September 2013 ~ Crossword Unclued

letter-I-cryptic-crosswords Consider this clue:

Implied I am bound by discretion (5) I inside TACT (discretion); definition: implied

Do you think it works?

Ximenes wouldn't have been happy with it. Here's why.

The Personal Pronoun vs. The Letter

On the surface, the clue uses "I" as in the first person pronoun. In the wordplay however, "I" is not a reference to self - it is simply a letter of the alphabet. Grammar demands that we say "I is" in the wordplay, since the letter "I" is (not am) in TACT.

For the clue to be accurate, the surface reading as well as the cryptic reading needs to be grammatical. The clue above does not pass muster on the second count.

Is There A Way Out?

Ximenes on the Art of the Crossword suggests an easy solution:

In nearly every case the trouble can be got over by saying "I must be", "I can be", etc., or by using "one".

Which is what Everyman used in puzzle no. 3484, clue 13A. The published clue is:

Everyman 3484: Implied I must be bound by discretion (5)

A related discussion you might find interesting – the comments section of an old blog post of mine at fifteensquared, on puzzle FT13137 by the excellent setter Viking. The point of discussion was the use of "I follow" in clue 9D.

FT13137 (Viking): I follow victor in continually backing rally (6) REVIVE
I after V (victor), in EVER (continually) reversed

Solve These

Enjoy these clues that successfully counter the "I" dilemma.

Azed 2412: I'll be enthralled by underwear colours (6) ____T_
FT 14212 (Io): I'll get caught by rabid pet on tiptoe (6) P_____
Everyman 3437: As a member of the clergy, I must be found in cathedral (8) M_______

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Clue Challenge: Annotate These Answers VIII

Battle with this batch of clues today that tease you with mind-bending wordplay. The clues are given with their answers. How many of them can you correctly annotate?

Post the annotated answers in the comments section.

Update (19th September 2013): Annotations added.

1. Guardian 25837 (Araucaria): Married criminal's misplaced article: take leader off for disastrous decision (1,3,7) A BIG MISTAKE
Annotation:BIGAMIST (married criminal) with A (article) misplaced i.e. moved to the front, [t]AKE; definition: disastrous decision.

2. Times 25364: Each beer chap had during escapade was a new adventure (4,2,3,4) LEAP IN THE DARK
Annotation:EA (each), {PINT (beer) + HE'D (chap had)} during i.e. in LARK (escapade); definition: a new adventure.

3. Indy 8193 (Rorschach): Model covered by bikini top in trailers for Home and Away? (8) ADVERBS
Annotation:T (model) covered by i.e. substituted with B (bikini top = B), in ADVERTS (trailers); definition: Home and Away, D-by-E for adverbs.

4. FT14219 (Redshank): Riot's abandoned, rained off (6) UNREST
Annotation:UNRESTRAINED (abandoned) with RAINED off i.e. deleted; definition: riot.

5. Times 25385: Characters behind bars perhaps appear quite grown-up (3,4,3) ACT ONES AGE
Annotation:TONES (characters) in A CAGE (behind bars); definition: appear quite grown-up. See Tricky Indicators for more examples of such wordplay.

6. Times 25478: Contribution that, on reflection, sounds of little value? (5) INPUT
Annotation:TUPNI i.e. INPUT on reflection, sounds like 'tupenny' (of little value) ; definition: contribution.

7. Times 25555: Baggy article of Dior's in copies with belt up on top (9) SHAPELESS
Annotation:LES (article of Dior's i.e article in French) in APES (copies), with SH (belt up – slang for 'be quiet') ; definition: baggy.

8. Guardian 26033 (Puck): Form of transport initially discovered in Pharaoh’s time (4-5,5) HIGH-SPEED TRAIN
Annotation:High-Speed Train is "initially" i.e. in abbreviated form HST, which can be discovered in the letters of 'PharaoHSTime'; definition: form of transport.

Visit our past clue annotation challenges: I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII.

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