Monday, 1 September 2025

No 14577, Monday 01 Sep 2025, Pixie Dust

Solution to 14D has been deliberately left unsolved and is to be answered only by a non-regular / novice commenter, with proper annotation. Those who have answered earlier in the week, please give others a chance. 

Open for anyone to solve, if not solved by 1 PM.

ACROSS
1   Disfigure a bishop's beetle (6) SCARAB {SCAR}{A}{B}
5   Stop and drink with journalists (8) SUPPRESS {SUP}{PRESS}
9   Established study about a prison (4-4) CAST-IRON {C{A}{STIR}ON} 
10 Picks up missing fellow and impresses (6) ETCHES fETCHES
11 Calls attention to Spooner's deception limits (10) HIGHLIGHTS (lie heights to highlights)
12 Orally mend scoundrel (4) HEEL (~heal)
13 A desire to admit early signs of love and lust from the outset (3,5) ALL ALONG {A}{L{Love}{And}{Lust}ONG}
16 What did you say? Policemen are releasing documents of notorious leaders! (6) PARDON Acrostic
17 Emphasise anxiety (6) STRESS [DD]
19 Heartless CEO last month, rejected and buried formula. Preposterous! (8) COCKEYED {CeO}{DEC<=} over {KEY}
21 Repudiate some blonde nymph (4) DENY [T]
22 Sailor devastated! Soul's basically torn in state monitored fascism (10) ABSOLUTISM {AB}{SOUL*}{Torn}{In}{St..e}{Mo...d}
25 Decent hero vacated resort (6) HONEST {HerO}{NEST}
26 Fantastic grain used repeatedly in farming? (8) AGRARIAN Letter Bank
27 Prepare extremely reasonable funeral coach (8) REHEARSE {Re...lE}{HEARSE}
28 Breathtaking piece of jewellery? (6) CHOKER [DD]

DOWN
2   A jerk cycling around old animal (5) COATI  {(+c)CATI(-c)} over {O} This word play doesn't work for cycling as A is in between
3   Gag poor thing, say (5) RETCH (~wretch) 
4   Mix or rub it in Mexican wrap (7) BURRITO*
5   Construction worker's uninitiated sad song, somehow overwhelmed Henry (7) SANDHOG {sAD+SONG}* over {H}
6   Exercise before dinner perhaps, sipping some Sangria (5-2) PRESS-UP {PRE}{Sa...a}{SUP}
7   ...and this 'Man o War' for one developed a creased horn? (9) RACEHORSE {RACEHORSE+AND}* = A CREASED HORN
8   Say Jobs ignoring boundaries, loved Loader (9) STEVEDORE {STEVE}{aDOREd}
14 Drunk, that man's very mobile - extremely agile (9) L?T?E?O?E (Addendum - LITHESOME {LIT}{HE}{SO}{Mo..lE} - See comments)
15 Can eye let out gas? (9) ACETYLENE*
18 Second serve takes time in spread (7) SCATTER {S}{CAT{T}ER}
19 Rascal wears suit in shower (7) CASCADE {CAS{CAD}E}
20 Concerned with heat? Car coil's damaged! (7) CALORIC* 
23 Chest also holds relics & souvenirs primarily (5) TORSO {TO{Re...s}{So...s}O}
24 Some beg at station's elevated platform (5) STAGE [T<=]

Reference List
Bishop = B, Drink = SUP, Study = CON, Fellow = F, Sailor = AB, Old = O, Henry = H, Drunk = LIT, Second = S, Time = T
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22 comments:

  1. sree_sree1 September 2025 at 08:37

    2d cycling applied to atic as a single word!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mona Sogal1 September 2025 at 08:40

      A tic is cycling around o was the word play

      Delete
    2. Padmanabhan1 September 2025 at 08:42

      I had it that way only

      Delete
    3. Padmanabhan1 September 2025 at 08:43

      (A tic)* around O

      Delete
    4. sree_sree1 September 2025 at 08:51

      Col read it as
      a (tic cycling)
      I was pointing it's
      (A tic) Cycling.

      Delete
    5. Mona Sogal1 September 2025 at 08:52

      Thanks sree_sree

      Delete
    6. Mona Sogal1 September 2025 at 08:53

      Yes :)

      Delete
    7. Col_Gopinath1 September 2025 at 11:29

      A Tic is not a word to which cycling can be applied in my opinion

      Delete
    8. Padmanabhan1 September 2025 at 12:14

      Your point is that it has to be a single word?

      Delete
    9. sree_sree1 September 2025 at 14:05

      @Paddy, I think it should.
      Cycling as it is borders on indirect anagram with setters resorting to multiple cycles. (Or undefined number of cycles. It started as just one letter moving, but now it has gone to almost all letters except one letter cycling. (That is as good as indirect anagram).

      The sheer permutations and combinations will increase tremendously if we allow this type of cluing.

      Ofcourse this perticular clue is simple but the device itself become .....ass.

      Delete
    10. sree_sree1 September 2025 at 14:06

      And I haven't come across this usage till today even in international puzzles.

      Delete
    11. sree_sree1 September 2025 at 14:07

      An example

      German, who drew back when cycling (5)

      Delete
    12. sree_sree1 September 2025 at 14:09

      For the multiple cycles without any hint on how many times!

      Delete
  2. Padmanabhan1 September 2025 at 08:40

    Pixie Dust spreads her magic and we enjoy it!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Kishan1 September 2025 at 09:10

    14D LITHSOME-agile; drunk {LIT}, that man {HE}, very {SO}, {M}obil{E}

    ReplyDelete
  4. Gowri1 September 2025 at 23:54

    Magical as mentioned by Paddy.
    My fav
    HIGHLIGHTS, ABSOLUTISM, SUPPRESS, LITHESOME.
    Thanx Mona!

    ReplyDelete
  5. KNSHMRY2 September 2025 at 07:48

    Can anybody explain 7D and 19D. How to read the surface?

    Also
    9A? How is prison STIR? And Study CON?
    19A? Where does the KEY come from?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mona Sogal2 September 2025 at 08:51

      Hi
      7d is a Composite anagram
      This Man O War is the definition

      Racehorse is the solution got from And + Racehorse= A creased horn - developed is the anagrind..

      19 D. Rascal is cad wearing case which is suit
      Stir is a synonym of prison
      Con is a synonym of study
      Formula is Key

      Delete

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