Orense provides today’s challenge.
This was one of those puzzles where working out the long answers helped me to complete the rest of it.
I was unconvinced by the use of “rear” in 4dn, and was disappointed to see L clued as “student” not just once but twice.
Thanks, Orense.
| Across | ||
| 1 | VISTA | Prospect of victory before one’s expression of gratitude (5) |
| V(victory) before 1’s (“one’s”) + TA (“expression of gratitude”) | ||
| 4 | CASSEROLE | Bag containing small part for pot (9) |
| CASE (“bag”) containing S (small) + ROLE (“part”) | ||
| 9 | STICK-UP | Drink, accepting credit for robbery (5-2) |
| SUP (“drink”) accepting TICK (“credit”) | ||
| 10 | SACKING | Not working enough, ignoring student’s material (7) |
| S(l)ACKING (“not working enough”, ignoring L (“student”)) | ||
| 11 | HARD=BOILED EGG | Cynical, for example, before good breakfast perhaps (4-6,3) |
| HARD-BOILED (“cynical”) + E.G. (“for example”) before G (good) | ||
| 14 | LARK | Fun time for the early riser? (4) |
| Double definition, the second relating to the saying “up with the lark” | ||
| 15 | ROTTERDAM | City gent who’s unprincipled died in the morning (9) |
| ROTTER (“gent”) + D (died) + A.M. (“in the morning”) | ||
| 18 | ELEVENSES | 17 bets regularly on teams (9) |
| (b)E(t)S [regularly] on ELEVENS (“teams”) | ||
| 19 | BRAN | Shortly make something for breakfast (4) |
| BRAN(d) (“make” shortly) | ||
| 21 | INSUBORDINATE | Rebellious Britain’s due no changes (13) |
| *(britains due no) | ||
| 24 | TRADE-IN | Hurry back with a German car used in part exchange, say (5-2) |
| <=DART (“hurry” back) with EIN (“a” in “German”) | ||
| 26 | OSPREYS | Birds found in large quarries (7) |
| OS (outsize, so “large”) + PREYS (“quarries”) | ||
| 27 | STRIKE PAY | One refuses to work for such money (6,3) |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 28 | TOTES | Carries babies across Spain (5) |
| TOTS (“babies”) across E (international vehicel identifier for “Spain”) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | VAST | Large container full of sulphur (4) |
| VAT (“container”) full of S (sulphur) | ||
| 2 | SMITHEREENS | Bits of NHS see merit in chaos (11) |
| *(nhs see merit) | ||
| 3 | ANKARA | Capital invested in bank? A racket (6) |
| Hidden in [invested in] “bANK A RAcket”
Ankara is the capital of Turkey. |
||
| 4 | CAPYBARAS | Rodents seeing unknown horse rear, within limits (9) |
| Y (“unknown” in mathematics) + <=ARAB (“horse” rear) within CAPS (“limits”)
I’m not convinced by the use of “rear” here. |
||
| 5 | SUSHI | Dish from southern States – hot one (5) |
| S (southern) + US (the “States”) + H (hot) + I (“one”) | ||
| 6 | ESCHEWED | Avoided school in the outskirts of Edgware and got hitched (8) |
| Sch. (school”) in [the outskirts of] E(dgwar)E + WED (“got hitched”) | ||
| 7 | OBI | Sash Holbein regularly used (3) |
| (h)O(l)B(e)I(n) [regularly]
An obi is a broad sash worn over a kimono |
||
| 8 | ENGAGEMENT | Fighting that might lead to union (10) |
| Double definition | ||
| 12 | ENDORSEMENT | Sanction finish with topless riders on time (11) |
| END (“finish”) + (h)ORSEMEN (topless “riders”) on T (time) | ||
| 13 | ALLEVIATES | Provides relief if a student leaves it out (10) |
| A L (learner, so “student”) + *(leaves it) | ||
| 16 | TESTIMONY | I am working, beset by bad- tempered witness (9) |
| I’M (“I am”) ON (“working”) beset by TESTY (“bad-tempered”) | ||
| 17 | TEA BREAK | Leaves baker worried for rest of workforce (3,5) |
| TEA (“leaves”) + *(baker) | ||
| 20 | CARPET | Dress down dear – supporting vehicle (6) |
| PET (“dear”) supporting CAR (“vehicle”) | ||
| 22 | RUN-UP | Hoist ladder at university (3-2) |
| RUN (“ladder” as in stockings) + UP (“at university”)
I think the enumeration should have been (3,2) rather than (3-2) |
||
| 23 | USES | Exercises adopted by amorous escorts (4) |
| Hidden in [adopted by] “amoroUS EScorts” | ||
| 25 | AIR | Means of travelling first-class rail, originally (3) |
| A1 (“first-class”) + R(ail) [originally] | ||
*anagram
I think the use of “rear” for reversal in a down clue is fine. Rear meaning ‘raise, bring up etc’ seems ok to me.
Wasn’t sure about witness = testimony but checked out in Chambers.
Thanks to Orense and loonapick.
Hovis – I think my objection to “rear” is more grammatical. “Rearing” may have been better.
I see. I’m still ok with rear. It also has the benefit of suggesting a last letter whereas ‘rearing’ wouldn’t have that mislead. Agree that ‘rearing’ does read a little better though.
Thanks Orense and loonapick
Like Hovis, I’m happy with rear, especially in context: if you ‘see a horse rear’ you see it ‘up’ on its back legs, which to me fits the clue perfectly.
Yes, but if you see an unknown horse rear, you’d expect <=ARAB Y, rather than <=Y ARAB
Thanks to Orense and loonapick. Enjoyable. I knew CAPYBARAS but not how to spell it – and needed help with the parsing of “rear.”
4d is perfectly straightforward. Unknown “Y” Horse rear “BARA” Within limits “CAPS”. In my ‘umble opinion, nuffink wrong with that.
Thanks to loonapick and Orense
The cryptic grammar in 4d doesn’t work – SEEING either applies to the whole object – UNKNOWN HORSE – in which case it should be YARAB raised, or if it applies only to UNKNOWN, then rear should be REARING. The surface is bizarre whichever way you read it.
I also don’t like “Think of a synonym and use it’s abbreviation” re student – L.
@15a Ladies can be rotters too (I’m told), perhaps CITY TYPE
I liked the rest of it
Thanks Orense and loonapick
A nice puzzle that was easily finished over a sandwich at lunch time, starting off with STICK-UP and finishing right next door with SACKING about a half hour later. Knew that the rodent was a CAPY-something but needed the crossers to remember the rest of it. Took a while to equate BRAND with make – until it slowly dawned that he was talking about types of products.
No real standouts in a no-nonsense but pleasant and steady solve.