Wiglaf brings us the Thursday challenge this week ……..
…….. and it was quite a challenge, particularly with one completely new word for us (1ac) and two examples of urban slang (14ac and 16d). However, it was very enjoyable (and educational), with excellent surfaces and crafty definitions – we particularly liked 25ac.
O (Oscar in the phonetic alphabet) JIBS (sails) around W (with) A – we had never heard of this Native American tribe – it was our last one in
M (married) + an anagram (‘off’) of SAILED
conJUROR (magician) missing ‘con’ (trick)
INvIDIOUS (unpleasant) with S (son) replacing or ‘knocking out’ V (Victor in the phonetic alphabet)
An anagram (‘dissolute’) of PRINCE ‘going into’ CO (company – ‘business’) US (American)
A reversal (’round’) of ONE (a) R (run)
An anagram (‘bastard’) of RATS + O (old) TURF (sod) IN G (government) – we had not come across this ‘PR tactic’ before – no street cred!
An anagram (‘up’) of NIPPER HEAVES
NOSE (‘organ’) with the outer letters moved to the middle or ‘evaginated’ (‘turned outside in’ – we had to check the meaning in Chambers)
An anagram (‘translated’) of LINDA, R (first letter or Ronstadt) and POEM – we had to check ‘Malayalam’ as it is clearly the definition, but when the penny dropped, we realised that the question mark identifies it as an example of a palindrome – it is not necessary to know what it means (it is apparently a language of Kerala in SW India)
SING (carol) round or ‘securing’ C (Conservative) RUMP (seat) – lovely definition, referring to Eve and the apple
NATE’S (diminutive form of Nathaniel’s)
LITE (less demanding) round or ‘obtaining’ U (university) D D (degrees)
THEREmIN (electronic instrument) missing ‘m’ (spymaster, as in James Bond stories)
C (about) in or ‘safeguarded by’ O (old) B (British) JET (plane)
An anagram (‘unorthodox’) of scRIPTURes without the first two and last two letters or ‘repeatedly exposed’
WAR (battle) DRESSES (attire)
Hidden or ‘stored’ in diSC I FInalised
MOSS (supermodel Kate Moss) round or ‘circling’ QUITO (capital – of Ecuador)
Hidden (‘feature of’) and reversed (‘preposterous’) in thE DIScovery
An anagram (‘in new order’) of COTERIES
DIS (slate – treat with contempt) LODGE (deposit)
eVIDENCE (grounds) with PRO (for) replacing the first letter or ‘leader’ – capital of Rhode Island
REX (king) round or ‘taking ‘ E (ecstasy) + gAMINE (boyish young lady) missing the first letter or ‘topless’
C (first letter or ‘beginning’ of cause) AROUSAL (sexual excitement) – another slang word we were not aware of – a drinking bout
APE (primate) D (dead) round or ‘hosting’ PEAR (conference is a variety of pear)
GOETH (‘is going’ in biblical language) E (east)
L (large) ESSEN (European city)
I (one) N (nationalist) GOT (acquired)
MP (politician) in or ‘kidnaped by’ II (two in Roman numerals)
Outstanding. Needed a couple of reveals and a lot of forensic investigation often in the wrong direction. Now I have read the blog I appreciate the wit behind SCRUMPING which I took from a word search. NHO but never mind. We called it ‘raiding’. Looking forward to more from Wiglaf.
Most challenging puzzle of the day but I must say again that I have NEVER seen the word APPLE in Genesis
But like LATTE it wont leave crosswordland
Thought INVIDIOUS-INSIDIOUS first class
Thank you Wiglaf-and B&J
I always enjoy a Wiglaf and this was no exception. Much wit and invention. Tricky in places – bottom half went in very easily, but progress was slow in the top half. Nho OJIBWAS but very fairly clued. Thanks for the blog, B&J.
Native American tribes must be a gift for setters when no dictionary word is available – there are hundreds! Rather too many solutions that I solved but couldn’t parse to be fully enjoyable, but a good workout nonetheless. Thanks Wiglaf and B&J.
As copmus says, there is no evidence that the forbidden fruit was an apple. Maybe Eve had a nice pear, so to speak. Nevertheless, I did enjoy that clue.
A real challenge from Wiglaf. Failed on the never heard of OJIBWAS which I thought was going to be an anagram. ASTROTURFING and CAROUSAL were also new but possible from wordplay and crossers.
Even if it’s not strictly accurate in a biblical sense I still liked the idea of the ‘First Lady’ SCRUMPING.
Thanks to Wiglaf and B&J
So an unspecified imaginary fruit that an imaginary person ate in one version of a story has turned into a specific imaginary fruit in many other versions. Would the real fruit please stand up? Anyway, scrumping doesn’t have to be apples.
Great puzzle. I was stuck on the crossing GOETHE and PALINDROME and revealed them rather than wrestle with the anagram fodder. Wish I hadn’t, loved both clues. 21a was a real eyebrow-raiser.
Thanks Wiglaf & Bertandjoyce
Thanks both. I’ll start with a positive in that PALINDROME was very satisfying, partly owing to Monty Python, although overall too many unknowns in clueing, construction and answers to make this solvable – a single example being CAROUSAL where I still would not have equated ‘bust’ to a ‘drinking bout’ as referenced here…..perhaps I need to get out more?
GOETHE is brilliant. I quite like it when I work out something from wordplay alone, like today when I concluded that a bust had to be a drinking spree from CAROUSAL, but get annoyed with myself when I don’t without help, as in ASTROTURFING, which is obvious when you see it.
Loved this (esp. GOETHE). Seemed to me like a kinder and gentler Wiglaf, but perhaps for some reason I was on the wavelength.
Hovis@5-she may indeed have had a nice pear but did she have a navel?
Nice one, copmus 🙂