Monday Prize Crossword / Jul 31, 2017
Last week Falcon, this week Dante.
Relatively easy and no surprises ….
…. still, some things that may be a reason to start a discussion.
I particularly liked 1d and 24d but there are a couple of things that are less brilliant.
(said the Grumpy Old Man in me)
Definitions are underlined wherever possible and/or appropriate.
| Across | ||
| 1 | HEARTS | If lost, they may well be broken (6) |
| Hearts lost, hearts broken. Sad start to this crossword. |
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| 4 | ANACONDA | On entering Canada, tumbled into the Snake (8) |
| ON inside (CANADA)* [* = tumbled] ‘Into’? OK, it’s justifiable. |
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| 9 | TABLET | It may be taken to promote good feeling (6) |
| Cryptic definition, I presume After taking a tablet you may feel better. Is that all there is? |
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| 10 | COURTIER | One seen in a palace tour going round with Eric (8) |
| (TOUR + ERIC)* [* = going round] | ||
| 12 | ASTEROID | Radio set designed for a space traveller (8) |
| (RADIO SET)* [* = designed] | ||
| 13 | TERESA | Easter break for her (6) |
| (EASTER)* [* = break] | ||
| 15 | KNOW | Recognise a refusal when you hear it (4) |
| Homophone [when you hear it] of: NO (a refusal) | ||
| 16 | FACE DEFEAT | Head for a beating but don’t turn back (4,6) |
| There’s a definition and a bit more Tell me more, tell me more. See comment @1. |
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| 19 | DISCOURAGE | Record our time and dampen spirits (10) |
| DISC (record) + OUR + AGE (time) | ||
| 20 | HERO | He is brave, so was she (4) |
| Double definition The first one is clear and this is what the ODE says about Hero: A priestess of Aphrodite at Sestos on the European shore of the Hellespont, whose lover Leander, a youth of Abydos on the opposite shore, swam the strait nightly to visit her. One stormy night he was drowned and Hero in grief threw herself into the sea. I’m not sure this is it (nor is Hovis @1). |
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| 23 | FABRIC | Building frame (6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 25 | ALLIANCE | Union gets a nice settlement after all (8) |
| ALL + (A NICE)* [* = settlement] | ||
| 27 | UNGAINLY | Drunk in an ugly situation gets awkward (8) |
| (IN AN UGLY)* [* = drunk] Why ‘situation’? For the surface? Probably, but I don’t like it (to say the least). |
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| 28 | TILLER | Farmer at the helm? (6) |
| Double definition The second one is alluding to ‘a handle fixed to the top of a rudderpost [in a boat] to serve as a lever in steering it’ (Collins). |
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| 29 | TENDERED | Offered to alter the rent deed (8) |
| (RENT DEED)* [* = to alter] Once more a word (‘the’) that, in my opinion, stands in the way. |
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| 30 | KENYAN | Know about any transported from East Africa (6) |
| KEN (know) around (ANY)* [* = transported] | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | HATRACK | Where a bowler may go when taken off (7) |
| Cryptic definition And a pretty good one! |
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| 2 | ALBATROSS | A hole in one, perhaps, for mariner’s dependant (9) |
| Double definition | ||
| 3 | THEORY | They hold an alternative, but not in practice (6) |
| THEY around OR (an alternative) | ||
| 5 | NOON | It’s twelve, anyway (4) |
| Palindrome It’s ‘noon’ whatever way you look at it – up or down. |
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| 6 | CORSETED | Escorted out – or stayed? (8) |
| (ESCORTED)* [* = out] | ||
| 7 | NOISE | Is involved in one dreadful row (5) |
| IS inside (ONE)* [* =dreadful] | ||
| 8 | ABREAST | Sailors tear out side by side (7) |
| (ABS (sailors) + TEAR)* [* = out] This is clearly an indirect anagram. A setter like Alberich often uses indirect elements in his anagrams. In his puzzles, these are straightforward and unambiguous as they should be, like N = ‘new’ or P = ‘soft’. I think ABS is not in that category. That said, I had no problem to find the answer which may be a reason to accept what happens here. |
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| 11 | RIVALRY | Challenge of opponent on the railway (7) |
| RIVAL (opponent) + RY (railway) ‘Rivalry’ and ‘rival’ are pretty close, aren’t they? |
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| 14 | BENGALI | Translated Belgian language (7) |
| (BELGIAN)* [* = translated] | ||
| 17 | ETERNALLY | English flier – a friend for ever (9) |
| E (English) + TERN (flier, a bird) + ALLY (a friend) | ||
| 18 | POSITIVE | Certain to be above zero (8) |
| Double definition | ||
| 19 | DEFAULT | Failure of French umpire’s tennis call (7) |
| DE (of, in French) + FAULT (umpire’s tennis call) | ||
| 21 | OVERRUN | Speed too much and exceed limit (7) |
| Double definition | ||
| 22 | DIVINE | Holy man to look for water (6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 24 | BEGIN | The base of a cocktail might, to start with (5) |
| The base of a cocktail might ….. BE GIN I liked this one! |
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| 26 | ELSE | I leave Elsie instead (4) |
| ELSIE minus I How easy can it get. That said, in cryptic grammar it should be ‘leaves’ and therefore Dante should ideally have used ‘will leave’, ‘must leave’ or ‘should leave’. Most solvers can’t be bothered, I’m afraid |
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*anagram
Didn’t know FABRIC as a building but my dictionary confirms it. HERO seems to be a poor clue. I knew the story of Hero and Leander but no suggestion of her being brave. Maybe Dante doesn’t mean this and ‘so was she’ just refers to her gender. Hopefully someone will give a better parsing.
Failed to get FACE DEFEAT but it works – if you face (towards) defeat you don’t turn back giving a cryptic ‘definition’.
Yeah, Hovis, HERO (20ac) seems somewhat problematic but this was the best I could come up with.
It’s not very convincing, true, so perhaps there’s someone else who can shine a light on it.
What you say about FACE DEFEAT was my idea too but I found it so weak that I thought ‘there must be something more to it’.
Probably not.
Thanks Dante and Sil
Agree with the sentiments – both with the good ones (1d and 24d) and the not so good.
Other than that, it was a quick and relatively painless way to get another one done …