Monday 6 October 2014

No.11207, Monday 06 Oct 2014, xChequer


xChequer's as devious as ever !

Across
1 Twinkle' brought by girls, primarily young (7) GLITTER (G LITTER)
5 Part of it recalled in penny-dropping moment (7) SECTION (IT< in SECONd) d=penny
9 History dons opposed to old preliminary course (9) ANTIPASTO (PAST in ANTI O)
10 Normal illumination starting to fade by this time (5) NIGHT (N LIGHT)
11 Originally called to appear in very brief film (6) VENEER (NEE in VERy)
12 See 14 ac.
14 & 12 ac. Retired? Let's not weep for a change (4,2,5) WENT TO SLEEP (LETS NOT WEEP)*
15 Conspicuous sign fitted (10) NOTICEABLE (NOTICE ABLE)
19 Cases of controls being stretched if electricity gets disconnected? (5,5) POWER TRIPS (2)
20 Tied up a bird (2,2) AT IT (A TIT)
22 Grooms heartily dislike entering unfamiliar stores (7) OSTLERS (L in STORES)*
25 Rose, about to enter study (6) REARED (RE in READ)
27 Yawned and essentially slept on opening day (5) GAPED (GAP E D) ?? Please see comments
28 Attractive girl pouring heart out expressing love (9) GLAMOROUS (GirL AMOROUS)
29 What you do with clues perhaps, exercise followed month and year over (7) DECRYPT (DEC YR< PT)
30 Potter frustrated with Hermione's original brain? (7) THINKER (TINKER H)*

Down
1 Fly spice to the North (4) GNAT (TANG<)
2 Familiar ground? Then I sound negative (2,3,4)  IN THE KNOW ((THEN I)* ~NO)
3 Upset ending in a point (6) TIPPED (2)
4 Bank balance gives error, not good (9) RESERVOIR (GIVES ERROR - G)*
5 Brave small hawk (5) STOUT (S TOUT)
6 Tin case or another, round: may be fired (8) CANISTER (TIN CASE OR -O)*
7 Unmarried people stripped reaching fireplace (5) INGLE (sINGLEs)
8 & 24dn. Organising the trip got nasty, not a pleasant situation (3,1,6,5) NOT A PRETTY SIGHT (THE TRIP GOT NASTY)*
13 Model mistreated over work involving dual parts (3-7) TWO PRONGED (T WRONGED over OP)
16 Key left in a mint by mistake (9) IMPORTANT (PORT in (A MINT)*)
17 As per rules, report purchase, contract, then record the charge (2,3,4) BY THE BOOK (~BUY THEn BOOK)
18 See 26 dn.
21 From ahimsa to rioting — sudden awakening (6) SATORI (T)  New word for me
23 Issue sun hat to cycle (5) TOPIC (TOPI C)
24 See 8 dn.
26 & 18 dn. Easy to understand surely, if nerd gets clumsy (4-8) USER FRIENDLY (SURELY IF NERD)*

GRID

58 comments:

  1. 27 Yawned and essentially slept on opening day (5) GAPED (GAP E D) ??

    GAP: opening
    E: slEpt
    D: day

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks. Missed the obvious!

      Delete
    2. essentially slept on opening = slEpt on GAP = GAPE (A on B = BA)
      + D (Day)

      Delete
    3. I too had written a similar anno but there was a problem in it getting through.
      As Sandhya's anno appeared in the meanwhile, I did not try to repost my anno.
      The point is: why should an anno be repeated by someone else so many minutes after one has been published - unless it indicates precisely what the add-on is?

      Delete
    4. Which is that A on B is BA (which I had mentioned in my unposted Comment).

      Delete
    5. I'm happy that Exch has been careful in that usage. (A on B = BA)

      Delete
    6. Thanks Raghunath, though I must say (and have said earlier) that in an across clue, A on B can give AB or BA. I might end up with the alternate usage some other time!

      Delete
    7. Oh yes and justify it by quoting from www.crosswordunclued.com ;-)

      Delete
  2. 9A 'dons' is used to mean 'puts on' or 'dresses in'
    10A &lit
    Satori is a Japanese Buddhist term for awakening, "comprehension; understanding".

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nice puzzle. Some very good clues

    ReplyDelete
  4. Intelligent, apt and smile-producing surface reading in many clues; good anagram discoveries. A pleasurable experience in solving the puzzle.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I was writing my Comment before ranger's appeared.

    ReplyDelete
  6. 4D 'Balance' is used as AnagrInd.
    Here, it is used in the context of 'arranging, adjusting or proportioning the parts symmetrically.



    ReplyDelete
  7. 30 Potter frustrated with Hermione's original brain? (7) THINKER (TINKER H)*

    Don't think it's an indirect anagram. Frustrate means to check/ block. IMO it is TINKER blocked with H. Could "by" have been a better word in place of "with"?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Had 'frustrated' been used as 'circumvented', then 'with' would not have been necessary.
      Here, it means 'upset', 'agitated' or 'dashed'.
      So, TINKER* with H = T(H)INKER* looks right.

      Delete
    2. in fact, 'frustrated' appears superfluous as 'with' is a containment indicator.

      Delete
    3. You're right, I think. This seems better:

      30 Potter with Hermione's original brain? (7) T(H)INKER

      Delete
    4. Whatever you may say, 'with' is a weak c/c ind.

      Delete
    5. It has been used quite a few times in THC earlier.

      Is the clue an indirect anagram? I don't think Exc would resort to it.

      Delete
    6. 'frustrate' used in the context of 'block' or 'prevent', so Raghunath's 09:13 is right. No containment or ind anag

      Delete
  8. I thought ABLE would be FIT can it be FITTED as well ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As per Chambers: capable, competent, fit, fitted, dexterous, adroit, deft, adept, proficient, qualified, practised, (adj)

      Delete
    2. I too initially had the same doubt as you.

      Delete
    3. Raghunath/Deepak

      I can accept this only if an illustrative sentence is given. Please try!

      Delete
    4. "Fitted" is used as an adj. in the phrase "fitted bedsheets".
      But here fitted is not equal to 'able, competent'.

      Delete
    5. Think you have a valid point CV. Took it from the chamber's list, but may not be the best, though there's probably some usage that validates the dictionary entry. Perhaps someone else can help me out if so, but can't think of it myself right now

      Delete
    6. Here fitted if used before a word makes sense as 'competent, able' and not at the end. My grammar's pretty weak so unable to answer CV's challenge

      Delete
    7. In any crossword dictionary or thesaurus or clue-sol dB, the suggestions are only suggestions: not always can we substitute one for another.
      Some discretion on our part is needed.
      - By one who might have come to grief on a rare occasion by doing exactly that. Didn't someone say Experience is a great teacher?

      Delete
  9. 5 Brave small hawk (5) STOUT (S TOUT)

    I took it as S+KITE which is also 'Brave' as per dic and flew off in the wrong direction.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. But, if so, 'brave small' will only give KITE S, right?

      Delete
    2. I meant Brave = S KITE. Now I'm not able to find that word in the dictionary. Must have been seeing things.

      Delete
  10. Nice enjoyable 'Decrypt'. My score is much better than my average for an xChequer puzzle. Of course, had some doubts about a few annos- cleared here.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hawk= tout- known well but does not come to mind easily.

    ReplyDelete
  12. A small doubt about 6D. How is 'O' deleted? Am I missing something?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Round may be fired, with the def on double duty

      Delete
    2. Raghu, another is anagrind , fodder is ' tin case or' from which O is deleted.

      Delete
    3. I got it after I posted and then deleted it. Thanks anyway.

      Delete
    4. I think the clue is an &lit

      Delete
    5. I don't think so. Case does double duty. Am I missing something here.

      Delete
    6. Canister is a case/ can which can (sorry for the repetition) be fired, so I think the whole clue 'can' be taken as the def.

      Delete
    7. 6D is a composite anagram

      Delete
    8. Interesting to see the various points of view, kudos to this blog. Intended as an &lit, the whole clue being the def. So, Raghu has it right again in my book. Generally avoid 'double duty' anyway

      On a similar note, 10a was also meant as a kind of &lit, the purists may be able to say which variety!

      Delete
    9. In 10A, I believe "by this time" does not contribute to wordplay. That would make it a semi &lit (as whole clue = definition)

      Delete
  13. +1 to the tagline . every xChequer puzzle is a journey of discovery and delight.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Shrikanth and cheers, we have to catch up again soon!

      Delete
  14. What is the role of the apostrophe after Twinkle in 1A?

    ReplyDelete
  15. I think the initial apo is missing; it may be a misprint at the publisher's end.
    The setter may have enclosed it in apos to indicate that he is thinking of a mag by that name (as can be guessed by the clue as a whole).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The mag is Tinkle, I think, not Twinkle

      Delete
    2. That is possible. Or maybe the apostrophe itself is a misprint.

      Delete
    3. 'Twinkle' was in quotes, the leading one missed in publication as rightly observed by CV. A British comic paper for little girls running from late sixties to almost the turn of the century.

      Delete
  16. Happy Eid al-Adha Mohsin and others

    ReplyDelete
  17. Nice puzzle... Got almost all... but every enjoyable CANISTER was the COD for me... TANG comes up again (3rd special also had it).

    ReplyDelete

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