CRUX kicks off monday…
A very enjoyable start to the week with 10a and 21d as particular favourites.
Thanks CRUX!
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | SAHARA | Regularly smash fairway to create one endless sand trap! (6) |
| S[m]A[s]H[f]A[i]R[w]A[y] (regularly) | ||
| 4 | IN CLOVER | Enjoying luxury, including your sweetheart (2,6) |
| INC (including) + LOVER (your sweetheart) | ||
| 10 | LETTER BOX | What security-conscious Spooner has fitted to front door (6,3) |
| Spoonerism of “better locks” | ||
| 11 | OPIUM | Number in wars with China (5) |
| Cryptic definition Number being something that numbs |
||
| 12 | DOOM | Humour about the Last Trump (4) |
| (MOOD (humour))< (<about) The last trump is the trumpet blast to waken the dead on Judgement Day |
||
| 13 | DEPORTMENT | To expel people takes time for such conduct (10) |
| DEPORT (expel) + MEN (people) takes T (time) | ||
| 15 | FISHNET | Fabric woven from finest end of cloth (7) |
| (FINEST)* (*woven) + [clot]H (end of) | ||
| 16 | SAMPLE | The south gets more than enough,for instance (6) |
| S (south) gets AMPLE (more that enough) | ||
| 19 | EXOCET | Weapon carried around by Private Cox, evidently (6) |
| ([priva]TE COX E(vidently) (carried))< (<around) | ||
| 21 | CARMINE | The colour of Crimean bananas (7) |
| (CRIMEAN)* (*bananas) | ||
| 23 | STOCKPILES | Hoards supplies and lots of cash (10) |
| STOCK (supplies) + PILES (lots of cash) | ||
| 25 | BUST | Smash and grab in a police raid (4) |
| Double definition | ||
| 27 | OBAMA | Former leading man gets old by degrees (5) |
| O (old) + BA MA (degrees) | ||
| 28 | MATCHLESS | Like the top team without a fixture (9) |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 29 | THINKING | It couldn’t describe Henry VIII’s judgment (8) |
| Double definition Henty VIII being a fat king |
||
| 30 | BANYAN | Indian tree hiding outlaw and any criminal (6) |
| BAN (outlaw) + (ANY)* (*criminal) | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | SOLIDIFY | What frozen birds do and I do is fly badly (8) |
| (I DO IS FLY)* (*badly) | ||
| 2 | HIT FOR SIX | Deliveries may be staggered (3,3,3) |
Double definition (thanks john@2) |
||
| 3 | RUES | French ways to express regrets (4) |
| Double definition | ||
| 5 | NOXIOUS | It’s deadly with no end to tax and debts (7) |
| NO + [ta]X (end to) +IOUS (debts) | ||
| 6 | LION TAMERS | Rugby team includes gentler men like Daniel (4,6) |
| LIONS (rugby team) contains TAMER (gentler) Referring to Daniel in the lions’ den |
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| 7 | VOICE | A weakness to hide love, say (5) |
| VICE (weakness) to hide O (love) | ||
| 8 | REMOTE | Controller of programmes is standoffish (6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 9 | OBJECT | Take exception to a certain article (6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 14 | KNICK KNACK | Sounds like appropriate gift is a cheap ornament! (5-5) |
| “nick” (appropriate, “sounds like”) + KNACK (gift) | ||
| 17 | LEISURELY | Lie around, definitely relaxed (9) |
| (LIE)* (*around) + SURELY (definitely) | ||
| 18 | JETTISON | Engine is not to be broken up for scrap (8) |
| JET (engine) + (IS NOT)* (*to be broken up) | ||
| 20 | THIAMIN | I am enthralled by slim-making vitamin (7) |
| (I AM) enthralled by THIN (slim) | ||
| 21 | CHESTY | Like a cougher, perhaps (or a “coffer”, you might say) (6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 22 | ESCORT | Transport sector to go in convoy (6) |
| (SECTOR)* (*transport) | ||
| 24 | OMANI | Gulf Arab in a second uprising (5) |
| (IN A MO (in a second))< (<uprising) | ||
| 26 | RHEA | He joins the Gunners but can’t go on the wing (4) |
| HE joins RA (gunners, Royal Artillery) The rhea is a flightless bird |
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Nice and friendly, although I will say that the pesky four-letter 12a and 25a held me up the longest
I too liked 10a and 21d but I’d also add 1a to my list of favourites
Thanks to Crux and Teacow
I saw 2d as a double definition “staggered” being one. I too was held up by four letter words! Thanks both.
I saw 2d as a double definition “staggered” being one. I too was held up by four letter words! thank you both.
john@2 – agreed about 2d, have fixed. Thanks.
OBAMA is my clue of the week as the surface is actually true (forgive the double tautology).Well done Crux.
Thanks for the blog.
Escort does not mean ‘go in convoy’. A warship would escort a convoy, but that does not make the two things synonymous.
Ample is more properly synonymous with sufficient rather than ‘more than enough’ IMHO.
Also, I’d question whether it is accurate to imply that Henry VIII was never thin…
Otherwise this crossword was just about OK…
Thanks Crux and Teacow
Playing catch up after a Queensland holiday with no access to print the puzzles off.
Found it pretty straightforward and finished in about half the time of the usual FT solve. Also had 28a as another double definition (making a total of 8) – MATCHLESS being unsurpassed as the ‘top team’ and with no fixture would mean it was MATCH-LESS.
Liked 1a – misleading surface and a humourous definition.
Finished down the bottom with STOCKPILES, CHESTY and ESCORT the last few in.