9 thoughts on “The Confoundings from the 4/5th of June, 2010”
Could I have explanations for 9A and 8D please? And are 23A, 6D, and 12D rather feeble or am I missing something?
9A: drunken sprees = ESPRES, a feature = ACHIN, any = SOME
8D: (a) keep = FORTIFICATION, F -> M = MORTIFICATION
23A: bag = GAB back = TALKBACK
6D: HE+IS in ATTIC
12D: JIM sounds like GYM (did think that one was a bit feeble)
Thanks mic. For 23A I was thinking ‘bag’ = to say unkind things about someone, which of course is not the same as talking back!
Ta, mic. “bag” = GAB back = talkback is excellent.
Anyone care to explain how to derive 3D “LOST HEART” == despair
from “how lives turn into fabrications”?
Duh. “lives” minus “v” == “lies” == fabrications. Of course!
(I should have twigged … same technique as the money-for-nothing crossword.)
I think word play for “somachine” (as explained v well by mic) is incredibly obscure although answer to clue is easy to guess after anagram of sprees. “Mortification” also easy to guess (how many synonyms of embarrassment are there?) but do love the way DA uses uncommon nouns (keep, last) in sentences where they look like verbs or adjectives. “2GB” is Sydney-centric but “3AW”, say, wouldn’t have as many altenative meanings to ponder. Also, eventually saw & enjoyed the money for nothing parallel with lost heart.
Have to disagree with JK on 9A. Like most, I got the answer before working out the second half of the wordplay, but I thought it was well-constructed.
No real complaints on the wordplay this week. I thought 12D was only just OK – I think DA has used “registered” for a sounds-like clue before and I reckon it’s a bit remote. Had a query on LOSE HEART, as did MF, until his/her explanation appeared.
I assume 15D is an anagram of LETS ALARM, which gives “SMELL A RAT”, but I don’t understand the relevance. Perhaps the “?!” has something to do with it?
I thought that to smell a rat was to be alarmed that something was amiss, and that jangle was the anagram trigger, but I agree it is a bit of a reach. Am I missing something?
Could I have explanations for 9A and 8D please? And are 23A, 6D, and 12D rather feeble or am I missing something?
9A: drunken sprees = ESPRES, a feature = ACHIN, any = SOME
8D: (a) keep = FORTIFICATION, F -> M = MORTIFICATION
23A: bag = GAB back = TALKBACK
6D: HE+IS in ATTIC
12D: JIM sounds like GYM (did think that one was a bit feeble)
Thanks mic. For 23A I was thinking ‘bag’ = to say unkind things about someone, which of course is not the same as talking back!
Ta, mic. “bag” = GAB back = talkback is excellent.
Anyone care to explain how to derive 3D “LOST HEART” == despair
from “how lives turn into fabrications”?
Duh. “lives” minus “v” == “lies” == fabrications. Of course!
(I should have twigged … same technique as the money-for-nothing crossword.)
I think word play for “somachine” (as explained v well by mic) is incredibly obscure although answer to clue is easy to guess after anagram of sprees. “Mortification” also easy to guess (how many synonyms of embarrassment are there?) but do love the way DA uses uncommon nouns (keep, last) in sentences where they look like verbs or adjectives. “2GB” is Sydney-centric but “3AW”, say, wouldn’t have as many altenative meanings to ponder. Also, eventually saw & enjoyed the money for nothing parallel with lost heart.
Have to disagree with JK on 9A. Like most, I got the answer before working out the second half of the wordplay, but I thought it was well-constructed.
No real complaints on the wordplay this week. I thought 12D was only just OK – I think DA has used “registered” for a sounds-like clue before and I reckon it’s a bit remote. Had a query on LOSE HEART, as did MF, until his/her explanation appeared.
I assume 15D is an anagram of LETS ALARM, which gives “SMELL A RAT”, but I don’t understand the relevance. Perhaps the “?!” has something to do with it?
I thought that to smell a rat was to be alarmed that something was amiss, and that jangle was the anagram trigger, but I agree it is a bit of a reach. Am I missing something?