Monday Prize Crossword / Oct 2, 2017
On a Rufus-free Monday this was the perfect puzzle to turn to for the, I assume, many who missed him.
Dante in a very friendly mood with most of the clues going straight in.
For a couple (2d, 13ac) I needed all the crossers to confidently enter the right answer.
Only 4d seems problematic to me.
Definitions are underlined wherever possible and/or appropriate.
| Across | ||
| 1 | COURTESY | Politeness makes Rosy cute (8) |
| (ROSY + CUTE)* [* = … makes] Although it is actually the anagram fodder that makes ‘politeness’. |
||
| 5 | TACTIC | Transposing the bookmakers’ sign language is part of the strategy (6) |
| Swapping the halves [transposing] of TIC-TAC (bookmakers’ sign language) | ||
| 10 | BLANK | Possibly fired – making space needing to be filled (5) |
| Double definition | ||
| 11 | INFLATION | Result of a blow to the economy? (9) |
| Double definition, one flowing into the other …. …. as ‘a blow’ is needed for both of them. A clue I liked! |
||
| 12 | EXTRICATE | Free extract – ie that will be broadcast (9) |
| (EXTRACT + IE)* [* = broadcast] | ||
| 13 | DELTA | A current issue on the coast (5) |
| Cryptic definition Very difficult to get without crossers. But then, it’s a crossword, isn’t it? |
||
| 14 | ARROWS | New wars or old weapons (6) |
| (WARS OR)* [* = new] | ||
| 15 | SENATOR | US politician who could resort to treason (7) |
| (TREASON)* [* = (could) resort (to)] | ||
| 18 | FIDDLER | Musician involved in a racket? (7) |
| Double definition | ||
| 20 | SUNDRY | Various indications it’s not raining (6) |
| When there’s SUN it’s probably not raining (not sure though) and when it’s DRY, it surely is fine | ||
| 22 | LIBYA | The land transformed by Ali (5) |
| (BY ALI)* [* = transformed] | ||
| 24 | LANDSLIDE | The opposite of a water chute? (9) |
| Kind of cryptic definition | ||
| 25 | EAGLE-EYED | Like a high-flier, able to take the long view? (5-4) |
| Cryptic definition, bordering on a Double definition | ||
| 26 | OPERA | Love for a particular kind of musical entertainment (5) |
| O (love) + PER (for (a)) + A I don’t think PER equals ‘for’ but we need ‘a’ on its own – bit iffy. |
||
| 27 | TEMPTS | Appeals for casual worker, a good man, to return (6) |
| TEMP (casual worker) + reversal [to return] of ST (good man, Saint) | ||
| 28 | DENTISTS | They look down in the mouth when at work (8) |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | COBWEB | Network company books in which you and I will have entry (6) |
| CO (company) + B,B (books) which has WE (you and I) inside | ||
| 2 | UNALTERED | Left alone, apparently (9) |
| Cryptic definition, perhaps? | ||
| 3 | TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT | Shoplifter’s dilemma? (4,2,2,5,2) |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 4 | SPIRALS | April’s wild winds heading south (7) |
| (APRIL’S)* + S (south) [* = wild] The definition (which is surely ‘winds’) is completely in the wrong place. This clue doesn’t make sense to me. |
||
| 6 | ABANDON ONE’S POST | Ignore letters – leave the office (7,4,4) |
| Double definition | ||
| 7 | TRIAL | Hearing difficulty (5) |
| Double definition | ||
| 8 | CENTAURS | Wild Etruscan horsemen (8) |
| (ETRUSCAN)* [* = wild – again!] | ||
| 9 | OFFERS | Bids for chests without a top (6) |
| COFFERS (chests) minus the first letter | ||
| 16 | TARDINESS | Takes a meal among sailors, though it causes delay (9) |
| DINES (takes a meal) inside TARS (sailors) | ||
| 17 | AFFLUENT | A loud and voluble description of a very rich society (8) |
| A + F (loud) + FLUENT (voluble) | ||
| 19 | RELAYS | Broadcasts about races (6) |
| Double definition Not keen on ‘about’ as a link word but I’m afraid it is one here. |
||
| 20 | SINE DIE | No fixed date for the Romans (4,3) |
| It’s just a Latin expression [for the Romans] meaning ‘without a day fixed’ (Collins) | ||
| 21 | DEBARS | Bans untidy beards (6) |
| (BEARDS)* [* = untidy] | ||
| 23 | BEGUM | Princess to show hesitancy in speech after press is seen (5) |
| UM (hesitancy in speech) coming under [after] BEG (press) A new word for me. A Muslim woman of high rank, not necessarily a princess, although – according to Collins – often used for the widow of a prince. |
||
*anagram
A thumbs down crossword imo. Clues for DELTA, UNALTERED, SPIRALS and, to a lesser extent, RELAYS were all very poor – to me at least, others may argue.
I think you are being a bit harsh on Dante’s Latin expressions which are in fairly common English usage (not just for the Romans).
Sine die is still used in legal and other documents.
£10 per month means £10 for each month.
There are many others still used: e.g.!, i.e., ad valorem, per capita.
I am not harsh on SINE DIE at all.
However, I think this clue was hardly cryptic.
The clue contains ‘for the Romans’ to tell us that the answer is something in Latin.
Nothing more to it, that’s why I used the word ‘just’.
I didn’t say or suggest anything about its English usage.
@3 My apologies – I misunderstood your parsing.
Thanks Dante & Sil.
If 4 down had been singular the clue would have been conventional, with a neat use of the two pronunciations of wind: April’s wild wind (6). The need to make it plural puts the definition in the middle of the clue, which is unusual but not unknown.
In 19 down a better link word would be “some”, since not all races are relays. Having said that, it might be objected that not all broadcasts are relays either.
The need to make it plural puts the definition in the middle of the clue, which is unusual but not unknown
How do you mean, not unknown?
Wordplay/ Definition/ Wordplay?
It’s just plain wrong, isn’t it?
Elementary introductions to cryptic crosswords say that the definition usually appears at the start or the end of a clue. I take that to mean that sometimes it does not.
If that’s what you mean, I agree.
But in this particular case, well, I’m pretty sure that even Dante himself, when looking back at it, wouldn’t be happy with the clue.
Anyway, nuff methinks.
Thanks Dante and Sil
Fastest ever Dante solve with no holdups whatever …
Did find that 4d interesting where the wordplay was scattered around the definition – novel anyway !
Thought that there was a bit more going on with DELTA … as a DELTA circuit is another term for three phase power.
SINE DIE was my last in … and the closest that I got to a holdup.