This week’s Guardian Quick Cryptic, an 11 x 11 crossword designed to teach cryptic crosswords, which can be found here
Ludwig sets this week’s Quick Cryptic, for the second time. Ludwig appeared with the TV series of the same name, and is setting different puzzles for the Guardian. Today we see anagrams and acrostics with all the letters present in the clue, plus soundalikes and a new clue to this slot – naked clues, where both the first and last letters are removed, both these last require the solver to work out the word to manipulate, so can be less accessible. One of the clues I read as a mixture between one given in the clue list and a charade, which aren’t on the list this week, but are why full fat cryptic puzzles are harder – the mixing of different clue types in a single clue.
The whole point of these crosswords is support and encouragement of new solvers, so special rules for these crosswords apply – see here – those rules include not posting solving times.
Following a number of comments we now hide the answers and the wordplay descriptions too. To find that hidden information, click on “Details” and it will pop up, or you can choose to reveal everything using the “Expand All” button. The definition is in bold and underlined, the indicator is in red.
There is a summary of the tricks used in the first six months here and a Guardian Crossword blog called the ultimate beginner’s guide has tips which may be useful for some solvers.
Fifteen Squared uses several abbreviations and jargon tricks, there’s a full list here, of which I’ve used the following in this blog:
- underlining the definition in the clue – this is either at the beginning or end of the clue
- indicators are in red.
- CAPITALS to indicate which bits are part of the answer, e.g. some haVE ALtered meat, Get A Good,or in the example given for naked clues oRANGe shows the answer RANG, plus the fruit “orange”.
- anagram *(SENATOR) shows letters in clue being used, see clue below.
- anagrind the anagram indicator (arranged) – for the clue below
- soundalikes in the example give “Excited as Oscar’s announced (4)’ the soundalike is “Wilde” (shown in inverted commas) as in Oscar Wilde the playwright, who sounds like WILD (excited).
- naked words although I haven’t seen these described as this before, it’s a technique I’m familiar with and recognise most of the indicators given in the puzzle below.
- CAD or clue as definition– where the whole clue gives the definition, sometimes called an &lit.
- DBE or defintion by example – e.g. where a dog might be clued as a setter – often using a question mark, maybe, possibly or e.g. to show that this is an example rather than a definition.
- surface – the meaning from reading the clue – so often cryptic clues use an English that could only be found in a cryptic crossword, but a smooth surface is a clue that has a meaning in English, which can be pointed or misleading.
TODAY’S TRICKS – from the crossword site – which can be found at here – because the clues have moved on from the clue descriptions below, I am now adding more to the descriptions above.
Clues begin or end with a definition of the answer. The rest is one of these:
- Naked words Remove first and last letters from another word for answer
‘Called for citrus to be peeled (4)’ gives RANG - Anagram An anagram of the answer and a hint that there’s an anagram
‘Senator arranged crime (7)’ gives TREASON - Soundalike Something that sounds like the answer
‘Excited as Oscar’s announced (4)’ gives WILD - Acrostic The first letters of the answer
‘Initially get a good joke (3)’ gives GAG
| ACROSS |
Click on “details” to see the solutions | |
| 1 |
Toddlers’ facilities, most blotchy, out of bounds (7)
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POTTIES
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naked word (out of bounds) starting with sPOTTIESt (most blotchy) and removing the first and last letter – out of bounds is crossword speak for removing the bounds (ends)
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| 5 |
Urge to see laughing carnivore skinned (3)
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YEN
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naked word (skinned)* from hYENa (laughing carnivore) – I don’t think we’ve met HYENA clued as a laughing carnivore in these Quick Cryptic puzzles before, but it’s a familiar device, and refers to this animal.
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| 7 |
Giving signal to actor waiting in line, you say? (5)
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CUING
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soundalike of (you say) of “queuing” (waiting in line) – the well-known British pastime
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| 8 |
Mixed cruet when fighting stops (5)
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TRUCE
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anagram of (CRUET)* with anagrind of “mixed”.
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| 9 |
Fake Titian? O, I’m staggered! (9)
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IMITATION
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anagram of (TITIAN O I’M)* with anagrind of “staggered” – with a surface referencing this artist
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| 13 |
Squeezed business end of candle, making sounds in Ayrshire town (9)
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PRESTWICK
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soundalike (making sounds) of “pressed” (squeezed) + WICK (business end of candle) for this Ayrshire town. And this is the clue I think is mixing clue types as there’s both a soundalike and charade here.
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| 15 |
Bands of colour peeled, revealing nonsense (5)
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TRIPE
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naked word (peeled, revealing) from sTRIPEs (bands of colour)
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| 17 |
E.U. ups ridiculous waste (3,2)
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USE UP
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anagram of (E.U. UPS)* with anagrind of “ridiculous” – this is the only possible anagram here, but I’m not totally convinced that to use something up is to waste it – when I’m using up the leftovers in the fridge, I’m making today’s meal out of them so they don’t go off, which is the opposite of wasting those leftovers.
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| 19 |
Grasp at straws, principally empty talk (3)
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GAS
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acrostic of (principally) Grasp At Straws – we were promised acrostic clues in the advertised clue types, so not unexpected to find at least one in the puzzle.
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| 20 |
Enraged, disturbed to see small bomb (7)
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GRENADE
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anagram of (ENRAGED)* with anagrind of “disturbed”.
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DOWN
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| 1 | Choose prison for announcement: child’s play! (6) |
PICNIC
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soundalike (announcement) of “pick” (choose) “nick” (prison) to give child’s play in the sense of something that’s easy – I’m less worried about a mixture of types because both parts are soundalikes and although it’s a charade of soundalikes, it’s the same thing.
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| 2 |
Initially throw oneself into second person in France (3)
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TOI
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acrostic of (initially) Throw Oneself Into for the version of “tu” that relates to me in the first person (English doesn’t have the same distinction, we use “you” for both).
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| 3 |
Thankless type in fireplace, we’re told (7)
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INGRATE
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charade the clue says it’s soundalike (we’re told), but the wordplay is IN (from the clue) + GRATE (fireplace) and there’s no aural wordplay here of GRATE/great which I’d expect for a soundalike, and INGRATE means a thankless type.
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| 4 |
Drunkard taking sips of tequila to begin with (3)
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SOT
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acrostic (to begin with) of Sips Of Tequila to give one of the many English words for drunkard. We could say the indicator is “taking … to begin with” with a split indicator too.
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| 5 |
We will be heard as Scotsman, then Welshman (3,3,1)
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YOU AND I
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soundalike (will be heard as) with anagrind “Euan” (Scotsman) + (then) “Dai” (Welshman) – lots of tricks here – the very small definition of “we” tucked away at one end is typical in cryptic puzzles, then the awful punning word play.
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| 6 |
Leon’s in disguise as another chap (4)
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NOEL
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anagram of (LEON)* with anagrind of “is in disguise as” – here the apostrophe “s” is an apostrophe of omission, rather than possession and we’re reading “Leon is”.
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| 10 |
Suggests most affected by rash must be peeled (7)
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IMPLIES
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naked word (must be peeled) starting from pIMPLIESt (most affected by rash).
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| 11 |
Trespass? Untried, surprisingly (7)
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INTRUDE
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anagram of (UNTRIED)* with anagrind of “surprisingly”
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| 12 |
At the outset, some kids order precise job evaluation in the City (6)
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SKOPJE
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acrostic (at the outset) Some Kids Order Precise Job Evaluation for the capital of North Macedonia
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| 14 |
Unwisely tags raucous kind of party (4)
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STAG
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anagram of (TAGS) with anagrind of “unwisely” for the sort of party that it’s worth crossing the street to avoid.
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| 16 |
Omelette needs this extremely gooey gruyere for starters (3)
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EGG
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acrostic (for starters) of Extremely Gooey Gruyere – referencing the “you can’t make an omelette without breaking some eggs” saying
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| 18 |
Wild, naked for a time (3)
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ERA
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naked word (naked) starting with fERAl (wild) and removing the beginning and end
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Hah, I made the same comment re “use up”/waste on the crossword page itself. But I have to confess there are cases where you might note that somebody has “used up” all their chances, or opportunities etc. with the suggestion they’ve wasted them and they’ve come to nothing.
Agree re unnecessary “soundalike” indicator for ingrate. Oh and “Dai” for Welshman was new.
Dylan N – I checked the online dictionaries (not at home so without hard copies) before quibbling on that one – wasted all your chances can mean used all the opportunities, but the wasted isn’t baked in.
A couple of the naked word clues took a bit of time to solve – in particular IMPLIES which is pronounced differently to PIMPLIEST
I thought the anagrams all had great surfaces
I initially wondered about USED UP too, but I realised it can be wasted / used up your opportunities.
Thanks Ludwig and Shanne
I did not realise that “Euan” is a Scots name.
I also don’t particularly like 17a for “use up” as “waste”, and also one word “up” isn’t all that different from “ups”. I found the Ludwig quick cryptic from a few weeks back had one or two uninspiring clues. Perhaps Ludwig is a newcomer to setting, or at least at QC level?
I liked PRESTWICK, IMPLIES, YEN.
Thanks Shanne and Ludwig.
AR @4 Ludwig is Alan Connor (Everyman) with (originally, for the first two puzzles, not sure if he’s still involved) Enigmatist. Alan Connor is puzzles adviser for Ludwig, the TV series, David Mitchell vehicle.
Enjoyed this weeks outing. Prestwick, Use up and Picnic made mesmile.
Wheras, Skopje, was new to me – had the answer but needed Google to find where it was.
That was more challenging than I expected it to be – in part because of the multiple word soundalikes and the naked words. And put “queue” in for “cuing” as jumped to the wrong conclusion.
My usual talkthrough solve is available at … https://youtu.be/uHk3bsvu-VA … and I’m sure it will provide some tips and tactics on how to approach solving. While the mistake at 7A isn’t great to have so early in the video,
I actually believe it’s useful for beginners to see it’s not always a write-in for the more experienced. Sometimes we need to reassess and correct.
HG @7 I fell into the same trap with queue/cue.
I realise that I hadn’t parsed the first part of 5D. Is Euan a common substitute for Scotsman? It would be nowhere near the top of Scottish male names
Ewan / Euan is a Scottish man’s name – Ewan McGregor the actor, for example, and I can think of several more including one of the band members of Mànran. It’s an anglicisation of the old Gaelic for John, see also Eoin from Irish Gaelic and Owen for Welsh.
It would be nice if the setter could explain 3d to us. As Shanne has mentioned, there seems no purpose to the soundalike indicator, unless it’s simply suggesting that IN GRATE sounds like INGRATE??
Thanks to Shanne and Ludwig
Held up with 1A and 1D. Got IMPLIES but not PIMPLIEST. These are getting tougher.
As others have noted, 13a to my mind is actually a charade including a sounds-like; so not strictly signalled properly for a clue-type for this QC 😄. 3d also slightly dubious in my opinion as it’s more a double-def than the type it’s indicating 😄. And normally I’d have thought ‘cueing’ rather than ‘cuing’ but hey-ho. Otherwise fairly clued and enjoyed having another clue-type introduced with the ‘naked word’ letter removals.
Thanks Ludwig and Shanne.
Easier than the last couple of weeks, in as much as I actually finished. Had to Google both geography clues, and I had to come here for the explanation to ERA (parsed correctly but for some reason I couldn’t think of the weird feral), but other than this it wasn’t too bad.
YOU AND I was my favourite.
Thanks Shanne and Ludwig.
I’d say the soundalike indicator for IN GRATE / INGRATE is there because you have to get from two words to a single word. I think this is what @10 HumbleTim was also saying.
Took a while to parse 1A, 1D & 12D, but was delighted when did, and found some of the Naked clue types quite tricky. Lots to enjoy and learn, thanks Ludwig. PICNIC, PRESTWICK & INGRATE favourites.
Thanks for the great blog Shanne.
Shane @5
Thanks for the reply.
Well, I got that wrong. I stand corrected!
HG@14 – Indeed. I suppose if the special instructions (‘today’s tricks’) don’t include a charade, then unsuspecting solvers might not be expecting one. So the setter is being helpful by adding ‘we’re told’. Well that’s the only way I could make sense of the clue 🙂
So much better than last week’s car crash, glad the standard has returned to something more to my speed. Still found a few particularly difficult, the child’s play bit the me as I couldn’t work out how it fit with the picnic. I also found the “naked” clues hard to do but hopefully will come with practice and exposure!
Thanks again for the blog!
I thought this was an excellent QC, and I’m not the biggest fan of Ludwig’s style. Approachable, lots of easy starts to give you checkers. The trickier clues tended to only have one tricky part – Eg SKOPJE is not the first city you’d think of but an acrostic gives you the letters (a good thing for newer solvers looking to move up to remember). Similarly it took a bit of time to figure out the ‘clothed’ word, (fERAl in particular) but the checking letters and the clue were enough to solve.
Well done, Ludwig! And thanks, as always, to Shanne for the blog.
This was the hardest QC to date for me. Even though I finished it I really struggled with the naked words and I didn’t parse POTTIES or IMPLIES.
Although Euan/Ewan are Scottish names, there is a Welsh name Ieuan or Iwan, which is pronounced exactly the same. So I did think Scotsman was pushing it though just about fair.
I thought this was a great quick cryptic but at the risk of being an ingrate I also didn’t like the INGRATE clue. Came here to hope it could be explained.
Some goodies here so I will let it slide. Liked PICNIC in particular.
Thanks Shanne and Ludwig
I’m relatively new to cryptics and may be using the term incorrectly, but is fireplace a lift and separate situation?
As in “fire place = in grate”
If so, I suppose that would make the the “in” an extraneous linking word.
RJ @22 there’s a discussion about lift and separate clues here – and on Eileen’s blog for the Arachne Prize this week. It’s where a commonly used phrase hides the definition or wordplay, because we think of both parts together and struggle to split them.
Certain setters also lift and separate words so INDEED may mean to put another word of letters in DE….ED, or split a single letter off to solve the clue.
I could see a clue splitting INGRATE to as a way of cluing GRA VITA TE as a lift and separate clues for example, but I don’t think that’s happening here.
It took a while to get into Ludwig’s thinking but I got there eventually. I really enjoyed the jokes 1D 3D 13A. I wasn’t sure how 1A 5D worked although I got the answers also EUEN and DAI. Thanks Shanne for the explanations.
I see other people understood that “picnic” and “child’s play” can mean the same thing, but I had to have Shanne’s explanation to understand that one. Thanks Shanne.
Did anyone else think dimpliest, instead of pimpliest? 🙂
Great QC with a few twisty clues to keep us thinking outside the box.
I enjoy the annotations and discussion as much as the crosswords! Thanks Shanne and Ludwig.