Satyen Nabar's Sun Spl analysed

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Saturday, 4 May 2019

No 12617, Saturday 04 May 2019, xChequer


Across

7. Moment when setter's left on board (6) IMPORT {I'M}{PORT}
8. Predominant decision (6) RULING (DD)
10. Legend has ocean inundating most of vast island (3,5) KEY LARGO {KEY}{O} around {LARGe}
11. Motivating when son gets promoted for passing (6) CASUAL {CA(+S)U(-s)AL}
12. Native American disrespectfully inhabiting virgin jungle (5) INJUN (T)
14. Sight of mince pies baking (7) EYESHOT {EYES}{HOT}
15. How to name cluster that is styled 'Benelux'? (3,3,9) THE LOW COUNTRIES  {HOW+TO+N+CLUSTER+IE*}
18. Basis of potential energy ejecting object at launch (7) PREMISE {PR(-o+E)MISE}
19. Military trainee acted at war (5) CADET {ACTED*}
20. Husband shaves to return in highest of spirits (6) SERAPH {{H}{PARES}}<=
21. Retire to become … (4,4) TURN INTO {TURN IN}{TO}
23. … minor player that racket sports need for programme (6) CODING {CO{DIN}G}
24. Tick climbed up and down (6) MOROSE {MO}{ROSE}

Down

1. Breathing hard without sense to swallow (4,4) LIVE WITH {LIVE}{WIT}{H}
2. Gem of a friend (4) OPAL {O'}{PAL}
3. Thirsty work in practice (3,3) DRY RUN {DRY}{RUN}
4. Poor uncle working to obtain hot meal (8) LUNCHEON {UNCLE*}{ON} around H}
5. Endure short, sharp shock if storks hide bundles away (4,3,3) KISS THE ROD {STORKS+HIDE*}
6. Shocked by features in a sports car (6) AGHAST {A}{G{HAS}T}
9. Performed too frequently and deed then is ____ __ _____? (4,2,5) DONE TO DEATH {TOO+AnD+dEeD+THEN*} &lit Thanks Col. for the anno
13. Sweetheart coming to position, ideal posing for unconventional beauty (5,5) JOLIE LAIDE {JO}{LIE} {IDEAL*} Thanks to Google
16. Say cat’s paw under control (4,4) WHIP HAND {WHIP}{HAND} Thanks Col. for the anno
17. One in ten new couples objects (8) ENTITIES {I} in {TEN*}{TIES}
18. Lace branches into cover for path? (6) PLEACH {LACE*}in {PatH} &lit
19. Bottle from pub reserved for the Reverend (6) CARBOY {(-b+C)AR}{(-c+B)OY}
22. Happening to take care of figure (4) ICON {I{CO}N}

Reference List
Ocean=O, Son=S, Name=N, That is=I.E., Energy=E, Husband=H, Tick=Mo
Of='O, Working=On, Hot=H, Sweetheart=Jo, One=I, Care of=C/O

Colour/Font Scheme

Definition, Solution, Component letters, Embedded links, Theme word,  Anagram Indicator, C/C indicator, Reversal Indicator, Hidden word Indicator, Letter Pick indicator, Deletion Indicator, Homophone Indicator, Movement Indicator, Positional Indicator, Substitution, Indicator, Link/Connector, Extraneous

GRID
at

35 comments:

  1. Vasant4 May 2019 at 09:05

    The expected Toughie. Thanks to the blog for so many annos and XChequer for the challenge

    ReplyDelete
  2. Chaturvasi4 May 2019 at 10:22

    I have often wondered at many of the strange, off-beat words/phrases/expressions that form part of xC's gridfills. Take JOLIE LAIDE, for instance. I have not used it at all in any of my 1050 plus puzzles and I can't even imagine using it as I have never come across it before. Have I been leading a sequestered, cloistered life while the whole wide world lay before me?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Padmanabhan4 May 2019 at 11:10

      A few days back the topic of unfamiliar English words/ phrases being used in Indian CW's came up. This is a case in point.

      Delete
    2. Kolluru Koteswara Rao4 May 2019 at 11:35

      It should not be a surprise. In reality, we don't even know many of the words/phrases/expressions in our own mother tongue/languages. So, why should it be a point of worry? In the instant case, this ugly[but beautiful]woman is of French origin. So, no wonder if one doesn't know it. There are several other words in the dictionaries, which the setters might themselves have not come across before setting a clue on it.

      Delete
    3. sree_sree4 May 2019 at 12:16

      When the words are such rare, having anagram makes it almost impossibly to reach the answer. Heard the term very recently in the context of metoo movement, so guessed it with Jo.
      Interesting reading on what that JL represents to that movement.
      https://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/16/style/tmagazine/the-unfairest-of-them-all.html

      Delete
    4. Padmanabhan4 May 2019 at 12:34

      Yes. When the words/ phrases are rare (esp. French etc.) wp should lead to the solution more directly.

      Delete
    5. Chaturvasi4 May 2019 at 12:53

      Please note that my Comment is not in any dispproving way. I was only wondering where from does the setter get some of the quaint phrases that I see in his work.

      Delete
    6. Kolluru Koteswara Rao4 May 2019 at 13:53

      Our comments are also not in any way meant to offend our great setters. Even a four-letter-word, if not heard before, can equally entice in the grid!

      Delete
  3. Girish4 May 2019 at 10:23

    I am sorry, but to quote daddy pig, this crossword is still talking nonsense!
    Even with annotations how do we derive

    . Motivating when son gets promoted for passing (6) CASUAL {CA(+S)U(-s)AL}
    . Basis of potential energy ejecting object at launch (7) PREMISE {PR(-o+E)MISE}

    minor player that racket sports need for programme (6) CODING {CO{DIN}G}
    (P.s. the setter should also know that it is a program not programme)

    Tick climbed up and down (6) MOROSE {MO}{ROSE

    Breathing hard without sense to swallow (4,4) LIVE WITH {LIVE}{WIT}{H}

    Shocked by features in a sports car (6) AGHAST {A}{G{HAS}T}

    It is ok if we can't solve it but it, seems to be stretching if the answers still make zero sense even with annotations!
    Cheers!





    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Deepak Gopinath4 May 2019 at 16:28

      Please mention what exactly is your doubt?

      For your info Program is the American spelling. In India we follow the British spellings

      Delete
    2. Girish4 May 2019 at 18:22

      Boss! Any program in any computer is always program, not programme.

      Delete
    3. Girish4 May 2019 at 18:29

      Nothing wrong with being anglophile, especially if you are a crossword setter/solver. Just pleading for a bit more accessibility in the clue setting. I learned decry/descry from a recent puzzle. Even though I did not solve it, I don't mind getting stretched that way. There is an art in being obscure too!

      Delete
    4. Girish4 May 2019 at 18:36

      I am sorry if I have been rudenor impolite but I am speaking as a beginning enthusiast. :-)

      Delete
    5. Deepak Gopinath4 May 2019 at 18:37

      There is nothing in the clue which refers to a computer program?

      Delete
    6. Deepak Gopinath4 May 2019 at 18:39

      I have not understood your statement 'this crossword is still talking nonsense'. Please clarify that with reference to the clues you have listed out

      Delete
    7. Girish4 May 2019 at 18:48

      minor player that racket sports need for programme (6) CODING {CO{DIN}G}
      The direct clue is programme - let's take that as given. Din comes from racket. Fair enough
      . And clever when followed by sports. But what I don't get is how the C and the G can be derived from the clue.

      Delete
    8. Girish4 May 2019 at 18:51

      And sorry about that daddy pig quote. I was referencing a very cute British cartoon serial that my daughter is in love with and whose attitude to the complexities of life is something we can all learn from. Cheers!

      Delete
    9. Deepak Gopinath4 May 2019 at 19:07

      Minor player = COG
      racket = DIN
      sports is the containment indicator
      need for programme = {CO{DIN}G} (I see your point regarding program/programme)

      Delete
    10. Chaturvasi4 May 2019 at 19:42

      programme
      7. computing a variant spelling of program
      The above is from Collins dictionary, one of three dictionaries that setters are advised to use by crossword editors of three leading UK newspapers.

      Delete
    11. Girish4 May 2019 at 19:44

      Ah! Thank you! 🙏💕
      And let me put on record I totally appreciate the enthusiasm, hard work and cleverness of the setters. It is just that sometimes I wish it was easier to appreciate their cleverness. :-)

      Delete
    12. Vasant4 May 2019 at 19:48

      The free dict. says Programme:variant of Program, (Computer Science):Computing, coding, writing steps of a software.

      Delete
    13. Chaturvasi4 May 2019 at 19:49

      I looked up programme in the US dictionary Merriam-Webster
      Under programme
      it has chiefly British spelling of PROGRAM
      2. : to work out a sequence of operations to be performed by (a mechanism, such as a computer) : to provide with a program
      So there!

      Delete
    14. Girish4 May 2019 at 20:03

      And thank you everyone for your patience and kindness, especially Deepakji.
      This is a wonderful site that is slowly but surely revealing the secrets of one of the great mysteries of my teen age life. Long may it thrive!

      Delete
    15. Col_Gopinath4 May 2019 at 22:26

      Msg for Girish from xChequer pasted below

      "Had checked before writing the clue. British version is still programme. Can send link later, outside now, but easily verifiable online. Girish, all your queries would be answered if you consult any standard dictionary"

      Delete
    16. Bhalchandra Pasupathy4 May 2019 at 23:15

      Sorry Girish that I couldn't respond earlier and thanks Deepak for posting the reply.

      Seems there are still many clues where Girish is not clear and I wish some other blogger had clarified, I've been quite 'out of reach' today. But will do my bit now Girish, and nonsense or otherwise is then your call. Actually the annotations have already given the path to solving, and without specific questions as Deepak has mentioned, it's a bit difficult to know what exactly your doubt is, nevertheless the following may help:


      1) CASUAL: Motivating is 'CAUSAL' and with son(S) promoted, it comes ahead and becomes CASUAL which is 'passing' as in a casual/passing remark


      2) PREMISE: here PROMISE (potential) has O(object at launch) replaced with E (energy). The surface is also important, it conveys the function of potential energy, as in an arrow drawn just before release, so it suggests a meaningful scenario


      3) CODING and MOROSE: I think this is already clarified in other comments


      4) LIVE WITH: you need to be more specific with your query, I don't know what the issue is. But if it helps, breathing is LIVE(adj not verb) and sense is WIT


      5)AGHAST: GT is sports car. What is your doubt?


      Hope from zero sense some progress has been made

      Delete
    17. Vasant4 May 2019 at 23:51

      I think one can only admire the cluing. The explanations make the clues more praise worthy.
      The thing with Cryptic crosswords is to keep an open mind and if you are defeated on a day admit it's your solving prowess that is not up to the mark and not the Setter's art. The setter always tries to be fair.

      Delete
  4. raju umamaheswar4 May 2019 at 10:37

    I admire the simile of cats paw - whip hand. Similarly, morose tick= mo + up= rose to give down as morose requires a conjuror’s mind. Superb . I wonder how long it takes Exchequer to build a grid like this.

    Those who got daunted by his name and have stayed out have lost an EX -cell-ent piece . Exchequer tickles our fancy.
    .

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Girish4 May 2019 at 10:55

      This morose clue still makes no sense to me. Cheers!

      Delete
  5. Girish4 May 2019 at 10:58

    I understood rose - up and down - morose but where in tarnation does it say no - tick. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Padmanabhan4 May 2019 at 11:08

    I have a doubt about 18A-
    Potential is promise. Energy replacing object indicates replacement of O with E. Then why 'at launch'?
    As per Ramesh's colour coding it indicates movement- is it needed?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kolluru Koteswara Rao4 May 2019 at 11:16

      I haven't come across O for object. Probably "at launch" is meant to pick up initial letter of object.

      Delete
  7. Padmanabhan4 May 2019 at 11:37

    Thank you KKR. I get your point.

    ReplyDelete
  8. D N M Rao4 May 2019 at 11:55

    Intuition, sometimes, serves better than logic (which may follow later)

    ReplyDelete

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