Saturday 30 March 2019

No 12587, Saturday 30 Mar 2019, Dr. X

Across

1. Foresee guys losing money and face (8) ENVISAGE {mEN}{VISAGE}
5. Inclined to run breaking limits of speed (6) SLOPED {Spee{LOPE}D}
10. Caught dear husband dancing around maiden mesmerised (7) CHARMED {C}{DEAR+H*} around {M}
11. Eggs on toast! It’s nice (7) ENTICES {ITS+NICE*} (Correction - INCITES - See comments)
12. Desperate adults wanting date in American city (5) TULSA {AdULTS*}
13. Disheartened wives tackling depression with alcohol indiscriminately (9) WHOLESALE {Wive{HOLE}S}{ALE}
14. Make the critical difference! Destroy plastic sheet (3,3,6) TIP THE SCALES {PLASTIC+SHEET*}
18. Make drunk // approach the principal (2,2,4,4) GO TO ONES HEAD (DD)
21. Strengthen hold on army (9) REINFORCE {REIN}{FORCE}
23. Tree in front of London Bridge (5) LARCH {London}{ARCH}

24. Not new to rock in Goa with rum and fish (7) GOURAMI {In+GOA+RUM*}

25. Criminals concealed aboard steamer (7) SINNERS {S{INNER}S}
26. One carrying marijuana and ecstasy caught by guide (6) REEFER {RE{E}FER}
27. Rogue seen around camp making deals (8) ENTENTES {SEEN*} around {TENT}

Down

1. Conservative aboard flight beginning to earnestly provoke (6) EXCITE {EX{C}IT}{Earnestly}
2. Sailor drawn in by horrible sound (6) VIABLE {VI{AB}LE}
3. Mischievous child wearing fancy coat is congenial (9) SIMPATICO  {COAT+IS*} around {IMP}
4. What a sewer worker might do // to be totally wasted? (2,4,3,5) GO DOWN THE DRAIN (DD)
6. Caught in temptation for riches (5) LUCRE {LU{C}RE}
7. Hazards from potholes over slope (8) PITFALLS {PIT{FALL}S}
8. Criticize essentially and break up (8) DISPERSE {DIS}{PER SE}
9. What a tug-of-war contestant might do // to be obstinate? (3,4,5,2) DIG ONE'S HEELS IN (DD)
15. Tax measure withdrawn in amendment (9) CHALLENGE {CHA{ELL<=}NGE}
16. Jelly in a bait brought up a fish (4-4) AGAR-AGAR {A}{RAG<=}{A}{GAR}
17. Approach contemptible person interrupting a duet rudely (8) ATTITUDE {A+DUET*} around {TIT}
19. Silver ring lost? No great shakes (6) ARGENT {No+GREAT*}
20. Spirits given by good innkeepers (6) GHOSTS {G}{HOSTS}
22. Student breaks bogus chip (5) FLAKE {F{L}AKE}

Reference List


Money=M, Caught=C, Husband=H, Maiden=M, Date=D, New=N, Steamer=SS, Ecstasy=E
Conservative=C, Sailor=AB, Ring=O, Good=G, Student=L

Colour/Font Scheme

DefinitionSolutionComponent lettersEmbedded linksTheme word Anagram IndicatorC/C indicatorReversal IndicatorHidden word IndicatorLetter Pick indicatorDeletion IndicatorHomophone IndicatorMovement IndicatorPositional IndicatorSubstitution, IndicatorLink/Connector, Extraneous

GRID

23 comments:

  1. Lovely puzzle! Some great surfaces and awesome clues. Thanks for the weekend enjoyment Dr.X

    ReplyDelete
  2. 11A Entice? 6d lucre?
    How to fit in the grid

    ReplyDelete
  3. 11A. Its nice has two 'i's. Entices has two 'e's. It should be INCITES.

    ReplyDelete
  4. 1 'Face' colour to be changed.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Lovely grid! Liked aninds 'desperate' adults in 12Ac and also 'rogue' seen in 27Ac. Overall super surfaces. Enjoyable solve today. Thanks Doc.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks, Dooc. No bones broken. Husbands and wives intact. One patient lost to you.

    Liked immensely the aptness in DIG ONES HEELS IN & GO DOWN THE DRAIN. GO TO ONES HEAD f above all, VIABLE.

    ReplyDelete
  7. 24a- shd not the verbal anagram indicator be instructive (rock as opposed to 'to rock'?) Asking as the indicator precedes the fodder.

    1a-root issue

    17d - is 'tit' an acceptable word? some dictionaries call it slang and others derogatory...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. On vacation...so not really in the frame of mind to get into a debate. Points noted and thank you for solving the puzzle Esha!

      Delete
    2. Really Esha? Not found anything good in the puzzle at all.. Only 3 points that too debatable.
      24A:Kindly quote the rule.
      1A:how?
      17d:Not in this sense.

      Delete
  8. doctor X......you have rocked. nice to see the puzzles which are significantly differs with the regular one.1a and 19d was simply superb.....have a r8 week end.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Doc and Esha: TIT is NOT a derogatory word. Tit is also a bird. Tit for tat ; retaliation.

    Every word has to be read contextually. If one's mind is preconceived to read ' derogatory' it will surely go to 'that' meaning. I don't think the doc had 'that'in mind when he composed this clue. Moral taboos have evolved over a period. Today the F and S letters are used as cusswords so freely even by kids in front of elders ! Crossword world is ruled by an unwritten code of using only appropriate words and phrases unless it is a grid meant for out and out ribald solvers. I have seen some in the UK papers. THCC compilers and all others abide by a strict norm not even to imply any ribaldry or double entendres. It is all in the mind and perception of the solvers ! So there !

    Doc: enjoy your vacation !

    ReplyDelete

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