Guardian Cryptic 27,377 by Rufus

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Typical Rufus fare…

… a mix of clever clues such as 14, 19 and 21 mixed with some not very cryptic definitions.

Thanks Rufus

Across
1 DESCRIBE Label in new seed bed (8)
CRIB (“bed”) in *(seed)
5 DANCER One taking steps in time (6)
(Not very) cryptic definition
9 ADVOCATE Brief support (8)
Double definition
10 CRIMEA Evil article on place of conflict (6)
CRIME (“evil”) + A (“article”)
12 UNRIG Dismantle collapsing ruin at midnight (5)
*(ruin) + (ni)G(ht)
13 LIONESSES Big cats make less noise (9)
*(less noise)
14 NIAGARA FALLS Big drop in US/Canadian liquidity (7,5)
Cryptic definition
18 GARDEN OF EDEN An end of greed perhaps? Paradise! (6,2,4)
*(an end of greed)

Shame that “of” appears in both fodder and solution… took the shine of what was an otherwise fantastic clue.
21 REFERENDA Whistler earned potential votes (9)
REF (“whistler”) + *(earned)
23 GELID Frozen, like eels, say (5)
Homophone of JELLIED (as in “jellied eels”)
24 EMETIC A sick benefit prescription? (6)
Cryptic?
25 DIATRIBE Return help before the race — and get a stream of abuse! (8)
<=AID (“help”, returned) before TRIBE (“race”)
26 ENSIGN Junior officer found on the staff (6)
Double definition
27 ENTRANCE Actor’s arrival on stage produces delight (8)
Double definition
Down
1 DRAW UP Stop to prepare a plan? (4,2)
Double definition
2 SEVERE Strict clergyman is elevated in diocese (6)
<=REV. (“clergyman”, elevated) in SEE (“diocese”)
3 RECOGNISE Identify and approve (9)
Double definition
4 BATTLEGROUND Action station? (12)
(Not very) cryptic definition
6 AGREE Be of one mind about being in time (5)
RE (“about”) in AGE (“time”)
7 CAMISOLE Scot came up with one single undergarment (8)
<=MAC (“Scot, up) with 1 SOLE (“single”)
8 REASSESS Think twice about seas breaking over ship (8)
RE (“about”) + *(seas) over SS (“ship”)
11 POOR RELATION The family’s failure makes a wretched story (4,8)
POOR (“wretched”) + RELATION (“story”)
15 FREIGHTER Soldiers embark in aircraft, one carrying cargo (9)
R.E. (Royal Engineers, so “soldiers”) in FIGHTER (“aircraft”)
16 AGGRIEVE Silver rig-out on girl is wrong (8)
Ag (“silver”) + *(rig) + EVE (“girl”)
17 DRIFTERS Fishing boats that go with the tide? (8)
A fishing boat that uses a drift net is known as a drifter.
19 ALBION Footballers out on bail? (6)
*(on bail)

Several football clubs have Albion in their name – West Bromwich, Stirling eg
20 ADHERE Stick a number in this place (6)
A + D (“number”) + HERE (“in this place”)
22 RUING Deploring sort of turn in a circus? (5)
U(-turn) in RING (“circus”)

*anagram

61 comments on “Guardian Cryptic 27,377 by Rufus”

  1. Thanks, Rufus and loonapick.
    Like you, loonapick, I thought 14a NIAGARA FALLS was clever. I also liked 25a DIATRIBE.
    And on the other side of the ledger, I wrote “weak” against 5a DANCER, and a ? against 23a GELID, which doesn’t sound to my Aussie ears like “jellied”.

  2. Thanks loonapick and Rufus.

    Short and fairly sweet, in places today. Niagra good, and I liked POOR RELATION, too, but none of the CDs.

    [I think you have forgotten to say ALBION is an anagram]

  3. The usual quick (enjoyable) workout with Rufus, thank you and thank you loonapick. I fancied ELIXIR for 24a for a second or two.

  4. Thanks Rufus and loonapick.
    Like Dave @2, I enjoyed POOR RELATION. Easy enough from the wordplay, but a neat definition, I thought.

    Julie @1. I’d love to know how the pronunciations in question differ down your way (jelloid? jell-eyed?) They’re certainly perfect homophones where I come from. Can you enlighten me please32?

  8. Thanks Rufus and loonapick

    I thought that this was a particularly entertaining Rufus, with lots of smiles. I especially liked LIONESSES, REFERENDA, DIATRIBE and SEVERE, and my thoughts on GARDEN OF EDEN exactly matched yours, loonapick.

    This being Rufus, I was surprised that WATERLOO didn’t fit for 4d!

    3d is unfortunate,as it could also be spelled with a Z, unchecked.

  9. I wonder if 1a will spark the same debate as the two similar constructions in Saturday’s prize blog. Take your marks…

  10. Another nice gentle start to the week from Rufus.

    Like Muffin @8, when I read 4d WATERLOO popped straight into my head, then I saw that there were far too many spaces.

    Liked 25a DIATRIBE. LOI was 16d AGGRIEVE being held up by trying to think of three-lettered girls’ names ending in E.

    Thanks Rufus and Ioonapick.

  12. Thanks Rufus and loonapick.

    EMETIC was cryptic for me, as it was my LOI. I thought about trawlers for 17, but DRIFTERS is better.

    I thought NIAGARA FALLS was a great clue.

  14. Nice easy start to the week, and good to see a fairly unusual word in GELID.

    Haven’t we seen CRIMEA as a solution somewhere recently?

    I thought it a little bit harsh to accuse a POOR Relation of being a failure. 🙂

    Favourites were 13, 14, 19 and 21.

    Thanks Rufus and loonapick

  15. Crossbar @14
    Shed Prize December 2nd
    4. What shouldn’t happen on a peninsula? (6)
    The search facility on this site is very useful

    The phrase equating CRIMEA and A CRIME was first recorded from John Bright, the Anti Corn Law League campaigner, in the 19th century.

  16. Very enjoyable and fairly easy. Thanks Rufus and loonapick. NIAGARA FALLS came to me more or less immediately and as I class myself as barely crossword literate is it therefore a great clue?

  17. I did not like the singular/plural clash in the double definitions at 27 across (‘produces delight’ = entrances, not entrance).

  21. Thanks Rufus and loonapick.

    I enjoyed this puzzle but failed to solve EMETIC and could not parse 1a

    My favourites were 27a and 18a

  22. Being stranded on my little island at 41.7 degrees N, I have to use the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (Second Edition, 1963) as my primary reference.

    It contains the -ise spelling of neither ‘recognize’ nor ‘realize’. It is aimed at learners of British English as American variations are indicated.

    When, if ever, did the -ise spellings become more prevalent in British English ?

    Yours confused,

  26. PoD @25: Found it! Thanks.

    Re EMETIC, I think it’s just a cryptic def that’s a little weak. An emetic makes one sick but that may not work for non-Brits for whom sick means ‘unwell’ whereas Rufus means ‘vomit’.

    Not one of his best, perhaps.

  27. Thank you William. Despite being born British, I hadn’t put sick and vomit together.
    Re 41 N – it is a fairly small island but I do have three opera houses within ten minutes’ walk !

  28. Perfectly decent puzzle for a Monday; quick work as usual with Rufus, but varied and elegant. I actually liked DANCER – it looked as though it would be cryptic, and then wasn’t, so characteristically Rufus. I thought LIONESSES was a good anagram, GELID was clever, and coming from Brighton, I appreciated ALBION (though I am a Spurs fan).

    CRIMEA seemed familiar; has it featured recently?

    Thanks to both.

  29. I’m not sure this was typical of Rufus. I found it rather more difficult than usual especially in the SW. There was some rather good cluing there – EMETIC and RUING which were my last ones in. I also couldn’t see REFERENDA for a long time despite the excellent clue.
    Thanks Rufus.

  30. @1, @4: since I am an Emeritus Professor of Phonetics, let me explain. Gelid ends /?d/ in British RP, but /?d/ in Australian English; meanwhile, jellied ends /?d/ in RP, but /i?d/ in Australian English. Compare valid – salad (a rhyme for Australians but not for me), and candid – candied (homophones for me but not for Australians).

  31. Sorry. the website evidently can’t handle phonetic symbols. Gelid, candid have the KIT vowel in RP, but schwa in AustE; jellied, candied have the KIT vowel in RP, but the FLEECE vowel in AustE.

  33. @22, @32. The big Oxford English Dictionary gives only the -ize spelling for all the relevant verbs, and only -ization for the derived nouns, while mentioning but implicitly deprecating the alternative possibility -ise, -isation. All other Oxford dictionaries follow suit. Personally, I consistently use the z spelling, having been required to do so by the style guide enforced by my publishers Cambridge University Press at the time they published my first important work. People often believe that only the s spelling is allowed in British English; they are wrong. Both possibilities are OK. For reasons best known to its Editors, the Guardian style guide, guardianstyle, prefers the s spelling.

  34. I always use the S spelling, as there are a few words (none coming to mind at the moment) where the Z is actually incorrect. Using S each time saves having to remember which these are!

  35. Prof. Wells, Does ‘married’, for ex., have the KIT vowel in RP? In Belfast, we pronounce the words you have listed just like Australians 😉

  36. Happy Rufusday everybody. Like several others above, I enjoyed REFERENDA and NIAGARA FALLS, among others. LOI for me was EMETIC.

    il principe dell’oscurità @22 and 25, and William @23 and 26 – Could you provide further clues (or the direct answer, if you prefer) for the island in question? I’m guessing Corsica — is that even close?

    Many thanks to Rufus and loonapick and other commenters.

  37. Muffin, one of the words for which -IZE is always incorrect is advertise. In Canada, we retain British -OUR endings (like colour, verboten in the US) but we invariably use -IZE endings where applicable.

  38. Thank you for the clarification Prof. Wells and Canuck James.
    You might like this – recently a student showed me a u-tube clip of the Canadian Governor of The Bank of England. The software that attempted to turn the dialogue into subtitles understood the banker perfectly whilst turning his English interviewer’s question into gobbledegook.
    Dave Mc – 40.7 N is NOT Corsica !

  40. il principe dell’oscurità @38

    Thanks . . . but please confirm if it is 41.7 N or 40.7 N

    And, it is a real, not metaphorical, island (land surrounded on all sides by water), correct?

  44. It’s been a while since I’ve had a DNF, and when it came it had to be a Rufus! If I had got 11d, though, the remaining 6 answers would have come quickly.

    This was not as enjoyable as other crosswords I’ve tackled over the last couple of weeks, but I know what to expect with this setter. Some of the clues were deceptively simple and made me think, but others were barely cryptic. I was a bit disappointed with the dual answer at 3d RECOGNIZE.

    Thanks Rufus and Loonapick.

  45. DaveMc – Bingo! – the 3 opera houses should give you the longitude.
    If there are any geometers out there my uncle sent me a facsimile of a page of a book that has been in my family for nearly 300 years. With modifications it allowed me to construct a sun-dial for this locality using the WILLIAM LEYBOURN method. After three months’ work I managed to reduce his arcs and triangles to a sin/tan relationship only to find the Persians or Babylonians, or both, had done this about 3000 years ago.
    However, I cannot see LEYBOURN’s trick. Help!

  46. @35 This is not really the place to embark on a detailed discussion of different varieties of English pronunciation. Perhaps I could refer you to my Accents of English (CUP 1982) or various other works. I put a comment about this clue on Facebook this morning, and the first person to “like” it was someone from Northern Ireland.

  47. To follow on the @22 point, those of us who like Collins favour -ise. An example of a word that is only -ise is exercise.

  50. Concerning -ise vs. -ise, Bill Bryson in his book Troublesome Words lists the following words that must have -ise:

    advertise, surprise, devise, revise, compromise, surmise, franchise, enterprise, chastise, televise and merchandise

    He doesn’t claim this is an exhaustive list.

  52. Alan B : Following a major computer meltdown, following an unwanted update, I’ve found that ‘NOTEPAD’ corrects nothing ! This is wonderful and I now use it for everything.

  53. Il Principe …

    Yes, I know! I most often use my laptop for posting comments here, and Notepad is a good choice if I don’t want to type directly on the web form. Today, however, I’m using my Android device, and I’m happy to use the excellent predictive text at the cost of not noticing the occasional too-clever-by-half ‘correction’!

  55. The University of Oxford Style Guide says that -ise is the British usage and -ize is only to be used when quoting an American speaker or writer directly. I think that The Times was the last significant bastion of -ize in the UK but it accepted defeat some years ago if I remember correctly.
    Typical Rufus – plenty of smiles and smooth surfaces but also a few not so good. Thanks to him and to loonapick.

  56. Greek > Latin > English from -IZEIN.

    If you are an Oxford English type of person, you consistently use IZE for that specific list of verbs, and ISE for the others. If you are not, you can use ISE for all of them — either method is correct. Newspapers generally have style sheets to instruct in these matters, but God knows what The Guardian/ Hugh Stephenson uses!

    I have the IZE list on a wall somewhere, but always use ISE so that I don’t have to go all the way over to the wall (3 metres).

  57. Pino

    On that note, Bill Bryson, writing in 1984 in the book I mentioned earlier (‘Troublesome Words’), makes the following observation:

    “It is one of the more arresting ironies of British usage that the leading authorities all prescribe -ize and hardly anyone pays them any heed. In this respect, The Oxford English Dictionary is at once the most venerated and most ignored of arbiters.”

    It seems that Oxford has turned around since then.

  58. il principe dell’oscurità @45

    Thank you, belatedly. Glad to confirm the island! I have been swamped here at work and am just getting around to seeing your response.

    (BTW, “Bingo” always makes me think of that silly scene (as they all are) from The Naked Gun movies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMRo5XCKddQ ) I guess I am getting punchy.

    I have definitely learned some new things today, which is one of the great benefits to reading the posts and comments on this site – even when the discussions veer away from the specific clues and answer of the day. Your brief discussion of WILLIAM LEYBOURN method (and trick) sounds very interesting, but alas, I could be only a 100% recipient and 0% provider of any further information on that subject!

  59. Prof. Wells @46

    Thank you for that reference. Am just now reading about your vowel chart on the net. It’s very interesting.

  60. Not to belabour (US: belabor, which just looks weird!) the discussion of spelling conventions, I’ve always been calmly baffled by the offence/offense and defence/defense dichotomies. When watching a hockey game on TV, one can always tell whether the broadcast is Canadian or American whenever they splash statistics on-screen. And one must bear in mind that, as strange as the American nouns might appear, the universal adjectival forms are, after all, offensive and defensive! Where did the ‘C’ go?!
    Even odder, though, is the licence/license example. One is the noun and one the verb, but the Americans avoid the confusion: the -ENCE version is never used there in any way.
    Shall we now discuss the Australian and New Zealand Labor and Labour Parties? Maybe not…
    As they say, I’ll get my coat!

  61. I thought I was a clever American realizing sick was going to be vomit, but we don’t have jellied eels and those are not homophones for us. Thanks to loonapick and the professor for illuminating the mysterious 23.

    If any Brits are still around, do the “British” pronunciation audio clips from Collins represent RP well? To my ear Collins’ gelid and jellied sound alike but they don’t sound like the same vowel as the same source’s candid and candied. They’re closer to how I’d say jellied when I suspect from descriptions they should be closer to my gelid.

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