A plain puzzle from Azed.
Very little to say about this puzzle, to be honest. Fairly straightforward as Azeds go. Took a while to parse PIOUS, but that apart, nothing overly complicated.
Thanks Azed.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | ASTRAGALUS |
Plant cattle enjoy, one with blend of sugar and salt (10)
|
| A (one) with *(sugar salt) [anag:blend]
Astralagus is the milk vetch genus. |
||
| 10 | JARUL |
Tree with red juice, contents of vessel female drained? (5)
|
| JAR(f)UL (“contents of vessel”) with F (female) drained | ||
| 11 | ABETTOR |
A backer turning round admitting what he’s responsible for? (7)
|
| [turning] <=ROTA (“round”) admitting BET (“what he (a backer) is responsible for”) | ||
| 12 | WRING |
Extract – it’s taken from script (5)
|
| IT‘s taken from WR(it)ING (“script”) | ||
| 13 | SURGENT |
Swelling storm’s beginning, calling for immediate attention (7)
|
| S(torm) [‘s beginning] + URGENT (“calling for immediate attention”) | ||
| 14 | ADORN |
Dress causing trouble before service (briefly) (5)
|
| ADO (“trouble”) before RN (Royal Navy, so “service’, briefly) | ||
| 17 | COAMINGS |
Cape and mino sag badly? They’ll stop water getting in (8)
|
| C (cape) + *(mino sag) [anag:badly]
Coamings are a araised framework around the edges of hatches on ships. |
||
| 18 | PRESET |
Ready for the Bard? English involved requiring advance adjustment (6)
|
| E (English) involved in PREST (“ready” according to the Bard) | ||
| 19 | NUGGET |
Weapon recoiling, acquire lump (6)
|
| <=GUN (“weapon”, recoiling) + GET (“acquire”) | ||
| 21 | ASSIST |
Help e.g. McCartney with book coming out? (6)
|
| (b)ASSIST (“e.g. McCartney”) with B (book) coming out | ||
| 23 | TO-NAME |
Sobriquet, one recalled in book (6)
|
| <=AN (“one” recalled) in TOME (“book”) | ||
| 25 | SUBSOLAR |
Rub lass smeared over in having rays directly overhead (8)
|
| O (over, in cricket) in *(rub lass) [anag:smeared] | ||
| 29 | GRIDE |
Canter on gee in gore once (5)
|
| RIDE (“canter”) on G (gee) | ||
| 30 | ALAWITE |
A rule to note, not the last for Shiite (7)
|
| A + LAW (“rule”) + ITE(m) (“note”, not the last) | ||
| 31 | PIOUS |
What’s suggested by French squaddie, dutiful? (5)
|
| A piou-piou is a French private, and PIOUS could be considered more than one PIOU. | ||
| 32 | DI SALTO |
Lot said when coming adrift at a jump (7, 2 words)
|
| *(lot said) [anag:when coming adrift) | ||
| 33 | MATLO |
One may be found among team at Lorient? (5)
|
| Hidden in [one may be found among] “teaM AT LOrient” and &lit. | ||
| 34 | HALF NELSON |
Restraint that disables son, one assumes? (10, 2 words)
|
| “son” is HALF of NEL-SON | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | AJWAN |
Source of oil in Jamaica turned up, pale (5)
|
| <=JA (International Vehicle Registration code for “Jamaica”, turned up) + WAN (“pale”) | ||
| 2 | SARDAR |
Army chief prince called up and unenlightened king dismissed (6)
|
| <=RAS (“prince”, called up) and DAR(k) (“unenlightened” with K (king) dismissed)
A sardar is a military leader in India. |
||
| 3 | TRIONES |
Plough tilling what’s stonier (7)
|
| *(stonier) [anag:tilling]
Triones is another name for the stars making up the Plough constellation. |
||
| 4 | RUN-RESIST |
Take disturbance gripping lives, rendering ladders less likely (9)
|
| R (take, from the Latin recipe) + UNREST (“disturbance”) gripping IS (“lives”) | ||
| 5 | GAS-BOTTLE |
Tables got rearranged for what some stoves require (9)
|
| *(tables got) [anag:rearranged] | ||
| 6 | LERP |
I’m leaving exam having turned up larval secretion (4)
|
| IM leaving <=PREL(im) (“exam”, having turned up) | ||
| 7 | STEIN |
Rick maybe I wrapped in meshes when erected (5)
|
| I wrapped in <=NETS (“meshes”, when erected)
Rick Stein is an English chef and cookery writer. |
||
| 8 | NONAGE |
Horse in time that’s coming up, immature period (6)
|
| NAG (“horse”) in <=EON (periof of “time”, coming up) | ||
| 9 | ARTISTE |
Entertainer displaying his middle in twisted form of satire (7)
|
| (h)I(s) [middle] in *(satire) [anag:twisted form] | ||
| 15 | PANTALEON |
Number once introduced by piano shortly, or dulcimer (9)
|
| TALE (“number, once”) intorduced by P (piano, in music) + ANON (“shortly”) | ||
| 16 | SIGNORIAL |
Lordly upper crust most take no notice of getting drawn in by (9)
|
| SIAL (“upper crust” of the earth) drawing in most of IGNOR(e) (“take no notice of”) | ||
| 18 | PASSADO |
Fencing thrust causing quiet fool trouble (7)
|
| P (piano in music, so “quiet”) + ASS (“fool”) + ADO (“trouble”)
Chambers has this as an obsolete term, but the clue doesn’t indicate this. |
||
| 20 | GALIOTS |
Work rises filling fuel in old cargo vessels (7)
|
| <=TOIL (“work” rises) filling GAS (“fuel”) | ||
| 22 | SUSLIK |
Chipmunk from southern states? One of the same kind, tailless (6)
|
| S (southern) + US (“states”) + [tailless] LIK(e) (“of the same kind”) | ||
| 24 | MODULO |
Regarding multiplier, low? Largely dim having to divide that (6)
|
| [largely] DUL(l) (“dim”) having to divide MOO (“low”) | ||
| 26 | BLASH |
Heavy downpour in Scotland, scourge after start of bowling (5)
|
| LASH (“scourge”) after [start of] B(owling) | ||
| 27 | MESON |
Subatomic particle like this is defined by employees (5)
|
| SO (“like this”) defined by MEN (“employees”) | ||
| 28 | YILL |
Sandy’s tipple maybe, imbibed in hostelry illimitably (4)
|
| Hidden [imbibed] in “hostelrY ILLimatbly”
Yill is a Scots version of ale. |
Thanks loonapick.
I did have a couple of hmm moments – is ABETTOR an attempt at an &lit?
In PANTALEON, ‘introduced by’ always seems to me to mean prefaced by, as opposed to ‘intoduced into’ – and I mistakenly took the ‘shortly’ to indicate the abbreviation of piano, so didn’t understand the parsing at all.
Isn’t MODULO ‘regarding divisor’ rather?
Thanks as ever to Azed.
I was a little confused by the parsing of PANTALEON, but, of course, it works. It was easy enough to find from the crossers, but the obsolete sense of “tale” threw me for a minute. “Number” always immediately makes me think of “anesthetic” now.
Thanks for the blog, I think we often get a more friendly Plain after the time involved in setting a special like the Spoonerism puzzle.
ABETTOR a bit strange , A backer = a bettor ( someone who backs horses ) so it seems to work in 3 ways .
PASSADO is normal in Chambers93 , must have become obsolete recently.
ALAWITE not in C93 but was obvious.
MODULO, as Gonzo@1 says , modulo arithmetic is all about division , the dictionary is no help to Azed here, it just says refer to modulus which has several distinct meanings.
Gonzo@1 and Roz@3, my Chambers ’98 defines modulo as “with respect to a modulus” and the first definition of modulus given is “a constant multiplier or coefficient”. So “regarding multiplier” seems to supported by that.
ABETTOR – I’m not sure “back” and “abet” mean quite the same thing – abet has the element of incitement, which back doesn’t. But perhaps that’s just nitpicking. Generally, a pretty friendly puzzle.
Roz @3 C2016 has PASSADO as n (obs; fencing) and my C1983 also has it marked as (obs) so your C1993 may be a hiccup?
MunroMaiden @4: Chambers is at fault in its abbreviation of the full entry for modulo in OED :
“With respect to a modulus of (a specified value). See modulus n. 2b”
“2.b.
1808–
A whole number used as a divisor in a system of arithmetic (modular arithmetic)”
– and all the quotations for modulo relate to that meaning.
Gonzo – thanks very much for the clarification. My maths days are now too far behind me to remember very much! However, I guess Azed can be exonerated as having been led astray by Chambers.
Just time to join in. Hello all! Thanks to Azed & loonapick. Joining the blog has to wait till self-impsed challenge of competing successor. Also as a a one-time cyclist the Tour de France occupies a lot of my day. Helas no more. for anothe year. 2717 hasn’t left any memories so I agree with all comments.
Ciao
Keith Thomas@8: “Nah mate—’Oppy’ Opperman was still in his bike at 90.”
Stefan