I'm up till late tonight and we have Gridman back after a long NJ spell, so I decided to have a shot at the crossword from the online paper. Here's the filled-in grid (14D to go):
Comments On THC 9564
A comparatively easier offering from Gridman. Some definitions border on the straight, like 10A, 13A.
As usual there is neat, fair wordplay throughout, my favourites being 17D for its interesting double-definition and 23D for its excellent surface. Nothing very obscure except AGANIPPE which I happened to know because of an earlier crossword.
Giving the annotations for some of the clues that I felt might need explanation, drop a comment if you need anything else explained.
Across
1 SO (therefore) FT (paper), SPOT (to see)
'paper' in the crossword is likelier to be a reference to self. Unusual for FT to be referred in The Hindu - but then it's not a rival paper.
The surface is intriguing. Is it about academics who write 'papers' to find flaws in each others' work?
5 C EASED
9 CRIED OFF
A cryptic double-definition.
15 {-a m}ENABLE
No wonder 14D wasn't working out, I had put in VIABLE instead. I thought this was quite intricate. See the comments section for more.
17 DON ('fellow' in university) U (you) T (last letter of 'meT')
Does you = U com from SMS-ese, or is there another explanation? I have a similar question about the standard abbreviation see = C.
Good to see that last letter of 'met' is indicated as 'met at last', and not the ungrammatical 'last met' which a couple of other setters on THC tend to use.
30 AGED (old) around I (one) TAT (Hindu absolute)
TAT might be too obscure for many, and it isn't listed in the dictionaries. TAT (literal meaning: that) in the Vedic context is the Absolute, the basis of all creation. The opposite is IDAM (literal meaning: this), the visible universe.
Down
2 FAD around IEL*
3 SIDE dd
The second definition is cryptic, as when one is objective one does not 'take sides'. (But I am not convinced that that is always true - one might look at a debate objectively and still decide to take a particular side?)
4 OF FALL{-l}
Nice that 'fall' has been clued as '... in the US'.
6 ERA (periods) SE (extremes of 'sufferance')
Is there a better explanation for this?
I think ERASE should be just 'remove' and not 'remove from memory', and periods should give ERAS not ERA.
7 S{CRAP}ING
How interesting that the word 'SCRAP' is right there in the next clue!
14 K NUR<- See the comments section for more.
22 J (first of 'January') (UST SO)*
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15 comments
Hi Shuchi,
14D is KNAR and 15A ENABLE.
How would you annotate AGITATED and EDGED?
Hi Col,
Thanks for clearing up 14D/15A. I had realized VIABLE was incorrect but was still stuck on KNAR.
One Hindu absolute among the old is in turmoil (8) AG{I TAT}ED
in turmoil: definition
one = I, old = AGED,
Hindu absolute = TAT, the Sanskrit/Vedic word for "absolute".
With advantage, copper played a cricket stroke (5) EDGE D
played a cricket stroke: definition
advantage = EDGE
copper = D (the British penny)
I'm adding comments/annotations for a few other clues to the main post.
The 'adamant' 15ac clue seemed to me to be FEEBLE giving 14dn as LEAR!!!
Hello Mrs. PP,
I believe Col. Gopinath has given the right answers in the first comment.
15 Can be easily won over without a Frenchman’s help (6)
can be easily won over = AMENABLE
without = deletion indicator
a Frenchman = A M (monsieur)
Solution: {-a m}ENABLE
The definition 'help' is a noun in the surface but a verb in the cryptic reading.
14 King to hurry up with wooden ball (4)
King = K
hurry = RAN
up = reversal indicator
Solution: K NAR<-, which is a ball-like knot on tree/wood.
Grammatically it should be RUN and so K{NUR<-} as pointed out by Chaturvasi in my blog. Though both KNAR and KNUR have the same meaning
Oh yes, KNUR it should be. Thanks.
Notice something interesting? Two words that appear in the solutions RANGE and SCRAP are also there in the clues (20A, 8D)?
Assuming RANGE is right - I can't quite get the full anno.
I have updated the main post with some comments, check it out.
Re
Line after taking bottom off change (5)
RANGE is correct.
Deleting REAR (bottom) from REARRANGE (change)
'Change' for 'rearrange' may be considered rather vague.
Thanks CVasi Sir.
'change' for 'rearrange' is fair enough IMO. 'bottom off' led me to expect the last letter(s) deleted of course. Smart of Gridman turn around the cliche!
6 Remove from memory periods in extreme sufferance (5)
An era is usually divided into two or more periods, so says www.onelook.com
(Period alone might have been sufficient, though.)
'Remove' by itself will give ERASE but "Remove from memory" improves the surface reading. The clue seems to advise someone to forget the days when they went through a bad patch in their life.
PS: "extreme sufferance" yields only E, after we have had ERAS from periods.
PPS: "periods" gives ERAS (without our having to resort to onelook) and then E as mentioned above.
"Remove from memory" improves the surface reading
True...but if the definition is "remove from memory" it should be replaceable by ERASE in a sentence. Can you suggest a sentence where that substitution can be made?
In most situations it doesn't work e.g. "Still thinking of your ex? Remove her from memory." isn't the same as "Still thinking of your ex? Erase her."
But I realize now that "remove from memory" = ERASE switch can work, in one situation at least!
"Remove from memory any guilt feelings that you were responsible for the suicide of the girl whom you jilted."
"Erase any guilt feelings that you were responsible for the suicide of the girl whom you jilted."
Do they work?
Anyway I will leave it at that.
And I thought tht I was pretty decent !!! WOW !!! You guys are just brilliant ....
Again, WOW !!!
Btw, how long have you been solvin crossies ???
Cheers
Hello Evil Inc.,
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