A plain puzzle again this week. Thank you Azed.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | CASH DISPENSER |
Hole in the wall passers inched around (13, 2 words)
|
| anagram (around) of PASSES INCHED | ||
| 10 | APPAIR |
Father moving left couple, damage past (6)
|
| PA (father) reversed (when read moving left) and PAIR (couple) | ||
| 12 | FOCI |
Key points absorbed by idiotic officers in retreat (4)
|
| found inside (absorbed by) idiotIC OFficers reversed (in retreat) | ||
| 14 | GATEFOLD |
Cheese, round, in yellow wrapping? It’s opened out to be studied (8)
|
| FETA (cheese) reversed (round) inside GOLD (yellow) | ||
| 15 | TROGON |
Colourful bird to be sold in marketplace (6)
|
| GO (be sold) inside TRON (market place) | ||
| 16 | DASH |
Gratuity some received as handout (4)
|
| found inside receiveD AS Handout | ||
| 17 | DIDDER |
Ruby performed turns making one shiver (6)
|
| RED (ruby) DID (performed) all reversed (turns) | ||
| 18 | TWIST |
What’s added to drink, dry, weak one with dash of soda in? (5)
|
| TT (teetotal, dry) contains (with…in) W (weak) I (one) and Soda (first letter, a dash of) | ||
| 19 | SPACY |
Singular, smart, unconventional (5)
|
| S (singular) and PACY (smart) | ||
| 22 | PLESH |
The old pool contribution to couple’s honeymoon (5)
|
| found inside (contribution to) couPLE’S Honeymoon | ||
| 23 | FED UP |
Last course over after post-school education? If so, one’s had enough (5, 2 words)
|
| PUD (last course) reversed (over) following FE (Further Education) | ||
| 25 | OUTASK |
Final challenge for Balliol undergrad, maybe, to announce impending nuptials for last time (6)
|
| OU (Oxford University, at Ballliol perhaps) TASK (challenge) – I’m not sure how final fits in. Have I missed something here? | ||
| 28 | KURI |
Foreign knife, its head buried in dog now dead (4)
|
| KUkRI (a Nepalese knife) with K (its head, knife’s head) missing (buried) | ||
| 29 | PLANAR |
Flat layout with outer bits for atelier (6)
|
| PLAN (layout) AtelieR (outer letters for) | ||
| 30 | RINGTONE |
Distinctive sound of mobile Girton ‘fresher’, not old (8)
|
| anagram (fresher) of GIRTON then NE (not, obsolete so old) | ||
| 31 | MAIN |
Great fighting cocks (4)
|
| double definition | ||
| 32 | PEEVED |
Cross almost always kept in pannier (6)
|
| EVEr (always, almost) inside PED (pannier) | ||
| 33 | INSENSATENESS |
Lack of feeling seen in assets (sovereign’s last) being disposed of (13)
|
| anagram (being disposed of) of SEEN IN ASSETS with sovereigN (last letter of) | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | CANTUS FIRMI |
Unadorned melodies from American company in wild antic (11, 2 words)
|
| US (American) FIRM (company) inside anagram (wild) of ANTIC | ||
| 2 | SPROD |
Young salmon species, what angler takes in hand (5)
|
| SP (species) and ROD (what angler takes in hand) | ||
| 3 | HANGI |
Sort of barbecue food to suspend over middle of pit (5)
|
| hang (suspend) then pIt (middle letter of) | ||
| 4 | DIPODY |
Extended bit of verse? Digital player replaces one in time (6)
|
| DaY (time) with IPOD (digital player) replacing A (one) | ||
| 5 | SPADE GUINEA |
Labouring unpaid e.g. in the main unearths old coin (11, 2 words)
|
| anagram (labouring) of UNPAID EG inside SEA (the main) | ||
| 6 | PITARA |
Basket for clothes or bread on middle of tray (6)
|
| PITA (bread) on tRAy (middle letters of) | ||
| 7 | EWEST |
Not far from Edinburgh, eastern quarter (5)
|
| E (eastern) WEST (a quarter, of the compass) – not far, as said in Edinburgh | ||
| 8 | SOOGIE |
It’s used for swabbing decks, that is after sticky stuff’s lifted (6)
|
| IE (that is) following GOO’S (sticky stuff’s) | ||
| 9 | RIDE THE RODS |
Travel railroads illegally, free and easy once on perches (11, 3 words)
|
| RID (free) then ETHE (free, once) on RODS (perches) | ||
| 11 | PERIPETIA |
Mature Pacific tree, green all round – a sudden change (9)
|
| RIPE (mature) TI (Pacific tree) inside (with…all round) PEA (a shade of green) | ||
| 13 | CLASSMATE |
I’ll yield to fool in character, one sharing lessons (9)
|
| CLiMATE (character) with I being replaced by (yielding to) ASS (fool) | ||
| 20 | ADONIS |
Dandy in a party, one of seven turning up (6)
|
| A DO (party) then SIN (one of seven deadly ones) reversed (turning up) | ||
| 21 | POROUS |
On our side, holding ring that’s anything but impregnable (6)
|
| PRO US (on our side) contains O (a ring) | ||
| 22 | PALKEE |
Litter disfigured lake in Peru (6)
|
| anagram (disfigured) of LAKE inside PE (Peru) | ||
| 24 | PUT IN |
Installed head of state admitting space (5, 2 words)
|
| PUTIN (a head of state) containing a space | ||
| 26 | SAMEN |
Star group exchanging parts, no longer equal in Scotland (5)
|
| MENSA (a constellation, group of stars) with MEN and SA exchanged | ||
| 27 | KNAVE |
King’s given over part of church for his consort’s junior in rank (5)
|
| K (king) then NAVE (part of church) – the Queen’s junior in a pack of cards |
The long border answers were my way in on this one. I did not know FE, a UK term(?), but got the answer from the crossers. I almost did not get 28, until I googled “extinct dogs.” The construction of that clue seems very unusual to me–I mean, it works fine, but it seems somehow backwards–I cannot quite put my finger on it.
Thanks for the blog. Just checked and I had also circled FINAL for 25AC , do not see why it is there.
TROGON and HANGI been in fairly recently.
Did not know the word RINGTONE but seemed obvious.
My first non Chambers finish for a while.
Didn’t manage to parse DIPODY; and SPACY = unconventional? All good fun as usual. Thanks to Azed and PeeDee. Unlike Roz, definitely needed Chambers and Mr Google.
Drofle@3 I did use Chambers afterwards to check my “educated” guesses but mainly the words were fine this week. I had seen them before or the letters were very helpful. DIPODY is a classic example, I did not know the word or IPOD but we had five letters and POD is foot hence verse.
Thanks both. “Main” = fighting cocks?
Shirl@5 it was new for me as well but it is in Chambers for main3
Thanks Ron
Thanks Roz (spellchecker!)
I assumed the “final” in 25 across was a reference to final exams, but that’s a bit loose, isn’t it?
Ref. 25ac – here is what my C says:
out-ask’ transitive verb (dialect)
To proclaim the banns of for the last time.
So I guess Azed is trying to say “the last challenge an OU student has to do”. Or it could be a typo and was originally “Finally challenge…” meaning cryptically it follows OU.
I dunno.
Nick, your first explanation is way better than mine. Even so, it means the definition is wrapped around the wordplay, which is unusual.
Yes, another one of these Azed clues that get people guessing, but as the saying goes ( Ximenes, Afrit, Torquemada?) if a solver can get it the clue is fair.
Glad to see a dozen contributions. Haven’t a lot of recollections about last Sunday but did complete on the day. An easy 1 across makes a difference.. We now await the June comp with excitement. All this and garden parties!
Thanks to Azed and Peedee.