Solving time: 14:11… but when I hit submit, even though I thought I have checked it over, I made not one, not two, but three very silly errors in the puzzle! Must be playing with the old brain today.
I don’t think this is an easy puzzle, there’s some obscure answers and some tricky wordplay, so I hope you all did better than me.
The first definition is underlined in each clue.
Away we go…
| Acrn | |
| 1 | Indication of virtue by low-down element (7) |
| HALOGEN – the indication of virtue is a HALO, then GEN(low-down, information) | |
| 5 | Researcher‘s not genuine, back on the job (7) |
| POSTDOC – COD(not genuine) reversed after POST(job) | |
| 9 | Test comprehended by unusual three or six-footer (9) |
| HEXAMETER – EXAM(test) inside an anagram of THREE | |
| 10 | Such languages one caught by Hungary regularly (5) |
| UGRIC – I(one), C(caught) next to alternating letters in hUnGaRy | |
| 11 | Do lie in chat (13) |
| CONFABULATION – CON(do), FABULATION(lie) – at least this is what I think it is. FABULATION isn’t supported by Collins or Chambers but it could be construed from FABLE | |
| 13 | The French knight admitted to relative indulgence (8) |
| LENIENCE – LE(the, in French) then N(Knight in chess) inside NIECE(relative) | |
| 15 | Improvise in gin rummy, cutting card (4,2) |
| WING IT – anagram of GIN inside WIT(card) | |
| 17 | Swan around with man and wife’s kinsman (6) |
| NEPHEW – PEN(swan) reversed, then HE(man) and W(wife) | |
| 19 | Speaking drunkenly, neglect religious ceremony in confusion (8) |
| MISHMASH – sounds like someone slurring MISS MASS | |
| 22 | One acquiring conviction friend’s effort is wasted (5,8) |
| FIRST OFFENDER – anagram of FRIEND’S,EFFORT | |
| 25 | Is it a tobogganist’s arm? (5) |
| LUGER – double definition for the winter sport and the gun | |
| 26 | After forging, had US cent checked (9) |
| STAUNCHED – anagram of HAD,US,CENT | |
| 27 | Do some shopping — allowed underwear (7) |
| SINGLET – SING(do some shopping, rat on), LET(allowed) | |
| 28 | Soldier to spoil works (7) |
| PARAPET – PARA(soldier), PET(spoil, cosset) – works here being a wall | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Chemist offering heroin, a case of it (4) |
| HAHN – H(heroin), A, then the outside letters in HeroiN. Tricky wordplay for a chemist that is not a household name, despite having a Nobel prize – Otto Hahn worked on nuclear fission | |
| 2 | Back in jail, prisoner no longer accepting one’s set of terms (7) |
| LEXICON – last letter of jaiL, then EX-CON(prisoner no longer) containing I(one) | |
| 3 | Kid endlessly on his Nintendo? (5) |
| GAMIN – if you are on a Nintendo (and I have both a 3DS and a Switch, both highly recommended) you are GAMING… remove the last letter | |
| 4 | Flier‘s eccentric garment with skin of cheetah (8) |
| NUTHATCH – NUT(eccentric), HAT(garment) and the outside letters of CheetaH | |
| 5 | Dog turning up, sure to be barking (6) |
| PURSUE – reversal of UP, then anagram of SURE | |
| 6 | Queen’s in bed, somewhat likely to feel sick (9) |
| SQUEAMISH – QU(queen) in SEAM(bed of mineral), ISH(somewhat likely) | |
| 7 | Favourite line put in bold (7) |
| DARLING – L(line) in DARING(bold) | |
| 8 | Firms head without assurance for fair competition (7,3) |
| COCONUT SHY – CO, CO(firms), NUT(head), SHY(without assurance) | |
| 12 | Blocks view of churchgoers hidden by screens (10) |
| BLINDFOLDS – FOLD(churchgoers) inside BLINDS(screens) | |
| 14 | Shocks in the Spanish exam in kind of US college (9) |
| ELECTORAL – ECT(electrical shocks) in EL, ORAL(exam) | |
| 16 | Got rid of current measure for gas (8) |
| FIREDAMP – FIRED(got rid of), AMP(current measure) | |
| 18 | Model‘s head in painting by surrealist (7) |
|
PARAGON – P |
|
| 20 | Means of transport, or pretentiousness with it (7) |
| AIRSHIP – AIRS(pretentiousness) and HIP(with it) | |
| 21 | Balance is wrong on TV (6) |
| OFFSET – OFF(wrong), SET(TV) | |
| 23 | Correct and right fare from Turkey (5) |
| DONER – DONE(correct), and R(right) | |
| 24 | Passage from “Clemenza di Tito” (4) |
| ADIT – hidden inside clemenzA DI Tito | |
This took just under the hour across four sittings to get out and like the blog I had to go to the bottom to get my start with ADIT, which I’d seen as a timeworn word used in crosswords. DONER followed not all that much longer after – so it is strange what words are common to some and not known to others. In fact UGRIC was quite an early entry as well.
Like looking up NUTHATCH after I get it in a puzzle to see its a bird that has the curious habit of walking down a tree headfirst. Sad thing is that I almost always forget it by the time that it resurfaces.
Finished in the SW corner with BLINDFOLDS, the doubly defined LUGER and PARAGON as the last few in.