Mephisto 2704 by Tim Moorey – A Doddle

Author   dorsetjimboPosted on Categories Mephisto
On the daily blog I suggested that those who hadn’t tried one should give this Mephisto a try. If they did they found a beginners puzzle that gave them a straightforward start. I would expect old hands to have raced through it.

Across
1 SCUSES – SC(o)USES;
5 CADMUS – C(ADM)US(s); admiral=ADM;
9 MISTREATMENT – (mmentaries+t+t)*; boycott=remove; firm=co; time=t;
11 SEMANTRA – SEMAN(TR)A; Turkey=TR; sailor=seaman then move “a”=”first one” to the end; substitute for a bell in Greece;
12 EASLE – EAS(L)E; L from (eng)-L-(and); Jock’s hot ashes;
13 EXTANT – EXT-ANT;
14 SNOBBY – S-NOBBY; Sierra=S (phonetic alphabet);
18 ALTIMETER – AL(TIME)TER;
20 IRONSIDES – (derisions)*;
22 BITSER – BIT(S)ER; S from S(ydney); mongrel dog in Melbourne;
24 LYTHES – hidden (main)LY-THE-S(pey);
25 PRIMA – PRIM-A; absent=A;
26 OVERPEER – (d)OVER-PEER;
27 TERGIVERSATE – (retreats)* surrounds GIVE; good word to describe some politicians I can think of;
28 STACTE – STA(C)TE; clubs=C (cards); a sweet spice used in incense;
29 DOSEHS – DOSE(H)S; H from (mont)H; old Egyptian ceremony from Cairo;
 
Down
1 SMEES – SM(EE)S; text=SMS; EE from E(nglish) E(leven);
2 CILANTRO – (carton)* surrounds I-L; coriander;
3 ST,ALBANS – LATS reversed-BANS; toilets=latrines=LATS;
4 SEELY – SEE merged with ELY;
5 CAMELID – CAME-LID; camels;
6 ATAXY – A(TAX)Y;
7 METASTASIS – (m east)*-T-AS IS; time=T;
8 STATURE – S(TAT)URE;
10 PSOCOPTERA – (top cops are)*; book eating insects;
15 DESTRESS – (desserts)*;
16 BEHEMOTH – BEHEMOT-H; command=behest then change s=second into mo=second; hard=H (lead pencils);
17 FIRLOTS – FIR(LOT)S; an old measure of wheat in Wick;
19 TIBS,EVE – BIT reversed-S-EVE; young girl=BIT; society=S;a day that never comes in Newfoundland;
21 NEPIT – (pinte)*; a bit of a riddle=r; more commonly a nit – 1.44 computer bits;
22 BREED – three meanings I think 1=regiment chaps 2=go all the way (slang) 3=train;
23 RAXES – contest=races then change c=conservative into X=vote;

10 comments on “Mephisto 2704 by Tim Moorey – A Doddle”

  2. One of the things I really like about Tim’s Mephistos is the number of very very odd words that he breaks down into clear wordplay. This could have been rendered impossible by obscure wordplay since there’s not that many common words in the grid. But for us oldish hands, this was finished before the coffee cup was empty and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
  3. I didn’t find this particularly easy either. I had to cheat a couple of times and like rednim I was slowed down immensely by putting in OVERLORD. Eventually I saw TIB’S EVE and reconsidered.
    I parsed 22dn as RE (regiment) inside BED (go all the way). “Chap” is defined by Chambers as a transitive verb meaning “to cause to crack or divide”.
    2. Welcome and please do contribute to the blog. Sometimes George and I wonder if anybody other than us reads them!
      1. You have at least one regular reader. Mephisto solvers seem to be quiet people – I get fairly regular correspondence about various aspects of the Sunday Times crossword, but almost nothing about Mephisto.

        Peter Biddlecombe, Sunday Times Crossword Editor

    3. You’re right about the intended wordplay in 22D. I record my times when test-solving Mephistos, and the results don’t always agree with Jimbo’s assessment – for me, 2701 (Tim’s previous puzzle) was a bit easier than 2704.

Comments are closed.