Serpent’s latest cruciverbal challenge is occupying the Thursday slot this week.
Compared with the last Serpent puzzle that I blogged on a Thursday about a month ago, I found this one a tad easier but no less entertaining. I found that the NE and SE quadrants offered a way into the puzzle, with the NW corner being the most stubbornly resistant to my solving abilities.
On the individual clues, I particularly liked the subtraction in the wordplay of 17/27; and the smooth surfaces and/or misdirection in 2, 5, 10 and 14. The plant at 1D was new to me, as was the use of “squint” as an adjective in the wordplay at 19.
Incidentally, I would appreciation confirmation (or otherwise) of my parsing of 1D. What’s more, 8 took me a long time to parse, but I think that I got there in the end.
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in multiple-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 01 | COMPULSION | Urge // use of force
Double definition, with “urge” also to be read as a noun |
| 06 | SHOW | Reveal // pretence
Double definition |
| 09 | PLUMP | Quietly put up with bearing additional weight
P (=quietly, i.e. piano) + LUMP (=put up with, as in like it or lump it) |
| 10 | OBSESSION | Complex situation doesn’t require judge sitting in court
<j>OB (=situation, position; “doesn’t require judge (=J)” means letter “j” is dropped) + SESSION (=sitting in court, as a noun); the Oedipus Complex and the Electra Complex could be described as obsessions |
| 12 | DUNGEON | Waste a lot of time in prison
DUNG (=waste, excrement) + EON (=lot of time) |
| 13 | AWNING | It blocks the sun after start of daybreak
<d>AWNING (=daybreak); “after start of” means first letter should be overlooked |
| 15 | DARKENING | Creating gloom as shocking constraint is imposed on understanding
KEN (=understanding) in DARING (=shocking, as adjective) |
| 17/27 | WATER DOWN | Bowdlerise adventure story without craft
WATER<ship> DOWN (=adventure story, by Richard Adams); “without craft (=ship)” means letters “ship” are dropped |
| 18 | RHYME | Frost said this contributed to his art
Homophone (“said’) of “rime” (=frost); the reference is presumably to US poet Robert Frost (1874-1963) |
| 20 | ARTICHOKE | Lorry he’s permitted to enter plant
ARTIC (=lorry) + [OK (=permitted) in HE] |
| 22 | JUST SO | Precisely tilts to move ball to the right
JOUSTS (=tilts); “to move ball (=O) to the right” means (here) that letter “o” moves to the end of the word |
| 23 | DEBITED | Boring part in document’s charged account
BIT (=”boring” part, i.e. of drill) in DEED (=document) |
| 25 | BANK DRAFT | Instruction to pay off rank bad business publication
*(RANK BAD) + FT (=business publication, i.e. Financial Times); “off” is anagram indicator |
| 26 | ADORE | Party backs leader in approving faith-based teaching and worship
A<pproving> (“leader in” means first letter only) + DO (=party) + R.E. (=faith-based teaching, i.e. Religious Education) |
| 28 | CANDIDATES | Sweet-sounding fruit from which one is picked
Homophone (“-sounding”) of “candy (=sweet)” + DATES (=fruit) |
| Down | ||
| 01 | CUPID’S DART | What one might get in bed is // cause of infatuation
Cryptic double definition: cupid’s dart is a herbaceous plant of the daisy family, hence “in (flower) bed”; a dart fired from Cupid’s bow is a “cause of infatuation” |
| 02 | MOURNER | Keener to jog more and run around inside
*(RUN) in *(MORE); “jog” and “around” are both anagram indicators; to “keen” is to mourn, lament, and a keener is a professional mourner |
| 03 | UNPRECEDENTED | A French sort of crepe left an impression unlike anything else
UN (=a French, i.e. the French word for “a”) + *(CREPE) + DENTED (=left an impression); “sort of” is the anagram indicator |
| 04 | SWOON | Couple holding hands outside court pass out
WOO (=court, as verb) + S N (=couple holding hands, i.e. of cards in bridge) |
| 05 | ONSLAUGHT | You’ll find salesperson’s laughter somewhat offensive
Hidden (“somewhat”) in “salespersON’S LAUGHTer” |
| 07 | HAIRNET | It controls shock in heart transplants
*(IN HEART); “transplants” is anagram indicator; the “shock” of the definition is a shock of hair |
| 08 | WANT | Need husband not to start putting on weight
<m>AN (=husband; “not to start” means first letter is dropped) in WT (=weight) |
| 11 | SANDWICH BOARD | What one might assume when promoting snack food
SANDWICH (=snack) + BOARD (=food, as in board and lodgings); cryptically, a person would wear (=assume) a sandwich board when promoting something in the street! |
| 14 | FRIENDLESS | Disheartened suitor ends life, abandoned and alone
*(S<uito>R ENDS LIFE); “disheartened” means all but first and last letters are dropped; “abandoned” is anagram indicator |
| 16 | INAMORATA | Beat a Romanian up to protect loved one
Hidden (“to protect”) and vertically reversed (“up”) in “beAT A ROMANIan” |
| 19 | YOU KNOW | Squint returns, encapsulating your endlessly irritating verbal tic
<y>OU<r> (“endlessly” means first and last letters are dropped) in YKNOW (WONKY=squint, as adjective; oblique; “returns” indicates reversal) |
| 21 | OUTPOST | On strike over position in regional office?
OUT (=on strike) + POST (=position, job) |
| 23 | DATED | Old-fashioned // saw
Double definition: “saw” is dated, went out with (a person) |
| 24 | ABED | Bill’s about to live in a comfortable position
BE (=to live) in AD (=bill, poster) |
Another splendid effort from one of my favourite setters, entertaining all the way through.
Totally endorse Ratkojariku’s parsing of 1D (hadn’t heard of the plant either) and impeccably blogged, I missed the parsing in 17/27, just bunged in the obvious answer.
Thanks to Serpent and Ratkojariku.
Serpent goes from strength to strength. 7-8 on tuffometer but easliy 9 on quality and fun.
Thanks to Ratko
Thanks Serpent, enjoyable crossword.
Thanks also to Ratko; I didn’t know the plant in 1d but the parsing was faultless.
I ticked JUST SO and HAIRNET. I also liked the hidden ONSLAUGHT, although I would have thought the ‘You’ll find’ is superfluous. I don’t understand the ‘after start of’ meaning remove the first letter. I would have thought adding an ‘ignored’ or some such would have improved the parsing.
Struggled with this, but I did appreciate 16d and 19d
Many thanks serpent and RatkojaRika for much needed illumination
A bit of a slog, but everything was fair and I got there in the end; I too found the NW corner the most troublesome. Didn’t know CUPID’S DART as a plant, so couldn’t parse it properly; I was thinking of darts in a dartboard – the different areas that make up the scoring area are sometimes referred to as beds.
Some really great clues though, OBSESSION, WATER DOWN, ARTICHOKE and SWOON among them.
Thanks, Serpent and RatkojaRiku.
I think “snack food” is the cryptic definition for SANDWICH BOARD at 11. A sandwich is a kind of snack, and “board” means “food.” “What one might assume when promoting” is the non-cryptic part of the clue.
Many thanks to RatkojaRiku for the excellent blog and to everyone who has taken the time to solve and comment.
Myelbow @6 has identified the intended parsing of 11d, although the clue does sort of work as a cryptic definition as well.
Cheers
Jason
The blog has been duly amended according to Myelbow’s parsing and Serpent’s confirmation thereof.