A fairly straightforward puzzle this week by the looks of it. Six extra words to be found in the clues which would give an instruction.
I’ve struggled with some of MynoT’s puzzles before, but this one was on the easy side. It all came together pretty quickly, with only one slight detour. That was in 4ac Erect monument irregularly, where I thought that the extra word was men, and the clue should read Erect monut irregularly. Of course, ‘monut’ doesn’t appear to be a word, at least not in English. It was only later, when I’d sussed out the other extra words that I realised that this clue didn’t have an extra word. Not that made me happy with it (see comment at 4dn below).
So, the extra words in six clues read Join country’s letters showing flag shape. My first instinct was to look at all the letters in COUNTRY … but that seemed to be nearly the whole grid. However, it did make me notice that there were no Es there (well, there was one). Nor, for that matter, were there any As … except one!
If you’ve done any pub quizzes, you’ve probably come across a picture round consisting of questions about flags. Luckily I have, and it didn’t take long to remember that Nepal has the oddest of the lot. It’s in the shape of … well, just join up the solitary N, E, P, A and L in the grid and you’ll find out.
A really nice puzzle from MynoT, as indeed all of his are.
Legend:
Definition in clue
xxx = extra word in clues
ABC* = anagram
ABC< = reversal
abCDef = hidden
| ACROSS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No | Entry | Extra Words |
Clue and Explanation |
| 1 | BOSOMY | Join | Join well-endowed wild boys to secure honour (6) BOYS* around OM (honour, Order of Merit) |
| 5 | SCISSORS | Stokes is cross struggling in hold (8) S (stokes) + (IS CROSS)* |
|
| 11 | COMO | Firm second in Italian city (4) CO (firm) MO (second, ie moment) |
|
| 13 | SKIDOO | Child in very good old RV (6) KID (child) in SO (very good) + O (old); RV = recreational vehicle |
|
| 14 | ROOF | Jumper’s forte to be top (4) ROO (jumper) + F (forte) |
|
| 15 | ROOTKIT | Support Christopher’s secretive programme (7) ROOT (support) + KIT (Christopher, short form) |
|
| 16 | CROWN | American Indian’s new cap (5) CROW (American Indian) + N (new) |
|
| 17 | STOW | Pack special fibres (4) S (special) + TOW (fibres) |
|
| 19 | RITT | Slowing down to scratch in Perth (4) RIT (slowing down, ie ritardando) + T (to) |
|
| 20 | MISKITO | Central Americans omit ski at sea (7) (OMIT SKI)* |
|
| 21 | RUSH | Hurry to stalk (4) 2 meanings |
|
| 22 | SHOOK | Second attraction is set of parts (5) S (second) + HOOK (attraction) |
|
| 23 | HOST | One who invites headless spectre (4) [G]HOST (spectre, headless) |
|
| 25 | SCROOP | Somewhere a scraping noise that is lousy returns (6) SC (that is) + POOR< (lousy) |
|
| 27 | THEISM | country’s | End of tolerance in this country’s mass belief (6) E (end of tolerancE) in THIS + M (mass) |
| 29 | DSOS | Orders crosses (4) 2 meanings (DSOs and DSOS) |
|
| 31 | SMOGS | Such mixtures start to slay cats (5) S (start to Slay) + MOGS (cats) |
|
| 34 | GRIM | Stern with good edge (4) G (good) + RIM (edge) |
|
| 36 | THRIFTY | letters | Gap in your providing letters for the future (7) RIFT (gap) in THY (your) |
| 37 | UMBO | Boss beheaded 33 (4) [G]UMBO (33dn, beheaded) |
|
| 40 | CORM | Storage structure holding gold in outskirts of Cheltenham (4) OR (gold) in CM (outskirts of CheltenhaM) |
|
| 41 | ARCHY | Cockroach could be chary (5) CHARY* |
|
| 42 | OCTUORS | Packs of eight alter our cost (7) (OUR COST)* |
|
| 43 | GOOR | After game soldiers get sugar (4) GO (game) + OR (soldiers) |
|
| 44 | THYMUS | showing | Herb‘s for showing sweetbread, perhaps (6) 2 meanings |
| 45 | SORB | Brothers return for rowanberry (4) BROS< (brothers) |
|
| 46 | HUMORIST | Wag‘s inarticulate murmur: “Men first” (8) HUM (inarticulate murmur) + OR (men) + IST (first, ie 1st) |
|
| 47 | COHORT | Squad of soldiers using mortar with time for a large number (6) COHORN (mortar) with T (time) replacing N (large number) |
|
| DOWN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No | Entry | Extra Words |
Clue and Explanation |
| 1 | BIRCH ROD | Switch flyer round Switzerland and Romania (8) BIRD (flyer) round CH (Switzerland) RO (Romania); should be annotated as (8, two words) |
|
| 2 | ODOROUS | flag | Smelly old bishop concealing alternative American flag (7) ODO (old bishop) concealing OR (alternative) + US (American) |
| 3 | STOORS | Battles of once great Saracens’ leader (6) STOOR (great, obsolete) + S (Saracens’ leader) |
|
| 4 | MOUNT | Erect monument irregularly (5) MOnUmeNT irregulary; I’m not 100% sure of this |
|
| 5 | SOFT TOP | Car found South of the summit (7, two words) S (south) OF T (the) TOP (summit) |
|
| 6 | CHROMO | Room with central Heating spoilt print (6) (ROOM CH (central heating))* |
|
| 7 | SKOOSHES | Man’s following appeal for help about knockout fizzy drinks (8) HE’S (man’s) after SOS (appeal for help) about KO (knockout) |
|
| 8 | SITH | Time to brood on the end of Earth (4) SIT (brood) + H (end of eartH) |
|
| 9 | ROISTS | Swaggers when one’s surrounded by corruption and sin, but not at home (6) I’S (one’s) surrounded by ROT (corruption) + SIN – IN (at home) |
|
| 10 | SOTHO | Language group in South not acceptable to orientals at first (5) SOUTH – U (acceptable) + O (Orientals at first) |
|
| 12 | MUSTH | Heat new wine with heroin (5) MUST (new wine) + H (heroin) |
|
| 18 | BIOS | For short life-stories put nothing in twice (4) O (nothing) in BIS (twice) |
|
| 22 | SOY FLOUR | For lousy cooked pancakes use this (8, two words) (FOR LOUSY)* |
|
| 24 | TOMMYROT | Soldier’s course not finished? Nonsense (8) TOMMY (soldier) ROT[A] (course, not finished) |
|
| 26 | CORF | shape | Shape cage for lobsters in leather substitute but not in the morning (4) CORFAM (leather substitute) – AM (in the morning) |
| 27 | TOURIST | Traveller to ancient city is on time (7) TO + UR (ancient city) + IS + T (time) |
|
| 28 | MIDHOUR | Doctor visiting voluptuous woman gets iodine raised in the intervening time (7) MD (doctor) HOURI (voluptuous woman) with I (iodine) raised |
|
| 30 | SHOCHU | Rough spirit finds house and church in outskirts of Shantou (6) HO (house) CH (church) in SO (outskirts of ShantoU) |
|
| 32 | MYOSIS | My old sibling has abnormal contraction (6) MY + O (old) SIS (sibling) |
|
| 33 | GUMBO | Lady’s fingers stick to man (5) GUM (stick) + BO (man) |
|
| 35 | ROCOCO | Grotesque starts to reading one’s palm (6) RO (starts to Reading One) + COCO (palm) |
|
| 36 | TOOTH | It projects cutting into others (5) in inTO OTHers |
|
| 38 | MACRO | Crashed car (in second) in instruction (5) CAR* in MO (second) |
|
| 39 | SUMO | God doesn’t start to return for sport (4) [C]OMUS< or [M]OMUS< (god, without start) |
|
Those of you who saw my blog earlier today may have wondered why I drew the outline of the Nepalese flag in green. The same thought crossed my mind just now! The revised animation reveals all.
Dave.