Times Quick Cryptic 936 by Teazel

Author   ChrisPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic
Steady going through this one with several obvious definitions (biffable) but then the usual hold ups towards the end. No particular vocabulary issues and the French composer is well known. Struggled with 20ac in order to get loi 20dn but still came inside 10 with a happy 9:29.

ACROSS

7. Vicarage – clergy house. A and paper (RAG) goes into sin (VICE).
8. Prod – poke. Right (R) inside seed case (POD).
9. Oodles – great numbers. Dogs p(OODLES) beheaded.
10. Drawn – double definition.
11. Ace – it wins a point at tennis and should win a trick at cards.
12. Pincer – nipper. Anagram (moved) of PRINCE.
14. Roll in – arrive in numbers. At home (IN) after some bread (ROLL).
16. Permit – allow. Each (PER) hand to be trimmed (MIT)t.
18. Endive – salad plant. Finish (END) I have (IVE). I’m not ventirely sure of the ‘to’ but it allows the clue to scan and it’s very clear what the answer is.
19. Run – double definition.
20. Ghana – country. Homophone (some would say) of garner.
21. Arrest – suddenly stop. A, a stuttering siesta (R REST).
23. Wind – snake – as in a road. Part of yello(W IND)ian.
24. Election – choice. The in Spanish (EL), division without the leading letter s(ECTION).

DOWN

1. Nicotine – which is in tobacco. Pleasant (NICE) with round (O) and container (TIN) brought into it.
2. Earl – peer. Attention (EAR), liberal (L).
3. Caesar – emperor. Homophone (its said) of seizer.
4. Tender – double definition.
5. Appalled – horrified. Little boy (AL), biting into (inside) fruit (APPLE), died (D).
6. Roan – horse. Galloped (RAN) around circle (O). 1dn used this device with ’round’.
13. Commando – Marine military unit. Be in charge of (COMMAND), old (O).
15. Invasion – trespass. Anagram (organised) of SO VAIN IN.
17. Travel – journey. Mee(T), French composer (RAVEL).
18. Enamel – something strong. Some of th(E NAME L)ost.
20. Grip – understand (get a grip on). Endless complaint (GRIP)e.
22. Rite – ceremony. Religious education (RE) around (covering) it (IT).

26 comments on “Times Quick Cryptic 936 by Teazel”

  1. 21ac took me some time, as did 14ac, where the bread escaped me; I actually thought of ‘cash in’ first. As a rhotician, I also had trouble with GHANA; I biffed from the A’s, then puzzled a while over the wordplay. No problem with the ‘to’ in 18ac. 6:30.
      1. Not sure whether the word actually exists but it’s a reference to ‘rhotic’which is defined as: Phonetics
        Relating to or denoting a dialect or variety of English (e.g. in most of the US and southwestern England) in which r is pronounced before a consonant (as in hard) and at the ends of words (as in far). ‘rhotic and non-rhotic speakers’

        The homophone here is ‘garner’ which contains two Rs, which if one or other or both are prounced by a rhotician does not sound the same as ‘Ghana’ which contains none.

        Edited at 2017-10-10 05:21 pm (UTC)

  2. Off my game with a DNF: a few missing on the left side. Lots of good clues today, esp 9a.

  3. Difficult one today, hand for mitt, drawn for tense, garner for harvest, tender, travel, and LOI oodles.

    Felt tough going rather than enjoyable.

  4. Check the top and bottom rows. Unusual to have a Nina in the QC (at least it’s the first time I’ve noticed one).
    1. It is unusual but does happen. Something of a bee theme going on? I notice there are no ‘B’s in the grid.
  5. 9 minutes for this one, not bad after taking a full minute to come up with my first answer. I tend to begin by scooting around the grid looking for an answer that leaps out at me and then building from there, but it was a technique that didn’t serve me too well today. A little more time considering the first Across clue would surely have brought an early result. Missed the NINA and the absence of Bees. The stuttering device at 21ac has not appeared in a QC before, I think.

    Edited at 2017-10-10 07:30 am (UTC)

    1. Though it might be a rare DNF for me, and only put in the last two (SW) the following day!

      I too thought some of the synonyms dodgy.

  6. Took me a while to see GRIP and GHANA, otherwise a steady solve taking me to 10:15. FOI EARL, LOI GRIP. Nice puzzle. Thanks Teazel and Chris.
  7. I think that you have the number incorrect in the title. No problem today but might be if someone is looking for it in the future. Regards
  9. I spotted the Nina before I had finished, allowing me to correct my dubious KAISER for 3d. Anyone else try to make an anagram of ‘easily’ for 4d? 9:49
  10. And will no doubt have forgotten it by next week … but thanks for pointing it out!

    I enjoyed that and went through it steadily except for LOI OODLES, which required me to do an alphabet run all the way to Waterloo East before I got it.

    Hesitated over WIND since I couldn’t think of a wind-snake but eventually saw the other meaning.

    I was another who tried to anagram “easily” at 4dn, especially since the first checker was the E at the end of VICARAGE.

    Tough grid today, giving relatively few first letters.

    COD GHANA even though I generally don’t like random geography clues.

    Thanks to blogger and setter.

    Templar

  11. No major hold ups today, completing the puzzle in 16 minutes with LOI 9a. 20a just edged out 9a for my COD due to the slightly disturbing imagery in the latter!
  12. Well spotted Nina – it always adds an element of fun. If you want a brilliant example then the main puzzle had a “batman” nina containg several “na na na’s”. I dont have a link but I’m sure a search will find it. Took 20mins on this and found several very hard. Thanks all
  13. This seemed easy at first but then I had some major hold-ups (incl 20d and 20a). Nearly gave up with 2d and 9a outstanding. Just couldn’t see them. A last gasp alphabet trawl gave me Oodles (Hounds was favourite for a time) and LOI was Earl. Took me a long time.
    Missed the Nina.
    Well done clever setter and thanks as always for the blog. David
    1. I thought of ‘tender stems of asparagus pushing through the ground’ but there’s the adjectives too:
      adjective
      1.
      easily broken, cut, or crushed; soft; not tough
      a tender steak
      2.
      easily damaged; vulnerable or sensitive
      a tender youth
      at a tender age
    1. The Times (UK) Tuesday 17 Oct 2017. An online subscription is required which is available from £2 per week.

Comments are closed.