Hi all. Time to party?
The preamble:
All but five clues must have a letter added to enable solving. These letters spell out the first two definitions of a keyword (nine cells in a straight line) that must be highlighted in the completed grid. The five remaining clues consist of wordplay only and their answers are examples of the third definition of the keyword, which could be cryptically described as SHORT KIND OF PARTY DRESS. Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.
Solving was steady, but I still had some loose ends to tie up when I had a completed grid and most of the generated definitions. Scouring the grid, it didn’t take long to spot GARDEROBE as a possible word, especially given the –robe ending. Oh yes, and it also satisfies SHORT KIND OF PARTY DRESS: GARDE[n] ROBE.
Its first two definitions, spelled out by letters inserted into clues:
- A WARDROBE OR ITS CONTENTS
- AN ARMOURY
And the third:
- A private room
Examples of which are CONCLAVE (1a), GAFF (7a), CLOSET (13a), SANCTUM (20d) and BOWER (27d).
Thanks, The Ace of Hearts!
If there is a setter’s blog for this puzzle it will be available after 9am here.
| # | ANSWER | Clue with definition underlined | |
| Explanation, with quoted indicators in italics and ANSWER letters in bold caps | |||
| Across | |||
| 1a | CONCLAVE | Caught once outside toilet (8) | |
| C (caught) + ONCE around (outside) LAV (toilet) | |||
| 7a | GAFF | Beginners in game are finding feet (4) | |
| Initials of (beginners in) Game Are Finding Feet | |||
| 11a | SANITARIA | Artisan rebuilt evacuated Indian<a> hospitals (9) | A |
| An anagram of (… rebuilt) ARTISAN + IndianA without inner letters (evacuated …) | |||
| 12a | ACING | Making superlative strike against second of <w>assailers approaching without honour (5) | W |
| The second of wAssailers + C[om]ING (approaching) without OM (honour) | |||
| 13a | CLOSET | Agree to talk at first (6) | |
| CLOSE (agree to) + Talk at first | |||
| 14a | TORC | Type of necklace to throw in the middle car<a>t (4) | A |
| TO + thRow in the middle + C (carat) | |||
| 15a | GATELEG | Having hinged support, dusty po<r>t with pin (7) | R |
| GATE (dusty port) + LEG (pin) | |||
| 16a | ALAPA | Opening section of Indian music about <d>rink area (5) | D |
| A (about) + LAP (drink) + A (area) | |||
| 17a | TUTENAG | Ho<r>se behind leaders of the underworld to extract alloy (7) | R |
| NAG (horse) behind the first letters of (leaders of) The Underworld To Extract | |||
| 19a | NOSERS | Ancient m<o>users beheaded censors at random (6) | O |
| Without the first letter (beheaded), an anagram of (… at random) cENSORS | |||
| 24a | LOUCHE | Shady hole cub exploited to lose <b>ass (6) | B |
| HOLE CU[b] anagrammed (exploited) is to lose B (bass) | |||
| 25a | MYNHEER | Dutchman is gracious, not ever b<e>aring rear in church (7) | E |
| MY (gracious) + NE’ER (not ever) holding (bearing) the last letter of (rear in) churcH | |||
| 26a | UNBED | R<o>use to take place aboard and in Germany (5) | O |
| BE (to take place) in (aboard) UND (and in Germany) | |||
| 28a | SCARLET | Fine cloth b<r>and to hire (7) | R |
| SCAR (brand) + LET (to hire) | |||
| 30a | MOTU | Small Pacific island marr<i>ed out at sea (4) | I |
| M (married) + OUT anagrammed (at sea) | |||
| 31a | UNTROD | Lone veteran diver<t> round Thailand (6) | T |
| Make an anagram of (divert) ROUND T (Thailand) | |||
| 32a | TO WIT | Namely vermouth on we<s>t books brought back (5, two words) | S |
| IT (vermouth) by (on) the reversal of (… brought back) W (west) and OT (books) | |||
| 33a | SLUMBERED | <C>Loser in business worked as feller dozed (9) | C |
| The last letter of (closer in) businesS + LUMBERED (worked as feller) | |||
| 34a | ELMS | Masculine b<o>ards stripped Welsh trees (4) | O |
| M (masculine) goes into (boards) wELSh without outer letters (stripped …) | |||
| 35a | ERASURES | Prince to keep stable after Easter<n> removals (8) | N |
| RAS (prince) containing (to keep) SURE (stable), after E (eastern) | |||
| Down | |||
| 2d | OECOLOGY | Originally, one Essex court overlooked dull environmental study of plan<t>s etc (8) | T |
| Originally, One Essex Court Overlooked + LOGY (dull) | |||
| 3d | NAIRA | Br<e>ad in Nigeria, an elevated watchful man (5) | E |
| AN reversed (elevated) + IRA (watchful man) | |||
| 4d | LAGGARD | S<n>ail to transport tug back (7) | N |
| LAG (to transport) + DRAG (tug) reversed (back) | |||
| 5d | ANNA | Former Indian piece showing literary anecdotes about neu<t>ron (4) | T |
| ANA (literary anecdotes) around (about) N (neutron) | |||
| 6d | VICTUAL | Container holds crudely cut grain crop<s> from Ayr (7) | S |
| VIAL (container) holds an anagram of (crudely) CUT | |||
| 7d | GAOLER | Large cast outside old Shakespearean <A>dam (6) | A |
| LARGE anagrammed (cast) outside O (old) | |||
| 8d | ARSENIC | Poison Arabian Swede<n> with nice shot (7) | N |
| AR. (Arabian) + S (Sweden) + NICE anagrammed (shot) | |||
| 9d | FATIGUE DUTY | Part of soldier’s work – p<a>unchy guy due to wrangle with it (11, two words) | A |
| FAT (paunchy) + an anagram of (… to wrangle) GUY DUE with IT | |||
| 10d | CAT-AND-MOUSE | Tibe<r>t, say, although second on exercise, waiting for right moment to attack (11) | R |
| CAT (Tibert, say) + AND (although) + MO (second) + USE (exercise) | |||
| 18d | APHETISE | Coarse person drinking <m>ale on raised seat to lose letter (8) | M |
| APE (coarse person) taking in (drinking) HE (male) on reversed (raised) SIT (seat) | |||
| 20d | SANCTUM | Rare South African huntsman essentially reacting with hesitant sound (7) | |
| SAN (rare South African huntsman) + inner letters of (essentially) reaCTing + UM (hesitant sound) | |||
| 21d | SKELDER | American bunk<o> carried by brisk elders (7) | O |
| The answer is in (carried by) briSK ELDERs | |||
| 22d | GOUTTES | Relish exclusive group <u>prising liquid drops in France (7) | U |
| GOUT (relish) + SET (exclusive group) uprising | |||
| 23d | CHARMS | Cold water damages chi<r>ps (6) | R |
| C (cold water) + HARMS (damages) | |||
| 27d | BOWER | Show disapproval of wife returning rupee (5) | |
| BO (show disapproval of) + W (wife) + reversing (returning) RE (rupee) | |||
| 29d | EYRA | <Y>Ear bitten by each wildcat (4) | Y |
| YR (year) in (bitten by) EA (each) | |||