Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of January 7, 2017
As usual with Dogberry, I found this puzzle on the easy side with some very nicely constructed clues. My favourite is 11a (BLITHERING) and I would also single out 3d (DYSPEPSIA). Thank you, Dogberry!
| Across | ||
| 1 | STRIDE | Street on which to go on horseback – or on foot? (6) |
| ST (street) + RIDE (go on horseback) | ||
| 4 | SWITCH | Electrical operator for second weird sister? (6) |
| S (second) + WITCH (weird sister) | ||
| 8 | PERSIST | Carry on being cheeky about South Island (7) |
| S (south) + IS (island) together in PERT (cheeky) | ||
| 9 | PURITAN | Train up deranged fundamendalist (7) |
| Anagram (deranged) of TRAIN UP | ||
| 11 | BLITHERING | Resembling an idiot’s carefree circle (10) |
| BLITHE (carefree) + RING (circle) | ||
| 12 | KITE | Bird putting equipment on its head (4) |
| KIT (equipment) on E[quipment] | ||
| 13 | GLOSS | Clarification of paint, of sorts (5) |
| Double definition. The first definition refers to gloss in the sense of an explanation, interpretation, or paraphrase for a word or phrase. | ||
| 14 | NUMEROUS | Legion’s native wit apprehends bird turning right (8) |
| EMU (bird) backwards + R (right) in NOUS (native wit) | ||
| 16 | ELEPHANT | Animal causing the plane to crash (8) |
| Anagram (causing…to crash) of THE PLANE | ||
| 18 | ROMAN | Citizen of republic presenting king with sultanate (5) |
| R (kind) + OMAN (sultanate) | ||
| 20 | STAR | Lead vermin back (4) |
| RATS (vermin) backwards | ||
| 21 | VERMILLION | Colour of clergyman repulsed large number (10) |
| REV (clergyman) backwards (repulsed) + MILLION (large number) | ||
| 23 | HARMONY | Agreement to damage stone (knock end off) (7) |
| HARM (to damage) + ONY[x] (stone knock end off) | ||
| 24 | DREDGER | Medic impounding riverside boat? (7) |
| R EDGE (riverside) in DR (medic) | ||
| 25 | SADDLE | Seat for Bible scholar in auction (6) |
| DD (Bible scholar, i.e. Doctor of Divinity) in SALE (auction) | ||
| 26 | PSYCHE | Soul of tipsy Cherokee (6) |
| Hidden word | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | SWELL | Get bigger, which is good in the US (5) |
| Double definition | ||
| 2 | RISOTTO | Tailless tortoise cooked in dish (7) |
| Anagram (cooked) of TORTOIS[e] | ||
| 3 | DYSPEPSIA | Days off consuming soft drink result in indigestion (9) |
| PEPSI (soft drink) in anagram (off) of DAYS | ||
| 5 | WRUNG | Twisted cardholder’s step on the ladder (5) |
| W (cardholder, as in bridge) + RUNG (step on the ladder) | ||
| 6 | THINKER | Itinerant tradesman embracing Hamburg’s principal philosopher (7) |
| H[amburg] in TINKER (itinerant tradesman) | ||
| 7 | HEARTBURN | Symptom of 3 making bather run amok (9) |
| Anagram (amok) of BATHER RUN | ||
| 10 | SIGNATORY | Underwriter’s odd gyrations (9) |
| Anagram (odd) of GYRATIONS | ||
| 13 | GALATIANS | Scotsman in prison camp turned to Paul’s addressees (9) |
| IAN (Scotsman) in STALAG (prison camp) backwards. Paul here is Saint Paul who wrote letters to the Galatians. | ||
| 15 | MARDI GRAS | Greatly enjoy artist interrupting planet’s feast day (5,4) |
| DIG (greatly enjoy) + RA (artist) in MARS (planet) | ||
| 17 | PYRAMID | Piano man, initially captured by private record, erected monument (7) |
| P (piano) + M[an] in DIARY (private record) backwards (erected). I am not sure I like ‘erected’ as a reversal indicator. | ||
| 19 | MELODIC | Compiler’s hero turning 100 is tuneful (7) |
| ME (compiler) + IDOL (hero) backwards + C (100) | ||
| 21 | VENAL | Corruptible meat containing trace of nut (5) |
| N[ut] in VEAL (meat) | ||
| 22 | OBESE | Japanese boats capsized, carrying too much weight (5) |
| Reverse hidden word. This seems to be an unconventional clue in that ‘carrying’ serves a dual purpose, as a hidden-word indicator and as part of the definition. Thank you psmith for pointing this out. | ||
Thanks Pete and Dogberry.
Gloss meaning an explanatory note was new to me – although I should have twigged from “Glossary”.
Enjoyable and reasonably gentle.
Pete, re your comment on 17d, “I am not sure I like ‘erected’ as a reversal indicator”: It would of course be unacceptable in a horizontal clue, but I think in a vertical one it is just fine.
Hi Bob, I have given it some thought and looked at definitions and I still don’t care for it. But I know I am fussier than most about anagram, insertion and especially reversal indicators.
Thanks Dogberry and Pete
When I was solving this I immediately raised a question over 21A. I’ve only ever known the colour as VERMILION, and the double-L spelling isn’t supported by my ancient SOED or more modern eChambers. Is it one of those that’s been misspelled so often that the error has become acceptable? (Needless to say I can’t think of an example when I need one!)
Simon S
VERMILLION as an alternative spelling is given in the online versions of Collins and Oxford (albeit the US version of the latter).
Thanks Gaufrid
Good question, Simon S. And thank you Gaufrid for your input. I think of myself as a good speller but I missed this one!
Thanks Dogberry & Pete. I needed your explanation to understand how “cardholder” becomes W in 5 down.
“Obese” is an adjective, so “carrying” must be part of the definition in 22 down as well as indicating that “Japanese boats” contains the hidden word.
Yes, indeed. Thank you for pointing it out.
Thanks Dogberry and Pete
Found this one pretty straightforward over a couple of sessions but did need the blog to equate ‘cardholder’ to W and the first definition of GLOSS as well. Didn’t help the cause by writing in an unparsed MUSICAL at 19d initially and when I got it right with MELODIC didn’t help myself parsing it by getting fixated on CID as the hero.
Finished with MARDI GRAS (which I thought quite good), VERMILLION (with its funny spelling – but couldn’t be anything else) and SIGNATORY as the last one in.