Mephisto 2862 by Don Manley

Author   dorsetjimboPosted on Categories Mephisto
A slightly strange grid that created in effect two almost separate crosswords, one on top of the other

Some minor quibbles at 11A, 2D and 21D but overall a straightforward medium strength puzzle

Across
4 CARANGOID – C-AR(A-N-GO)ID; more or less=circa=C; a fish;
11 ARAK – KARA reversed; KARA=Sikh’s bangle; ARAK is not a wine, it’s a distilled very potent spirit akin to Pernod;
12 DOUANE – D(OU)ANE; French for where=OU;
13 PACTIONING – P(ACTION)ING; forming a pact;
14 LOOR – (f)LOOR;
15 HAMPSTER – HAMP(ST)ER;
16 ADOBO – ADO-B.O.; Filipino food;
18 HORA – (c)HORA(l); music;
19 MESARAIC – (as a crime)*;
24 EGLATERE – (large hearted – hard)*; a rose;
27 NAAM – MA(A)N reversed; distraint;
29 ABRAM – Waggledagger’s auburn; a man’s name akin to Abraham;
30 AVAILING – AVA-I-LING and AV-AILING; French lawyer=AV; definition is helping;
31 WASE – bring relief=EASE then change first E to W=weight; a head-pad used to ease pressure of a burden;
32 BOLLANDIST – B-(old latins)*;
33 ALALIA – A-LA-LIA(r); loss of speech;
34 MERI – MERI(t); a club;
35 STEAM,TRAP – S(TEAM)TRAP;
 
Down
1 MALLAM – MALL-AM whichever way you read it; a learned man;
2 TRIODE – (editor)*; a rectifier changes AC to DC – a TRIODE is an amplifyer. The connection is not clear to me;
3 PAPOOSE – P(A-PO)OSE;
5 ANCHO – ANCHO(r); recipe=R; a pepper;
6 RUTABAGA – RUT(A-BAG)A; Rue plant=RUTA; a swede;
7 NOOPS – NO-OPS; lumps;
8 GUNSHOT – (hunts go)*;
9 INNERS – baddie=SINNER then move S to give INNERS; the red section around the bullseye on eg a dartboard;
10 DEGRAS – DEG(R)AS;
17 BILANDER – B(I)LANDER; old vessel;
20 ARMILLA – A-R(MILL)A; old word for box=MILL; distinguished artist=RA;
21 CERATED – made=CREATED then “twist” R and E to give CERATED; bird’s membrane but why falcon as distinct from say parrot?
22 ANABAS – A-NAB-A-S; a fish;
23 LAVOLT – cheerful song=LILT then change I to A-V-O; old dance;
25 RASURE – (your beard – body)*; shaving;
26 EMETIC – EME-TIC; old relation=EME;
28 CLAIM – CL(ass)-AIM;
29 AGILA – A-GIL(l)-A; rock=AA; eaglewood;

3 comments on “Mephisto 2862 by Don Manley”

  1. I know what you mean about the grid: I did the top half of this reasonably quickly but this gave me almost no help with the bottom.
    Thanks for explaining 1dn. I could see AM written up and down but wondered how LL equated to walk!
    In Chambers a TRIODE is a ‘three-electrode valve’ and one of the definitions of ‘valve’ is ‘rectifier’.
  3. Yes, although a valve can be used as a rectifier, you only need a DIODE – an example of the undistributed middle fallacy. (All cats are animals, all dogs are animals, so some cats are dogs!)

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