My four-weekly blog of the Guardian Quiptic puzzle, the online only Sunday Cryptic found here
Pangakupu continues to set entertaining puzzles at all levels, from the Quick Cryptic to the Genius, plus regular appearances elsewhere.
I hope I’ve covered any contentious areas, I’m not sure how much I’m going to be around today.
| ACROSS | ||
| 4 | WRENCH |
Damsel embracing another, ultimately a hard thing to bear (6)
|
| insertion (embracing) of R (anotheR, ultimately) in WENCH (damsel) | ||
| 6 | BED-QUILT |
Teaching degree? Resign about student coverage at night (3-5)
|
| charade of BED (Teaching degree – BEd) + QUIT (resign) around (about) L (student) | ||
| 9 | TROPIC |
Discussion item admitting river forms line on map (6)
|
| insertion (admitting) of R (river) into TOPIC (discussion item) – the Tropic of Cancer or Capricorn are lines on a map. | ||
| 10 | LOCALITY |
Pub and brewery finally introducing it in the area (8)
|
| charade of LOCAL (pub) + Y (brewerY finally) around (introducing) IT (from the clue) | ||
| 11 | DEMOGRAPHIC |
Protest followed by explicit part of the population (11)
|
| charade of DEMO (protest) + GRAPHIC (explict) – the “followed by” gives the order of the components | ||
| 15 | ANTONYM |
Opposite of Caesar, J? (7)
|
| whimsical double definition – one of the opponents of Julius Caesar was Mark Antony, expressed in the same format (Caesar J) becomes Antony M | ||
| 17 | BARGAIN |
Reader initially gripped by book once more – it’s a good buy (7)
|
| insertion (gripped by) of R (Reader initially) in B (book) + AGAIN (once more) – B for book is in Chambers, one of the lists further down the page listing abbreviations. | ||
| 18 | SINGAPOREAN |
Person again troubled resident of city-state (11)
|
| anagram (troubled) of (PERSON AGAIN)* | ||
| 22 | MELODIST |
Song-writer seldom getting confused with it (8)
|
| anagram (confused with) of (SELDOM + IT)* – not a word I’ve come across before, but it had to be that. MELODIST is in Chambers under MELODY. | ||
| 23 | JOSHUA |
Religious writer to ridicule leaders of Unitarian Adventists (6)
|
| charade of JOSH (to ridicule) + U A (leaders of Unitarian Adventists) – JOSHUA is one of the more militaristic books of the Bible chronicling the Jewish peoples’ conquest of the land of Canaan. | ||
| 24 | OVERVIEW |
Completed challenge with summary (8)
|
| charade of OVER (completed) + VIE (challenge) + W (with). W for “with” turns up in old handwritten manuscripts, which are full of little shortcuts, but we still use it in wrt or w/o or waiters jutting down food requests. | ||
| 25 | BROWSE |
Items often furrowed before end of intense look over the shelves? (6)
|
| charade of BROWS (items often furrowed) + E (end of intensE) – and the question mark is indicating a definition by example – the original meaning is of cattle/sheep/deer feeding on rough herbs. | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | ACTING |
Account with money? Grand, though not really in the post (6)
|
| charade of AC (account) + TIN (money) + G (grand) – TIN for money is in Chambers as slang – both English and Australian workers referring to worn down silver coins that looked like tin. G for grand comes from American slang for money ($1000 = a grand). | ||
| 2 | XENOPHOBIA |
Vandalised phone-box: one’s beginning to anticipate anti-foreigner sentiment (10)
|
| anagram (vandalised) of (PHONE-BOX)* to get XENOPHOB + I (one from the clue) + A (beginning to Anticipate) | ||
| 3 | SQUAD CAR |
Police vehicle: evidence of damage seen around one in four? (5,3)
|
| insertion (around) – SCAR (evidence of damage) around QUAD (one in four). QUAD in this sense is an abbreviation of quadruplet. | ||
| 4 | WITHDRAW |
Retract intelligence on origin of huge lottery (8)
|
| charade of WIT (intelligence) on H (origin of Huge) + DRAW (lottery) | ||
| 5 | ENORMITY |
Minor yet somehow a great crime (8)
|
| anagram (somehow) of (MINOR YET)* | ||
| 7 | IRIS |
Flag of European country getting trimmed (4)
|
| deletion (getting trimed) of IRISh (of European country) – the IRIS is often called a flag or flag iris – apparently from Old English where flagge means rushes or reeds. | ||
| 8 | TOYS |
Component of extravagant oyster trifles (4)
|
| hidden word (component of) in extravaganT OYSter | ||
| 12 | ADMINISTER |
Run a diocese, at first followed by member of clergy (10)
|
| charade of A (from the clue) D (Diocese at first) + (followed by) MINISTER (a member of clergy) | ||
| 13 | GAME SHOW |
Was home, excited to support good TV programme? (4,4)
|
| anagram (excited) of (WAS HOME)* supporting G (good) – so G in front. G for good comes from second-hand coin or book grading on sale catalogues. | ||
| 14 | INUNDATE |
Popular time to go round a French swamp (8)
|
| ordered charade – IN (popular) + DATE (time) around UN (a French – “a” in French) | ||
| 16 | NOSEDIVE |
Decline instantly: one’s worried over dodgy bar (8)
|
| anagram (worried) of (ONE’S)* to get NOSE over (ordering instruction in a down clue) DIVE (dodgy bar) | ||
| 19 | ODOURS |
Party, upsetting for us, stinks (6)
|
| charade of OD (DO = party, upsetting) + OURS (for us) | ||
| 20 | AMMO |
Material to support attack in backgammon (4)
|
| hidden word (in) backgAMMOn | ||
| 21 | GLUE |
Limits to general use adhesive (4)
|
| outside letters (limits to) GeneraL UsE – limits is an instruction to use the outer letters – here to use them to make a word. |
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