A plain Azed this week, but one that I enjoyed.
It felt a bit like a home town crossword with the reference to Jedburgh. I have lived in Jedburgh for the past five years and have heard it referred to as JEDDART (24 across) only rarely, but the name is in the dictionary so it is fair game. . Far more common, almost on a daily basis, I hear the alternative spelling of JETHART.
There were a couple of clues today where there were three ways to get the entry (two wordplays and one definition or perhaps two definitions and one wordplay). These were SLOB (7 across) and STOVE (7 down).
As ever, one has to admire the preciseness of cluing leading to words that one has probably never heard of before. I often wonder how many of the entries Azed actually knows before he compiles the crossword. I suspect to create 2,253 to date he must have an enormous personal vocabulary.
However there are always enough well known words to help solvers get a toehold in the grid and build from there. My first ones in were all acrosses SLOB, IN SITU, GEMOT and HOOTNANNIE. I still like to go through all the clues once before looking at the crossing letters. I doubt if it is the most effective method of solving, but it is satisfying to solve clues cold.
| Across | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
|
1
|
Graduate, spotty, one influencing group adversely (8, 2 words)
|
BA (Bachelor of Arts; graduate) + DAPPLE (marked with spots; spotty)
|
BAD APPLE (a person likely to have a negative influence on others in a group)
|
| 7 | Lout in Oslo bar knocking back strong drink (4) |
SLOB (hidden word in [in] OSLO BAR) and BOLS (liqueur; strong drink) reversed (knocking back)’ SLOB< |
SLOB (lout) |
|
10
|
Provincial governor in trouble restraining impetuousness a little (10)
|
ADO (trouble) containing (restraining) (ELAN [impetuousness] + TAD [a little]) AD (ELAN TAD) O |
ADELANTADO (provincial governor [Spanish])
|
|
11
|
With over 1,024 words, it’s hardly worth reading (4)
|
CUM (combined with) reversed (over) + K (unit of 1024 words) MUC< K |
MUCK (rubbishy reading matter)
|
|
12
|
Relocated Malay Muslims, gloomy away from their base (5)
|
MOROSE (gloomy) excluding (away from) the last letter (their base) E
|
MOROS (members of any of the tribes of Muslim Malays in the Philippine islands [relocated])
|
|
14
|
Glühwein left in bedroom container (6)
|
L (left) contained in (in) POTTY (chamberpot [bedroom container]) P (L) OTTY |
PLOTTY (a spiced hot drink such as mulled wine [Glühwein is a German mulled wine])
|
|
15
|
They were worthless in having been despatched by spears (6)
|
JAVELINS (light spears) excluding (having been despatched) IN
|
JAVELS (worthless fellows)
|
|
16
|
Fuss north of the border, that is after bed is denied to Scottish (7)
|
SCOTTISH excluding (having been denied) COT (bed) + IE (id east; that is)
|
STISHIE (Scottish [north of the border] word for fuss)
|
|
18
|
Vagrant priest or ragged vicar-poet, one yielding to English (9)
|
Anagram of (ragged) VICAR-POET with I replaced by [yielding to] E (English) PATERCOVE* |
PATERCOVE (patrico; hedge-priest; disreputable or vagrant priest)
|
|
19
|
Like old-fashioned squire making money in a swindle with crooked earl (9)
|
(M [money] contained in [in] [A + RIG {swindle}]) + an anagram of (crooked) EARL A R (M) IG ERAL* |
ARMIGERAL (of a person entitled to a coat of arms; an esquire)
|
|
24
|
Junior fed with mythological tales on Troy in Borders town (7)
|
(JR [junior] containing [fed with] EDDA [the name of two Scandinavian books, the Elder EDDA, a collection of ancient mythological and heroic songs {9th – 11th century or earlier}, and the Younger or Prose EDDA, by Snorri Sturluson {circa.1230}; mythological stories, poetics and prosody) + T (troy weight) J (EDDA) R T |
JEDDART (Jedburgh, Scottish Borders town)
|
|
25
|
Wearing untidy suit, not having spread (worryingly) (6, 2 words)
|
IN (wearing) + an anagram of (untidy) SUIT IN SITU* |
IN SITU (in this context, a medical term [of a cancer {worryingly}] not having undergone metastasis to invade surrounding tissue [not having spread])
|
|
26
|
What’ll reverse this rocky upheaval? Rush to help (6)
|
(RIP [rush] + AID [help]) all reversed (reverse) (DIA PIR)< |
DIAPIR (an anticlinal fold in which the overlying rock has been pierced by material from beneath; rocky upheaval)
|
|
28
|
Assembly in honour of Maggie in recess (5)
|
(TO [in honour of] + MEG [Margaret; Maggie]) all reversed (in recess) (GEM OT)< |
GEMOT (meeting or assembly)
|
|
29
|
Private Eye admits 50% ad lib (4)
|
SPY (secret agent; private eye) containing (admits) A (one letter of the two letter [50%] word AD) SP (A) Y |
SPAY (lib2 in Chambers is defined as ‘to geld’, similar to the definition of spay [to remove or destroy the ovaries])
|
|
30
|
Hot on dancing girl in folk party (10)
|
Anagram of (dancing) HOT ON + ANNIE (girl’s name) HOOTN* ANNIE |
HOOTNANNIE (a party with folk-singing and sometimes dancing, especially an informal concert with folk music)
|
|
31
|
Opuntia? it might be this, mashed with poi (4)
|
TUNA anagrammed (mashed) with POI can form the word OPUNTIA*
|
TUNA (prickly pear; OPUNTIA is a plant of the prickly pear genus))
|
|
32
|
Struggling rep getting stretched put on American show (8)
|
Anagram of (struggling) REP + TENSE (getting stretched) PRE* TENSE |
PRETENSE (American spelling of PRETENCE [to put on a false show])
|
| Down | |||
| No. | Clue | Wordplay | Entry |
|
1
|
Worthless piano making a booming sound (4)
|
BUM (worthless) + P (piano)
|
BUMP (make a heavy or loud noise; make a booming sound)
|
|
2
|
Mature eyes of old taking in king born out of wedlock? (10)
|
ADULT (mature) + (EINE [obsolete {of old} word for eyes] containing [taking in] R [Rex; king]) ADULT E (R) INE |
ADULTERINE (offspring of adultery; born out of wedlock)
|
|
3
|
Thief in a college dividing thing of little value (6)
|
(A + C [college]) contained in (dividing) DOIT (thing of little value) D (A C) OIT |
DACOIT (one of a gang of robbers in India and Burma)
|
|
4
|
Gage path to be fashioned where slane is used? (8)
|
Anagram of (to be fashioned) GAGE PATH PEAT-HAGG* |
PEATHAGG (broken ground in a PEAT bog; possibly created by use of a slane [turf-cutting tool])
|
|
5
|
Deposit in mine to behave as specified (6, 2 words)
|
LAY (deposit) contained in (in) PIT (mine) P (LAY) IT |
PLAY IT (to behave in or manage a particular situation in a stated way, as in PLAY IT cool)
|
|
6
|
Judge interrupting liberal primate lost rag (5)
|
J (judge) contained in (interrupting) (L [Liberal] + APE [primate]) L AP (J) E |
LAPJE (obsolete [lost] word for a piece of cloth or rag)
|
|
7
|
Former tennis star broke cooker (5)
|
STOVE (broke) OR STOVE (cooker) |
STOVE (reference Betty STOVE [1945 – date], Dutch tennis player who reached the final of Wimbledon in 1977) triple definition
|
|
8
|
Ordeal getting lost somewhere in Texas (6)
|
Anagram of (getting lost) ORDEAL LAREDO* |
LAREDO (city in Texas)
|
|
9
|
Second to none in domineering? Stasi man possibly comes in first (8)
|
OSSI (a citizen of the former German Democratic Republic (East Germany) before reunification with the Federal Republic in 1990; Many East Germans worked for the Stasi [secret police within East Germany]) contained in (comes in) BEST (first) B (OSSI) EST |
BOSSIEST (most domineering)
|
|
13
|
No royalists enjoy life with king entering as No 1 swaggeringly (10)
|
(LIVE [enjoy life] + R [Rex; king]) contained in (entering) an anagram of (swaggeringly) AS NO I (1) O (LIVE R) IANS* |
OLIVERIANS (supporters of OLIVER Cromwell; anti royalists)
|
|
16
|
It involves men-of-war, each strong, coming into view (8)
|
(EA [each] + F [forte; strong]) contained in (coming into) SIGHT (view) S (EA F) IGHT |
SEAFIGHT (a battle that could involve men-of-war [warships])
|
|
17
|
Inclined to admit as true pass should go inside (8)
|
DIE (pass [away]) contained in (should go inside) GRANT (admit as true) GRA (DIE) NT |
GRADIENT (rising or falling by degrees; inclined)
|
|
20
|
Wild sheep, mother linked with offspring (6)
|
MUM (mother) overlapping (linked with) SON (offspring) (MU (S M) ON) |
MUSMON (moufflon [wild sheep of the mountains of Corsica])
|
|
21
|
Tidy unit, freshly decorated (6)
|
RED (variant spelling of REDD [to make tidy]) + ONE (unit)
|
REDONE (freshly redecorated)
|
|
22
|
It’s maybe in the north, between Shap and Penrith (6)
|
HAPPEN (hidden word in [between] SHAP PENRITH)
|
HAPPEN (word used to mean ‘perhaps’ in the North of England, location of Shap and Penrith)
|
|
23
|
Archaic poem on one round old vase (5)
|
(DIT [archaic word for poem] + A [one]) containing (round) O (old) DI (O) T A |
DIOTA (two handled ancient vase)
|
|
24
|
Climb using clips, end of spring excepted – army regulation (5)
|
JUMP (spring) excluding [excepted] the final letter [end of] P + AR (Army Regulations)
|
JUMAR (climb using clips which grips the rope when weight is applied, and run freely along the rope when the weight is taken off)
|
|
27
|
Year up, Canadian province changes to special winter coat (4)
|
YR (year) reversed (up; down clue) + PE (Prince Edward Island; Canadian Province) RY< PE |
RYPE (ptarmigan [a mountain-dwelling species of grouse (Lagopus mutus), which turns white in winter; changes to special winter coat])
|
At 27, I was surprised to find a noun, RYPE, defined by a verb phrase “changes to special winter coat”. That does not seem to comply with Azed’s usual austere standards.
I was advised by a long-standing and highly successful Azed competitor that the use of a such phrase has been explained and defended from time to time in the slips. From memory they tended to be more usually defining human actors in some capacity or another, such as a tradesman or the like.