythedram — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 19:23:41 +0000

OK thank you, Muffin, I see, though I don’t really think that a germ is a shoot, or a shoot a germ in any way, maybe a it is a bud
…..anyway I get the idea, thanks.

By: RCWhiting

RCWhiting — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 19:21:46 +0000

Thanks for trying but I don’t think anybody has convinced me that slender = poor.
In all the usages above slender has its usual meaning ie slim, thin.
We have slim chance, slim pickings. Poor is a much wider adjective which can be just ‘not very much’ of anything of which I suppose width might be one but it is extremely vague.
(I know I like vague, but there must be limits!)
I do agree with those who highly rated ‘call’.

By: Giovanna

Giovanna — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 18:30:18 +0000

Thanks, Chifonie and manehi.

This was just the ticket after a day’s shopping and secret present-wrapping!

I thought of RCW, too!

Giovanna x

By: PeterO

PeterO — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 17:42:31 +0000

Trailman @14

It is standard practice to refer to a player in an orchestra by the name of their instrument – first violin etc.