Everyman 3655

by

Mainly charades, anagrams and insertions this morning.  Which for an entry-level puzzle is just as it should be.

 

 

 

Abbreviations
cd  cryptic definition
dd  double definition
(xxxx)*  anagram
anagrind = anagram indicator
[x]  letter(s) removed

definitions are underlined

Across

1  Scan some card involved in method of finding data
RANDOM ACCESS
(SCAN SOME CARD)* with ‘involved’ as the anagrind.

9  Compel prisoners to join procession
CONSTRAIN
A charade of CONS and TRAIN.

10  Main artery, part of great road to the west
AORTA
Hidden reversed in greAT ROAd.  It certainly is the main artery, the one that takes blood from your heart and directs it around the rest of the body.

11  Secretary with variable income
PAY
A charade of PA for personal assistant or ‘secretary’ and Y for the mathematical ‘variable’.

12  A eulogy a man arranged for poet
MAYA ANGELOU
(A EULOGY A MAN)* for the American poet and civil rights activist.  She died a couple of years ago.

13  Mediterranean port tests limits of trade
TRIESTE
A charade of TRIES and TE for the outside letters of ‘trade’.

15  Before noon I moan, ordered to get cleaning fluid
AMMONIA
A charade of AM for ante-meridian or ‘before noon’ and (I MOAN)*

17  Worked together in trouble, back with struggling side
LIAISED
A charade of AIL reversed and (SIDE)*

19  Under half of energy used to fill tub
BENEATH
An insertion o f ENE[RGY] in BATH.

20  Subversive motive in chart
TREASONABLE
Another insertion: of REASON in TABLE.

22  Used to be necessary to know a subject
WAS
Hidden (‘necessary to’) in knoW A Subject.

23  Fine area, quiet one for ruminant
OKAPI
A charade of OK, A, P and I for the Central African ruminant.  It resembles a zebra, but is most closely related to the giraffe.

24  Lecture from ruler occupying total broadcast
TALKING-TO
An insertion of KING in (TOTAL)*

25  Failing doctor with desire reflected in notes
FOLDING MONEY
A charade of FOLDING for ‘failing’ in the business sense, MO for Medical Orderly or ‘doctor’ and YEN reversed.  A rather old-fashioned term, I fancy.

Down

1  Summary concerning surrender
RECAPITULATION
A charade of RE and CAPITULATION.

2  City with character portrayed in Oliver Twist
NANCY
The French city is also a character in Dickens’ novel.

3  Chooses to screen one film for hopeful people
OPTIMISTS
An insertion of I MIST in OPTS.

4  Break down in twisting lane, say
ANALYSE
(LANE SAY)*

5  Hypocrisy at heart of grand choral composition
CANTATA
A charade of CANT, AT and A for the middle letter of ‘grand’.

6  Good to follow inclination, having no time for jargon
SLANG
A charade of SLAN[T] and G.

7  Larks in a changing nation
SRI LANKA
(LARKS IN A)* for the country that was previously called Ceylon.

8  Understandable background for scientific study
NATURAL HISTORY
A charade of NATURAL and HISTORY.

14  Year’s aid distributed, presumably
I DARE SAY
(YEARS AID)*

16  Chap raised alarm over minute quirk
MANNERISM
A charade of MAN, SIREN reversed, and M.  ‘Over’ works because it’s a down clue.

18  Old-fashioned hugs about to be given
DONATED
An insertion of ON in DATED.  ‘The book’s about/on the Napoleonic Wars.’

19  Little left, nothing new, in ancient place
BABYLON
A charade of BABY, L, O and N.

21  County fielder endlessly on move
SLIGO
A charade of SLI[P] and GO for the Irish county.

22  Vehicle secured with load of silver
WAGON
An insertion of AG in WON.

Many thanks to Everyman for this morning’s entertainment.

16 comments on “Everyman 3655”

  1. Thanks, Pierre. This was a very breezy Everyman. I missed the hidden WAS but the answer was clear from the definition once I had the w crosser. Nice to see OKAPI make an appearance – an animal I’ve only ever encountered in crosswords.

  2. Thank you Everyman and Pierre.

    An enjoyable Everyman as usual. I thought FOLDING MONEY might be a new term for paper money since the new banknotes will be made of plastic, but on checking I find it is an informal term used especially in the USA.

    OKAPI is well known to me since it is the title of a magazine for secondary school children in France.

    Pierre, you have missed a bird, the maya bird of the Philippines – Maya Angelou would not have known that her nickname was also that of a bird, but it ties in with her book “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”, the caged bird being a symbol for the chained slave, an image she uses throughout her writings.

  3. Thanks, Cookie, that’s a really interesting link and explanation. You learn stuff on this site, don’t you?

  4. Hi Pierre,

    Just wondering who decided that Everyman is an entry-level puzzle for aspiring solvers ?. Is it just a training exercise ?. To me it’s enjoyable entertainment.

    Much easier than last week. Only had a slight problem with SRI LANKA – maybe it was the _R_ .

    An enjoyable solve which is to be expected. Thanks all (as someone used to say).

  5. Morning Davy.

    I think that Everyman has always been pitched as an ‘easier’, accessible puzzle. It’s one I always recommend to friends who are just getting into cryptics. Of course, more experienced solvers can enjoy it as well, so people of all standards can take pleasure from it.

  6. Another enjoyable Everyman, perhaps on the easier side? 25ac was a new term to me, we call it paper money round here. Pleased to finally get some use out of my Computer Science degree at 1ac. 🙂

  7. Again, a very nice approachable puzzle. I particularly liked AORTA, BABYLON and MAYA ANGELOU (a favourite person too).

    Thanks, Everyman and Pierre.

  10. Thanks to Pierre and everyone for your explanations.
    Did not know the poet.
    “Folding” was a term for paper money where I grew up.

  11. 17a. I don’t mean to be pedantic (stenographer: yes, she does) , but can anyone use “ail” in a sentence? I note that online dictionaries only use ails and ailing in their examples.

  12. Enjoyed this one after a week off – didnt really find it that easy compared to others who did.
    Few new words for me this week such as sligo and treasonable
    Thought 25 ac one of the cleverest clues.. had me stumped for ages.

  13. Everyman misunderstands the meaning of “random access”; this is a *computing* term relating to the way in which items are retrieved from the computer’s memory.

    The setter is confusing this idea with the phrase “random sample” which is a method of finding data.

  14. Enjoyed this but I wouldn’t describe it as easy nor suitable for a beginner. Took me an hour and a half and that’s long enough for me after a day and a half of bowls.
    Good puzzle.

  15. Back to back crossies for me. Did 3654 and then 3655. Only one I didn’t get was CANTATA. Didn’t know CANT meant hypocrisy. As others have mentioned nice to see OKAPI make an appearance.

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