QC 1905 by Tracy

Author   astartedonPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic

A straight sequential solve for me. Not many anagrams, double definitions or hidden words which are the types of clue I normally find it easiest to get my teeth into so it must just be down to the mysterious ‘wavelength’. Unless of course you all come back and say that the clues were just very striaghtforward. Many thanks to Tracy for a gentle start to the week.

A few weeks ago someone commented that they were surprised when I said I found double definitions ‘easy’. This was a good comment and it set me thinking. On reflection I realise that it is not strictly true. Certainly in the QC I usually find double definitions easy, with the candidate answers that occur to me most easily usually being correct. In the 15×15 however I often find double defs much more clever and challenging with obscure or cleverly disguised definitions providing some great PDMs. A good double def can often be the most satisfying and economical clue in the puzzle.

Definitions are underlined and everything else is explained just as I see it as simply as I can.

Across
1 Authorisation for each assignment (10)
PERMISSION – PER (for each) + MISSION (assignment).
8 Point during drink, and talk louder (5,2)
SPEAK UP – PEAK (point) ‘during’ SUP (drink).
9 Beginning to drink a tea in Boris’s country cottage? (5)
DACHA – D (beginning to Drink) + A CHA (a tea). Boris appears here as a common Russian name rather than a reference to our beloved PM pointing us to Chequers.
10 Artist capturing male bird that can’t fly (4)
RHEA – RA (artist, Royal Academician) ‘capturing’ HE (male).
11 Take another look at donkeys put in reserve (8)
REASSESS – ASSES (donkeys) ‘put in’ RES (reserve).
13 Fixed allowance of one sailor back working (6)
RATION – I TAR (one sailor) reversed (back) + ON (working).
14 Suitable for salesperson after retirement (6)
PROPER – PRO (for) + PER (rep (salesperson) reversed (i.e. ‘after retirement’)).
17 Understudy with good reputation (8)
STANDING – STAND IN (understudy) + G (good).
19 Opera song from Farrar I adored (4)
ARIA – hidden word: ‘from’ farrAR I Adored.
21 Sound of hooter across island (5)
NOISE – NOSE (hooter) ‘across’ I (island).
22 Decent type of piano (7)
UPRIGHT – double definition.
23 Short letter sent out about end of prom sinking (10)
SETTLEMENT – anagram (‘out’) of LETTE (‘short’ LETTEr) + SENT ‘about’ M (end of proM).
Down
2 Sherpa’s first to leave most demanding mountain (7)
EVEREST – S (Sherpa’s first) to leave sEVEREST (most demanding).
3 Type score (4)
MAKE – double definition. I suppose SCORE = MAKE most obviously in Cricket, as in “he made a century on his international debut”.
4 Army engineer‘s forged papers (6)
SAPPER – straight anagram (‘forged’) of PAPERS.
5 Attempt to follow long Asian river? That’ll be hard work (8)
INDUSTRY – INDUS (long Asian river) + TRY (attempt).
6 Hot in pleasant recess (5)
NICHE – H (hot) ‘in’ NICE (pleasant).
7 Valet in husband’s tavern, drunk (10)
MANSERVANT – MAN’S (husband’s) + ERVANT (anagram (‘drunk’) of TAVERN).
8 Unexpected, small rebellion involving Republican (10)
SURPRISING – S (small) + UPRISING (rebellion) ‘involving’ R (Republican).
12 Loss of confidence resulting from former charge in court (4,4)
COLD FEET – OLD (former) + FEE (charge) ‘in’ CT (court).
15 Model in quiet Spanish region (7)
PARAGON – P (piano, quiet) + ARAGON (Spanish region).
16 Yearly, see a nun swimming in a lake (6)
ANNUAL – anagram (‘swimming’) of A NUN ‘in’ A + L (a lake).
18 Champion boxer with a second assumed name (5)
ALIAS – ALI (champion boxer) + A + S (a second).
20 Passenger vehicle coming from market overturned (4)
TRAM – MART (market) ‘overturned’.

47 comments on “QC 1905 by Tracy”

  1. A pleasant puzzle with a few traps…
    … most of which I seemed to find unerringly. Both 3D Make and 23A Settlement took time, with the first entered not entirely confidently and the second not entirely parsed. The delays on those two especially led to a finish in just shy of 11 minutes.

    Also wasn’t sure about res for reserve in 11A Reassess; it was clear enough, but what is the rule for what can be abbreviated and to what? “Res” more often surfaces in the phrase “Des Res” for me …

    Many thanks to Don for the blog
    Cedric

    1. I paused over Res as well, but how else could you abbreviate Reserve?
  2. Time: bang on ten minutes

    FOI 2dn EVEREST

    LOI 3dn MAKE

    COD 8ac SPEAK UP

    WOD 12dn COLD FEET

  3. I think this might have been a PB for me, all the clues just came to mind, definitely experience is beginning to help. Fully parsed at around 14 minutes. FOI 1A then 8A, which saved any trouble with 3D MAKE. Contrast with when I started, when the sub-20 minute times which most of you regulars seemed to post seemed unattainable. For those still in the early stages of these puzzles: it does get faster, and with less brain ache the clues are easier to savour. Thanks to setters, bloggers and contributors all.
  4. Thought I was cruising to ten minutes, but then hit the buffers, not spotting MAKE, SETTLEMENT or COLD FEET. I’ll accept that the second and third of those was just lack of effort, but MAKE? Can’t say I like that one.
  5. Having got to the end of the day and seen what everybody has said, I must apologise to all the highly respected members who have made negative comments on 3D and say that I stand firmly by my original comments. I cannot see why there was so much objection to it. It seems completely natural to me to say that a batsman made (= scored) 50 or 100 or whatever, or that someone made (= scored) a trick at bridge or whist (and in the latter case ‘made’ is actually the more usual terminology). Somebody has also mentioned ‘making’ a basket at basketball, and as I write this I am thinking of people like Ronnie O’Sullivan ‘making’ 147 breaks (or even normal breaks below the max) at snooker. I am sure there have been much greater crimes committed (if this was even a crime), certainly on my watch, which have simply been noted and then waved on indulgently. Normally one single usage far down on the list of dictionary definitions and perhaps even in the historical or obsolete category is enough to save a clue. By that standard I think this one should pass comfortably.
    1. The problem here is that your blog is first answered by the ‘Early Birds’ who happen to be American.
      Today Kevin is a rare DNF who has never seen a cricket match, or events at The Crucible.
      He usually sets the tone for the newbies and grumpies, some of whom actually measure their times in ‘Kevins’!
      There is nothing wrong with 3dn — MARK my words!

      Edited at 2021-06-29 03:06 am (UTC)

      1. Thank you. Yes, I do understand the transatlantic connection, and of course Kevin is one of the ‘respected members’ to whom I apologised for having to disagree with them.

        I don’t think that fully explains the blind spot however. I think it is more to with sports general knowledge because I am sure that there are similar examples of usage in American sports. Surely baseball players are always ‘making’ home runs? And I may be stretching my knowledge of American sport here but I am sure I have heard of NFL players ‘making’ field goals and yards rushing?

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