Phi in his usual Friday slot.
Enjoyable as always from this setter, though I was beginning to get a bit bored with “one = I” when it came up for the fourth time. I liked the rather neat 9a, the extended definition of 3d, and the polite if slightly obscure choice of definition for 7d.
Phi’s puzzles fall into three categories regarding themes. There may be no theme at all; there may be one for Phi’s personal amusement that the rest of us have no hope of identifying; or there may be something straightforward that we really ought to see. I’m assuming this puzzle is in one of the first two categories. Thanks Phi as always.
Definitions are underlined; BOLD UPPERCASE indicates letters used in the wordplay; square brackets [ ] indicate omitted letters.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | GRASS |
Singer to comprehend soprano needs no piano (5)
|
| GRAS[p] (to comprehend) + S (abbreviation for soprano), without P (p = abbreviation for Italian piano = musical notation for quiet).
Singer = grass = slang for an informer. |
||
| 4 | DAMSELFLY |
Defy small buzzing insect (9)
|
| Anagram (buzzing) of DEFY SMALL. | ||
| 9 | AFTERNOON |
Not looking for anybody, not entirely, at this time of day (9)
|
| AFTER NO-ON[e] (not looking for anybody), without the last letter (not entirely). | ||
| 10 | BIRDS |
Offers to catch right creatures (5)
|
| BIDS (offers) containing (to catch . . .) R (abbreviation for right). | ||
| 11 | GOSSAMER |
American pursuing scandalous rumours without much substance (8)
|
| AMER (Amer. = abbreviation for American, especially as in N.Amer. or S.Amer.), after (pursuing) GOSS (short for gossip = scandalous rumours).
As an adjective, gossamer = thin and insubstantial, like very fine gauze fabric or cobwebs. |
||
| 13 | HELIUM |
Shop not opening, beset by stench? Gas (6)
|
| [d]ELI (short for delicatessen = a shop), without the first letter (not opening), contained in HUM (slang for a bad smell = stench). | ||
| 15 | WHITE LIGHT |
Broken leg, hit with beam, getting split? (5,5)
|
| Anagram (broken) of LEG HIT WITH.
A slightly odd definition, but I think Phi is referring to passing a beam of white light through a prism to split it into a spectrum of different wavelengths (colours). |
||
| 16 | BACK |
Chess player with no large sponsor (4)
|
| B[l]ACK (one of the two players in a chess match), without L (abbreviation for large). | ||
| 18 | PUMA |
Big cat turned up in the morning after making retreat (4)
|
| UP reversed (turned), then AM (am = abbreviation for Latin ante meridiem = before noon = in the morning) reversed (after making retreat). | ||
| 19 | LAW-ABIDING |
Honest lecturer mostly absent – substantial racket moving in? (3-7)
|
| L (abbreviation fror lecturer) + AWA[y] (absent) without the last letter (mostly), then BIG (substantial) with DIN (racket = loud unpleasant noise) moving into it. | ||
| 22 | OSSIAN |
Empty odes? Wrong to include a legendary Irish poet (6)
|
| O[de]S (empty = inner letters removed) + SIN (wrong, as a noun = a bad deed), including A.
Supposed author of a cycle of poems published by the 18th-century Scottish poet James Macpherson; it’s been suggested that Macpherson wrote much of it himself, based on earlier traditional poems. |
||
| 23 | TWOPENCE |
Women’s golf tournament in Barking etc. getting minimal funding? (8)
|
| W (abbreviation for women’s) + OPEN (a tournament in golf or other sports where anyone can enter regardless of professional or amateur status), inside an anagram (barking = crazy) of ETC. | ||
| 25 | ILIAD |
Article probing one top poem (5)
|
| A (grammatically, the indefinite article), inserted into I (one in Roman numerals) + LID (top of a container).
Ancient Greek epic poem attributed to Homer. |
||
| 26 | HIT-OR-MISS |
Erratic? Most Irish will be erratic (3-2-4)
|
| Anagram (erratic) of MOST IRISH. Clearly one “erratic” is the definition and the other is the anagram indicator. I think it works either way, but I’ve taken “will be” as the link between wordplay and definition. | ||
| 28 | EGG-BEATER |
Vegetarian, but not vegan, going around British helicopter (3-6)
|
| EGG EATER (vegetarians will usually eat eggs, but vegans won’t) around B (abbreviation for British).
Slang for a helicopter, referring to its spinning rotors; presumably coined as a derogatory term by pilots of fixed-wing aircraft. |
||
| 29 | TREES |
Supports enclosing river bays? (5)
|
| TEES (supports for golf balls) enclosing R (abbreviation for river).
Definition by example: bay = laurel tree, or various other tree species with similar leaves. |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | GLASGOW |
City in the part of Germany initially bathed in light (7)
|
| AS (in the part of = playing a role on stage or film, as in “David Tennant as Hamlet”) + initial letter of G[ermany], contained in GLOW (bathed in light). | ||
| 2 | ART |
Contents of gallery shock – religious figure departing (3)
|
| [st]ART (a shock, as in “it gave me quite a start”), without ST (abbreviation for saint = religious figure). | ||
| 3 | STREAKER |
Uncovered person about to engage in bet and run? (8)
|
| RE (about = on the subject of), inserted into STAKE (money placed as a bet) + R (abbreviation for run, in cricket scoring).
Extended definition: someone who runs naked across a sports field or other public place, often as a result of a bet. |
||
| 4 | DUODECIMAL |
What could be arranged by twelve? Broadcast media could (10)
|
| Anagram (broadcast = scattered) of MEDIA COULD.
Descriptive of a counting system with base 12 instead of base 10, such as pre-1971 British shillings and pence. |
||
| 5 | MIND |
Extracted coal, perhaps extracting energy, generating attention (4)
|
| MIN[e]D (extracted natural resources, perhaps coal, from underground), without the E (abbreviation for energy).
As in “pay no mind to . . .” or “if you put your mind to it”. |
||
| 6 | EMBLEM |
Revolutionary Internet concept involving British Library symbol (6)
|
| MEME (an image, video or phrase that becomes widely used on the Internet) reversed (revolutionary), containing BL (abbreviation for the British Library in London, website bl.uk). | ||
| 7 | FORNICATION |
In favour of state retaining one constant feature of church architecture? (11)
|
| FOR (in favour of) + NATION (state), containing I (one in Roman numerals) + C (abbreviation for a mathematical constant).
It means arched structures, such as those holding up the roof of a traditional church building. Any other interpretation is your own business. (But the derivation seems to be from the Latin fornix for a vault with an arched roof, which then suggests an underground hideaway where you can meet someone in secret.) |
||
| 8 | YASHMAK |
Muslim dress remains a source of mystery in conversation (7)
|
| ASH (remains from something burned) + first letter (source) of M[ystery], in YAK (slang for conversation, especially annoying or trivial chatter).
A Muslim veil that covers the face below the eyes. |
||
| 12 | SKIRMISHING |
Small monarch involving one military group with his scrappy, scrappy fighting (11)
|
| S (abbreviation for small) + KING (monarch), containing I (one in Roman numerals) + RM (abbreviation for Royal Marines = military group) + anagram (scrappy) of HIS. | ||
| 14 | SHEARWATER |
That woman arrived clutching a wet struggling seabird (10)
|
| SHE (that woman) + ARR (abbreviation for arrived, in railway and flight timetables), containing an anagram (struggling) of A WET.
A bird in the petrel family, named for its habit of flying very low over sea waves. |
||
| 17 | DISPIRIT |
Discourage detective with exact image about one murderer’s latest (8)
|
| DI (abbreviation for Detective Inspector) + SPIT (short for “spitting image” = an exact match), around I (one in Roman numerals) + last letter (latest) of [murdere]R. | ||
| 18 | PROVIDE |
Offer expert a bit of difficulty in contest (7)
|
| PRO (short for professional = expert), then the first letter (a bit) of D[ifficulty] inserted into VIE (contest, as a verb = compete). | ||
| 20 | GUESSES |
Supposes visitors to lose time touring South-East (7)
|
| GUES[t]S (visitors) without T (abbreviation for time), around SE (abbreviation for south-east).
Guess = suppose = to assume without proof. |
||
| 21 | DANDLE |
Lightly jiggle odd bits of dull earth (6)
|
| D AND L (the odd-numbered letters of D[u]L[l]), then E (abbreviation for earth, in electrical wiring).
To bounce [a young child] gently on your lap or in your arms. |
||
| 24 | CHAT |
Discuss beginning with ceramic tile (4)
|
| First letter (beginning) of C[eramic], then HAT (tile = old-fashioned slang for a hat). “Beginning with” is an odd construction for taking the first letter, but I suppose one can “begin with” or “start with” a long complicated task by doing the first step of it. | ||
| 27 | ICE |
Bad behaviour sees dropping of first reserve (3)
|
| I think this is [v]ICE (bad behaviour) dropping the first letter.
Ice, as a verb = “put on ice” = reserve for later. UPDATE: KVa @1 suggests ice, as a noun = reserve = a person’s unfriendly character, which I think is a better explanation. |
Thanks Phi and Quirister.
WHITE LIGHT and CHAT
Agree with the comments of the blogger.
ICE
I took it as ICE (noun) = reserve (referring to a person’s attitude).
So, ladies of the night tended to loiter under fornices for purposes of gettig up to it, who knew? Wonderfully dry definition!
I thought ice meaning [p]reserve, but it’s a bit hmm, and yours is as plausible, KVa @1. Only vaguely aware of the Irish poet but just did what it said on the tin, and took ages to remember the old d and l trick for dandle, groan! Nice steady solve, ta PnQ.
Fell well short of finishing this outing, with the NW causing the most problems.
I got FORNICATION from the wordplay and went to the Chambers app for confirmation of the meaning. Was amazed to find it wasn’t in with any definition (fornix and fornical being the closest). Thought I must have misentered it but no. Earlier this morning, I played the Countdown app. In one round, it informed me I could have had the 8-letter word ‘expresso’. This is in Chambers. What’s happening with the world?
KVa @1: thanks, I think your version of ICE is better. I’ve updated the blog.