Standard Rufus fare
It’s Monday, so it’s Rufus.
I was expecting an American themed puzzle today, but got Rufus instead, with his usual blend of double and cryptic definitions, and the occasional straightforward anagram.
Only a couple of quibbles, one of which was the extra “and” in the clue for MUESLI, necessary for the surface, but there’s no A in MUESLI.
The other is the repetition of “principal” as a definition for HEAD, which appears in both 14ac and 8dn.
I did enjoy 15dn, though.
Thanks, Rufus.
| Across | ||
| 1 | COMMERCE | Force acquiring thousands by way of business (8) |
| COERCE “acquiring” MM (“thousands”) | ||
| 5 | ASTUTE | Sculpted statue — that’s clever! (6) |
| *(statue) | ||
| 9 | OVERTIME | Remove it, as ordered, for extra pay (8) |
| *(remove it) | ||
| 10 | PARING | Shaving, father receives phone call (6) |
| PA + RING | ||
| 12 | ISLAM | The Muhammedan world is hit (5) |
| IS + LAM | ||
| 13 | ONONESIDE | Reserved, but singularly partisan (2,3,4) |
| Double definition | ||
| 14 | FORGING AHEAD | Smith’s work with a principal is progressing well (7,5) |
| FORGING + A HEAD
HEAD is defined as “principal” in 8dn as well. |
||
| 18 | AGREE TO TERMS | Conclude negotiations about the academic year? (5,2,5) |
| Double definition of TERMS | ||
| 21 | MONKEY NUT | Food from the earth — £500 to an aficionado (6,3) |
| MONKEY (slang for “£500”) + NUT (“aficionado”) | ||
| 23 | SAUCE | Impertinence one might get from a waiter (5) |
| Double definition | ||
| 24 | NUANCE | Shade that makes little difference (6) |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 25 | ANTIDOTE | Poison counter (8) |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 26 | SADDLE | Bottom place on top of a mount (6) |
| Cryptic definition – where one puts one’s bottom when on a mount | ||
| 27 | ARRESTED | Stopped and taken into custody (8) |
| Double definition | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | COOKIE | Inevitably, it crumbles (6) |
| Cryptic definition
As in “that’s the way the cookie crumbles” |
||
| 2 | MUESLI | Food that makes us extremely slim. lithe and invigorated, for starters (6) |
| First letters of Makes Us Extremely Slim Lithe and Invigorated
I don’t like the “and” being in there. |
||
| 3 | EXTEMPORE | Off the cuff, so to speak (9) |
| Slightly cryptic definition | ||
| 4 | COMMON GROUND | Such land is an accepted basis of discussion (6,6) |
| Double definition | ||
| 6 | SCALE | Plate of fish (5) |
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 7 | UTILISED | Employed the Italian in various duties (8) |
| IL in *(duties) | ||
| 8 | EGGHEADS | Urge school principals to become intellectuals (8) |
| EGG + HEADS
HEAD is defined by “principal” in 14 ac as well. |
||
| 11 | COUNTER-TENOR | A singing bank teller? (7-5) |
| Play on the word COUNTER | ||
| 15 | ARMISTICE | Peace for the time being — it’s a crime, if one breaks it (9) |
| *(its a crime) | ||
| 16 | PAYMENTS | Sort of step many debtors neglect to make (8) |
| *(step many) | ||
| 17 | DRUNKARD | An over-indulgent draughtsman? (8) |
| Someone who has too many draughts | ||
| 19 | PUT OUT | Yet you may feel so, if taken in by somebody (3,3) |
| Play on words | ||
| 20 | LEGEND | A story, for example, viewed in advance (6) |
| E.G. in LEND | ||
| 22 | EXCEL | We hear forty of the Romans distinguish themselves (5) |
| Homophone of XL (“forty” in Roman numerals) | ||
*anagram
Ho-hums 25,27 etc…but did also like 15. Nice to finish something over breakfast for a change 🙂
@1 Or in our case, over per-breakfast coffee
Thanks Rufus and loonapick.
Yes even for me this seemed a bit easy.
I must admit I did have to check google for the slang for 500 pounds once I got NUT for 21a, having had experience before of setters using Cockney slang for denominations of money. This was my LOI.
Disappointing that the clue “principal” was used twice to indicate “HEAD” as part of both 14a FORGING AHEAD and 8d EGGHEADS.
Favourite in a rather lacklustre solve was 26a SADDLE.
Sorry, too impetuous! I realised after posting that you had already commented on the quibble about the repetition of “HEAD”, loonapick.
Thanks loonapick,
If only I had a dollar for every EGGHEAD/S clue seen I cryptics! I also thought EXTEMPORE was weak. Missed the anagram indicator for PAYMENTS and wrongly accused Rufus of yet another weak cryptic.
…cryptic *definition*
A little frustrating due to the number of cds, which made it a little more difficult than Rufus often is, especially in the SW corner – DRUNKARD was last in. Even I spotted the crossing heads, if Rufus didn’t maybe the editor should have…
Thanks to Rufus and loonapick
Me too Beery, far too long staring at 17d, on a stalled tube train. At least it stalled long enough for me to run through many possible combinations. Otherwise straightforward enough, with the same caveats as everyone one else I guess. Quite liked the COUNTER-TENOR.
Thank you Rufus and loonapick.
An enjoyable puzzle for me after the Prize and Everyman over the weekend since I am a slow solver. I first entered GROUND NUT at 21a, but soon realised that something else was needed, had completely forgotten that a MONKEY was slang for £500.
The clues for ARMISTICE, COUNTER TENOR and DRUNKARD were my favourites.
Thanks both.
All pretty standard Rufusian stuff – enjoyable, gentle ease into the week.
Stared at the DRUNKARD clue for a long time before I could call it finished.
See what people mean about the extra and in the MUESLI clue, but I felt it still worked OK.
Julie in Oz – thought of you doing the prize crozzie at the weekend (17ac).
Nice week, all.
I was another GROUNDNUTter but MONKEY NUT is much better. People seem to be a bit sniffy about this puzzle but I thought it was okay. Didn’t see the problem with MUESLI and while using HEADS twice is not ideal it’s a very small sin. I liked ARMISTICE and EXCEL- oh,and COOKIE.
Thanks Rufus.
stumped by 3D, 11D and 17D, missed anagram indicator in 16D, which dried things up a bit. No love for 19D either, v weak. Some of the rest are far too one-note – 27A belongs in a quick crossword.
Thanks to Rufus and loonapick. I started slowly until I remembered that this was a Rufus puzzle and adjusted (e.g., with NUANCE). I remembered MONKEY from previous puzzles and struggled a bit with SCALE, my last in. Enjoyable.
bobloblaw @12 …but it is a quick crossword to most of the clever folk who inhabit this site! – and none the worse for that.
Thanks loonapick and Rufus.
Thanks Rufus and loonapick.
Pretty easy for me too but all the more enjoyable for that. last one in COOKIE. Liked EXCEL.
Thanks Rufus and loonapick
A DNF for me, as I had entered a careless ON THE SIDE, so was unable to get COUNTER TENOR (one of the nicer clues, along with ANTIDOTE and SADDLE). I spent far longer than usual getting some others at the bottom too – PAYMENTS, PUT OUT, LEGEND and ANTIDOTE.
Did anyone else have “skate” for 6d? Apparently, a “plate” is part of a roller-skate.
Yes, I had SKATE. I didn’t notice that it was wrong!
Cookie @9 Surprised you didn’t mention your personal inclusion at 1d.
Loonapick. I liked your “slightly” before “cryptic” – more generous than “scarcely”. I thought the same could be said for “poison counter” = “antidote” at 25a. Still I always enjoy a Rufus.
Enjoyable, even with some weak-ish definitions. I don’t have a problem with the “and “ in the clue for MUESLI, though, which I read as akin to “the first letters of X, Y & Z”. I had “skate” for 6d originally but couldn’t really make it work, then eventually I saw SCALE. Favourites were ARMISTICE, EXCEL and my last two, DRUNKARD and SADDLE.
Thanks, Rufus and loonapick.
jellyroll@17 and muffin@18 – I also had SKATE for 6d. I believe it fits better but did not notice my answer was different from loonapick’s until returning to the blog.
William@10, I think I only got the double meaning for “draughtsman” in 17d because I was still “under the influence” of Paul’s recent Prize theme.
I’m a skater too.
William @19, this cookie is too cakey to crumble…
Thanks loonapick and Rufus.
Not much to add. All the CDs mean that you can’t feel confident about entering an answer till you have all the crossers because of that nagging feeling that there may be alternatives that you haven’t thought of.
But I did like the misdirection in MONKEY NUT.
So always some positives.
thank you Rufus and loonapick
my favourites were EGGHEADS, EXCEL, COUNTER TENOR.
I could not parse MONKEY (slang for “£500”)
Thanks Rufus and loonapick
This was my first Rufus for a while and was surprised at how quickly one gets off his wavelength. Did this after working through the night coordinating a fail over test of the company’s computer systems to its DR site which may have added to my lack of sharpness.
Started in the SW corner with EXCEL and NUANCE and that’s where I finished some time later with COUNTER-TENOR, AGREE TO TERMS (wasted time with CLOSE TO TERMS and trying to disprove PAYMENTS for a while) and DRUNKARD (the trickiest of a number of good cds in the puzzle) the last few in.
Thought that SADDLE was quite clever and didn’t really take issue with the ‘and’ in MUESLI – treating it exactly as jennyk@21.