Another treat for word lovers. Thank you Azed.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | CATCRACKER |
Snappy dresser, outstanding one in petroleum processing plant (10)
|
| CAT (snappy dresser) and CRACKER (outstanding one) | ||
| 11 | HOER |
One in wellies quite likely kept in shoe rack (4)
|
| found inside sHOE Rack – gardeners often wear wellies | ||
| 12 | CHONDRIN |
Cartilaginous stuff in horn – CD’s manufactured with it (8)
|
| anagram (is manufactured with it) of IN HORN CD | ||
| 13 | UPRATE |
Increase county gossip? (6)
|
| U (posh, county: money in land rather than trade) PRATE (gossip) | ||
| 15 | GELS |
Sets required in staging Elsinore (4)
|
| found inside staginG ELSinore | ||
| 16 | EXPERTS |
Ships containing European in place of ordinary dabs (7)
|
| EXPoRTS containing E (European) instead of O (ordinary) | ||
| 17 | PRAIRIE |
Plain song? Probed endlessly about that (7)
|
| AIR (song) inside (with…about that) PRIEd (probed, endlessly) | ||
| 18 | MYOMA |
Muscly lump where contemporary art is shown round yard (5)
|
| MOMA (Museum of Modern Art) contains (round) Y (yard) | ||
| 19 | CROSSCROSSLET |
Doubly annoyed with service taken again for elaborate church symbol (13)
|
| CROSS CROSS (annoyed, doubled) with LET (service taken again, tennis) | ||
| 23 | HOUSE |
Domestic having to spray round centre of study (5)
|
| HOSE (to spray) containing stUdy (centre of) | ||
| 25 | OXALATE |
Salt in love turned loose, worried (7)
|
| O (love, zero score) then LAX (loose) reversed (turned) and ATE (worried) | ||
| 27 | TALENTS |
Gifts, on being removed from stock, sent off (7)
|
| TALon (stock,cards) missing ON then anagram (off) of SENT | ||
| 29 | NUFF |
What gets said after it, often recalling fine sport? (4)
|
| a reversal (recalling) of F (fine) FUN (sport) – definition is that nuff may be used in the slang phrase nuff said, where it has “said after it” | ||
| 30 | STEARE |
Calf that was butchered for Easter (6)
|
| anagram (that was butchered for…) of EASTER | ||
| 31 | GEOPHAGY |
Hay cooked with duck egg, soft inside – a morbid diet (8)
|
| anagram (cooked) of HAY with O (duck, zero score) EGG containing (with…inside) P (piano, soft) – I don’t understand the definition. Why is an organism feeding on soil morbid? Can anyone help me out? | ||
| 32 | SCAN |
Survey serious corrosion affecting newbuild (beginnings of) (4)
|
| first letters (beginnings) of Serious Corrosion Affecting Newbuild | ||
| 33 | FIREBASKET |
Source of timber set, bake furiously in brazier (10)
|
| FIR (source of timber) then anagram (furiously) SET BAKE | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | CHUMPCHANGE |
Friend, muddled chap no good with tip in cafe, producing unacceptable one? (11, 2 words)
|
| CHUM (friend) then anagram (muddled) of CHAP then NG (no good) and cafE (last letter, tip) – an unacceptable tip | ||
| 2 | TERGA |
Backs possibly injured dropped from later game? (5)
|
| LAME (injured) missing from laTER GAme | ||
| 3 | CRAW |
Crop that’s cold, damp and chilly (4)
|
| C (cold) with RAW (damp and chilly) | ||
| 4 | RATERS |
Indication of hesitancy with vermin around? We’ll supply estimates (6)
|
| ER (indication of hesitancy) inside (with…around) RATS (vermin) | ||
| 5 | CHAPERONAGE |
Duenna’s responsibility, having tea with person approaching maturity (11)
|
| CHA (tea) with PER (person) ON (approaching) AGE (maturity) | ||
| 6 | KORERO |
Wellington’s address offering telling punch – error mostly corrected (6)
|
| KO (telling punch) then anagram (corrected) of ERROr (mostly) – Wellington’s indicates as used in New Zealand | ||
| 7 | ENORM |
Once prodigious energy, above standard (5)
|
| E (energy) then NORM (standard) | ||
| 8 | CRESOL |
Antiseptic compound? Unsuccessful one’s given up, cocaine preferred (6)
|
| LOSER (unsuccessful one) reversed and following (…is preferred, comes first) C (cocaine) | ||
| 9 | MILOMETER |
In Paris he boards Metro with me, switching device to record journey (9)
|
| IL (he, in French, in Paris) inside (boards) anagram (switching) of METRO with ME | ||
| 10 | INSTATEMENT |
Election as part of formal account? (11)
|
| IN (as part of) STATEMENT (formal account) | ||
| 14 | PARROQUET |
Bird that’s not OK in theater stalls? (9)
|
| ROok (bird) missing OK inside PARQUET (theatre stalls) – I assume the definition is intended as an &lit rather than an extended definition. A noisy parroquet would certainly be unwelcome in the audience. | ||
| 20 | OUTFOX |
Best tux restyled with oof (6)
|
| anagram (restyled) of TUX with OOF | ||
| 21 | CHENAR |
Biddy entering coach for plane (6)
|
| HEN (biddy) inside CAR (coach) | ||
| 22 | SASTRA |
Sacred text, extract from scriptures as translated (6)
|
| found inside scriptureS AS TRAnslated | ||
| 24 | ELCHI |
Priest welcoming church legate from overseas (5)
|
| ELI (priest) contains (welcoming) CH (church) | ||
| 26 | ABACK |
Pressed to the mast, sailor’s to work ‘ard as drudge (5)
|
| AB (able seaman, sailor) then ‘ACK (hack, work ‘ard as drudge) | ||
| 28 | JESS |
Strap cracks – time to leave (4)
|
| JEStS (cracks, jokes) missing (…to leave) T (time) |
Thanks PeeDee.
I took Azed to be commenting on human Geophagy as unhealthy (classed as an eating disorder in some circs).
I think PARROQUET is indeed meant as &lit – and appreciated the ‘theater’ as ‘parquet’ is a US term (new to me).
Thanks as ever to Azed.
Yes, I understood geophagy or more broadly pica usually to be an indication of a metabolic or emotional problem of some kind, or imminent starvation.
…and I’m happily reminded of the fancy restaurant having to serve Mousse de la Boue dans une Panier de la de la Pâte de Chaussures whilst the tramps get the roast pork in Terry Pratchett’s ‘Hogfather’ (it’s a Hogswatch miracle 🙂
The kind of coincidence that happens now and then, this time a double one. Shortly before this Azed, two obscure words came up in the puzzle of Another Publication, both needing a dictionary check – after which I was able to write the same two words in quickly to the (otherwise very different) Sunday grid. Maybe other solvers of 2,548 will have had this same ‘deja vu’ feeling. I had better not specify the words and the other publication, to guard against the very slight risk of a spoiler, since there may still be a deadline in play.
Thanks for the blog, geophagy turns up in One Hundred Years Of Solitude, one of the girls, I forget which one, they nearly all had the same name.
Theater was a very nice touch.
Steare is not in my Chambers 93 as a young calf, just as the first meaning of steer.
Nearly a perfect finish without Chambers, spoilt by CHENAR,, did not know biddy was hen.
There is a very slight mistake in the Azed today I think, ( newspaper version, I do not know how to look online. ) It does not really affect the solve.
Roz @6 – I agree re a slight mistake in today’s Azed.
Somehow I couldn’t parse TERGA, and put in crag for CRAW. Apart from that, it seemed pretty straightforward. I hadn’t come across CROSSCROSSLET before- nice word. Thanks to Azed and PeeDee.
Hi everybody, as per site rules please don’t discuss today’s Azed puzzle here. Post the comments next week. Thanks.