Thursday 19 February 2015

Clue Challenge: Annotate These Answers X

annotate-clues The parsing of these clues stumped me even after I knew their answers. Sharing with you the clues along with their answers. Can you see how their wordplay works?

Post the annotations in the comments section.

Update (25th Feb 2015): Annotations added

1. FT 14700 (Wanderer): Number given in exchange (6) NINETY
Annotation:XC (given in 'eXChange') is 90 in Roman numerals; definition: number.

2. FT 14705 (Alberich): Unscrupulous sort will be back shortly after retiring (7) SHYSTER
Annotation:STER[n] (back, 'shortly' i.e. before its end) after SHY (retiring); definition: unscrupulous sort.

3. Indy 7848 (Nimrod): Love apple core to be spewed out by robots? (6) TOMATO
Annotation:core of auTOMATOns (robots) ; definition: love apple.

4. Guardian 26396 (Tramp): Main virtually left in Pizza Hut served with cold sauce (7) KETCHUP
Annotation:KE[y] (main, virtually i.e. almost) {P (left in 'Pizza') + HUT with C (cold)}*, 'served' as anagrind; definition: sauce.

5. Guardian 26482 (Pasquale): Troubled and more like an invalid, it seems (8) BOTHERED
Annotation:OTHER (more) in BED (like an invalid, it seems); definition: troubled. See Tricky Indicators II for more examples of implied indicators.

6. Sunday Times 4614 (Dean Mayer): Double yellow lines throw ordinary F1 team (4,5) TORO ROSSO
Annotation:double yellow => 2*OR (yellow, from heraldry) 'lines' i.e. fills TOSS (throw) O (ordinary); definition: F1 team.

7. Guardian 26469 (Paul): Far from bloody outstanding article – deservedly so? (6) UNREAD
Annotation:UN-RED (far from bloody i.e. not red) 'outstanding' i.e. outside of A (article); semi-&lit: an article that's 'far from bloody outstanding' would be deservedly UNREAD.

8. Guardian 26492 (Arachne): About to receive a broadcast (see below) (5) INFRA
Annotation:sounds like 'IN FOR A'; definition: see below.

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

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39 comments

Tanmay Srivastava said...

Far from bloody outstanding article - deservedly so? (6) --> UNREAD

'Far from bloody' = UNRED
'outstanding' = indicator for 'around'
'article' = A

And an article that is 'far from (being) bloody outstanding' should remain UNREAD, 'deservedly so'. The entire clue along with the last two words is essentially hinting at the definition.

Shrikanth said...

3 - Love Apple definition. Robots = Automatons. Core is Tomato

Arvind Ramaswamy said...

3. Love Apple = Tomato
Robots = AUTOMATONS and when their core is spewed out we get TOMATO

Anonymous said...

3 - Love Apple - definition
Robots = Automatons
Core = Tomato

5 - Troubled - definition
More = Other
Invalid = Bedridden
B(OTHER)ED


Anonymous said...

2 - Unscrupulous sort - Definition
Back - Stern
Back shortly - Ster
Retiring - Shy
Shyster

Anonymous said...

1 - Number - Definition
Answer = Ninety = XC
Found in eXChange

Anonymous said...

4 - Sauce - Definition
Main = Key
virtually = almost
main virtually = ke
+ Hut + C from Cold + P from Pizza
served = anagrind
Ketchup

Arvind Ramaswamy said...

1. Ninety -- in Roman numerals = XC which is in e"XC"hange

Arvind Ramaswamy said...

The others are tough.. no idea :-(

Anonymous said...

6 - FI Team - Definition
Yellow - OR
Throw - Toss
Ordinary - O
TO(OR OR)SS O

Anonymous said...

7 - & lit
Bloody = Red
Far from bloody - Unred
Article - A
Outstanding - Container Ind
UNRE(A )D

Ganesh N. said...

2. FT 14705 (Alberich): Unscrupulous sort will be back shortly after retiring (7) SHYSTER
Def: unscruplous sort
SHY (retiring) + STER(-N) back, shortly

5. Guardian 26482 (Pasquale): Troubled and more like an invalid, it seems (8) BOTHERED
Def: Troubled
OTHER (more) in BED (like an invalid)?

6. Sun Times (Dean Mayer): Double yellow lines throw ordinary F1 team (4,5) TORO ROSSO
Def: F1 team
OR OR (yellow - gold? x2) in TOSS + O

7. Guardian 26469 (Paul): Far from bloody outstanding article – deservedly so? (6) UNREAD
Def: extended def
A (article) in (outstanding) UNRED (far from bloody)

8. Guardian 26492 (Arachne): About to receive a broadcast (see below) (5) INFRA
Def: below
HP (broadcast) of IN FOR A (about to receive)
1, 3 and 4 (perhaps 5 and 6 too) beat me!

Bhalchandra Pasupathy said...

1) hidden XC (ie ninety) inside the fodder
2) STER(n) after SHY
3) def love apple. core of AU TOMATO NS
4) anagram KE(y)+P(izza)+HUT+C(cold)
5) no idea
6) OR OR inside TOSS + O(ordinary)
7) cryptic def I think. UN RED (far from bloody) outside A
8) Homophone IN FOR A

ranger said...

unscrupulous sort= shyster
back shortly= ster(n)
retiring= shy

ranger said...

Troubled= def

and more= other

like an invalid, it seems= 'in' bed

ranger said...

6. Toro Rosso = def F1 team
throw= toss O= ordinary
double yellow= or or( double gold or yellow metal)
lines= insertion ind(?)

ranger said...

7. far from bloody= unred outside
(outstanding) a
May be a semi&lit clue?

ranger said...

3. Love apple= Tomato

core of Au(tomato)ns

Raghunath said...

1. FT 14700 (Wanderer): 90 = XC as in stock exchange

2. FT 14705 (Alberich):SHY retiring + STERn

3. Indy 7848 (Nimrod): auTOMATOns. TOMATO = Love apple

4. Guardian 26396 (Tramp): KE(-y) + [(P= left of Pizza) + HUT + C]*

5. Guardian 26482 (Pasquale): More= OTHER in BED as invalid

6. Sunday Times 4614 (Dean Mayer): T(OR)(O, R)OSS + O. (lines = lining in TOSS)

7. Guardian 26469 (Paul): UN RED ( not bloody) around A. &lit?

Lakshmi Vaidyanathan said...

1. FT 14700 (Wanderer): Number given in exchange (6) NINETY
IS IT XC from eXChange - NINETY ( if so is it not indirect ? )

2. FT 14705 (Alberich): Unscrupulous sort will be back shortly after retiring (7) SHYSTER
SHY + STERn ( back shortly ) def : Unscrupulous sort
3. Indy 7848 (Nimrod): Love apple core to be spewed out by robots? (6) TOMATO
Def: Love apple auTOMATOns - core spewed out of robots -automatons
4. Guardian 26396 (Tramp): Main virtually left in Pizza Hut served with cold sauce (7) KETCHUP

5. Guardian 26482 (Pasquale): Troubled and more like an invalid, it seems (8) BOTHERED - OTHER inside BED ?

6. Sunday Times 4614 (Dean Mayer): Double yellow lines throw ordinary F1 team (4,5) TORO ROSSO
Def : F1team ,Double yellow - OR OR inside throw- TOSS + O (ordinary) T OROR OSS O
7. Guardian 26469 (Paul): Far from bloody outstanding article – deservedly so? (6) UNREAD UNRED around A - article ( far from bloody - UNRED ? )

8. Guardian 26492 (Arachne): About to receive a broadcast (see below) (5) INFRA

michael said...

I've got a little time, so I'll take a crack at the first five.
1. Number given in exchange (6)
Number=def
given in=hidden word indicator
eXChange XC=NINETY (Roman numerals)

2. Unscrupulous sort will be back shortly after retiring (7)
Unscrupulous sort=def
WP=???

3. Love apple core to be spewed out by robots? (6)
Love apple=def
core to be spewed out by=central letters of
robots=auTOMATOns

4. Main virtually left in Pizza Hut served with cold sauce (7)
Main=KEY
virtually=almost KEY=KE(y)
left in Pizza=P
Hut=HUT
served=anagram {P HUT*}
with cold=C in {*THUP}
sauce=KETCHUP

5. Troubled and more like an invalid, it seems (8)
Troubled=def
more=OTHER
like an invalid= in BED (I feel like I should be reading a fortune cookie)

David Hampton said...

The only one I managed was #6. Dean Mayer seems to have a special skill with container indicators. OR (yellow) twice, inside TOSS + O. Masterly.

michael said...

And 6-8:
6. Double yellow lines throw ordinary F1 team (4,5)
Double=repeated
yellow=OR (gold)
lines=goes into, as lining
throw=TOSS
ordinary=O
F1 team=T{OR,OR}OSS,O

michael said...

7. Far from bloody outstanding article--deservedly so? (6)
Far from bloody=not red=UNRED
outstanding=going outside of
article=A
deservedly so?=semi-&lit def: an article that's nowhere near outstanding deserves to go unread

michael said...

8. About to receive a broadcast (see below) (5)
About to receive a=IN FOR A
Broadcast=homophone indicator
(see below)=def

michael said...

Yeah, number 2 has me beat.

Choodamani said...

FT 14700 (Wanderer): Number given in exchange (6) NINETY XC= Roman numerals for ninety

Guardian 26482 (Pasquale): Troubled and more like an invalid, it seems (8) BOTHERED

Invalid = (in) BED more = other BotherED.

Choodamani said...

FT 14700 (Wanderer): Number given in exchange (6) NINETY XC= Roman numerals for ninety

Guardian 26482 (Pasquale): Troubled and more like an invalid, it seems (8) BOTHERED

Invalid = (in) BED more = other BotherED.

Chris said...

3. (au)TOMATO(ns)
Robots are also called automatons. Take the core of this word and you have tomato, which is also known as a love apple.

Nadathur Rajan said...

1. Clue: given in eXChange XC; Defn: Number XC=NINETY
2. Clue: back shortly STER[-n]; after Placement Indicator; retiring SHY Defn: Unscrupulous sort, {SHY}{STER[-n]}
3. Defn: Love apple Clue: core to be spewed out by robots (automatons) [-au]TOMATO[-ns]
4. Clue: Main virtually KE[-y]; left in Pizza – P+ HUT served – PHUT* (served – AnagrInd); with – CC Indicator; cold C Defn: sauce {KE[-y]}{T(C)HUP*}
5. and more OTHER, like an invalid, it seems - in BED, Defn: Troubled OTHER in BED = B(OTHER)ED
6.Double yellow OR+OR lines CC Indicator, throw TOSS ordinary O; Defn: F1 team {T(OR)(O R)OSS}{O}
7. Far from bloody = not red / UNRED, outstanding CC Indicator, article A Defn: deservedly so? {UNRE(A)D} {as it is far from bloody outstanding article) & lit
8. About to receive a = IN FOR (certain to get or have) + a =A; broadcast - Homophone Indicator Defn: (see below) ~ in for a INFRA

Anonymous said...

3. Robots=automatons: core of which is tomato akas love apple.

8. INFRA sounds like "in for a'. About to receive = In for.

Chennaian said...

1. FT 14700 (Wanderer): Number given in exchange (6) NINETY _ Unable to get it!

2. FT 14705 (Alberich): Unscrupulous sort will be back shortly after retiring (7) SHYSTER

*'Unscrupulous sort' - def. Retiring - SHY. The purpose of 'after' too is clear. "will be back shortly" was elusive until it was determined why 'shortly' is there. So SHY STER[n]. It was the phrase "will be back" that delayed the unravelling.

3. Indy 7848 (Nimrod): Love apple core to be spewed out by robots? (6) TOMATO

*Def is 'love apple', so a solver may get the answer immediately. The core in auTOMATOns. Do you think this use of 'core' in a plularised word OK. I would have liked the term to be singular.

4. Guardian 26396 (Tramp): Main virtually left in Pizza Hut served with cold sauce (7) KETCHUP

'Ketchup' is the def. 'Virtually' means 'almost' so we need to delete the last letter of a word. KE[y]. Since HUT and C in the answer word are easilyd erived, we need to see how we derive P. I think it's from 'left in Pizza'. If so, I don't quite like it. 'Served' is the anag signal. Sorry, I don't understand what 'Main left virtually" in surface reading means. Please help!

5. Guardian 26482 (Pasquale): Troubled and more like an invalid, it seems (8) BOTHERED

*OTHER (more) 'in BED' (like an invalid).

6. Sun Times (Dean Mayer): Double yellow lines throw ordinary F1 team (4,5) TORO ROSSO

*RO RO (this seems to mean yellow in gemmology, anyway it's new to me) is inside (lines) TOSS (throw) O (ordinary).

No chance in my knowing of this F1 team. Not sure if I would have got it, especially because of 'ro ro'.

7. Guardian 26469 (Paul): Far from bloody outstanding article – deservedly so? (6) UNREAD

*A in 'UNRED' (far from bloody). This use of 'far from ..." for 'un..." seems to be rather strange. The def is masked and looks good.

8. Guardian 26492 (Arachne): About to receive a broadcast (see below) (5) INFRA

*Hom of "in for a" (Not sure if this is convincing, like most of these hom clues)

Anonymous said...

1.give(n in e)xchange + Ty??
2.SHY (retiring )+RETS (returns?)
3. Au(tomato)ns = love apple
7. Unred (far from bloody) + A (outstanding)
8. In for (about to receive) +a

Shuchi said...

Answers now updated in the main post.

Well solved Tanmay Srivastava, Shrikanth, Arvind Ramaswamy, Ganesh N, Bhala, ranger, Raghunath, LV, michael, David Hampton, Choodamani, Chris, Nadathur Rajan, Chennaian, Anonymous.

@Tanmay Srivastava: Nicely explained. A semi-&lit, as they say.

@Shrikanth T: You were the first to crack so many - congrats!

@Ganesh N: Good answers for 5 and 6. Wrt 'in bed', see Tricky Indicators II for more examples of similar wordplay. 'Or' is 'a gold or yellow tincture'.

@ranger: In #6, read 'line' as verb: to fit the inside of, to fill.

Shuchi said...

@LV: #1 - Yes, it is indirect compared with standard hidden word clues, but it's accessible I think - if the number were spelt out in words, the answer would be too obvious.

@michael: I found #2 tricky too, trying to fit 'after retiring' as a reversal indicator.

@David Hampton: You're so right about Dean Mayer's skill with container indicators - he finds very creative ways of using them as inconspicuous nouns on the surface.

@Chennaian:
3. A singular word 'cored' would have been more pleasing, but it isn't wrong to use a plural. (Trying to think of a singular word with TOMATO at the center...)
7. ...but the use of 'far from ...' paves the way for 'bloody outstanding' on the surface; this might not happen if UNRED were defined another way.
8. Tough one, especially if we don't pronounce INFRA that way! Reminds me of Not Quite Homophones to the Indian Ear.

@Anonymous:
1. "give(n in e)xchange + Ty??" - this is how I had tried to parse it at first :-)

Secondbass said...

The problem with the TOMATO clue is that the plural of AUTOMATON is AUTOMATA, not AUTOMATONS.

Shuchi said...

@Secondbass: Chambers lists both 'automatons' and 'automata' as valid plurals.

Shuchi said...

@Chennaian:
4. On the surface, I took 'main virtually left ...' to mean that the main course was almost untouched. What's the objection to 'left in Pizza' = left (side) in PIZZA = P?

Chennaian said...

Shuchi

Thanks for your responses.

I find that what I could not get, some others have got instantly!

That's the beauty of the crosswords which depends not only on the vocab of individuals but on how the synapses of their brains work.

Now, this Clue No. 1, how would you classify? It is telescopic, no doubt. But it is truly hidden in a clue-type that is also labelled usually as 'hidden'.

We have 'indirect anagrams'. Is this an 'indirect telescopic', I wonder.

Have you (or anyone of the learned readers here) seen a similar instance before?

Recently - without being aware of this example - I wrote a clue quite unconsciously - not in my sleep but without any deliberation, I mean - a similar clue where the answer word was hidden not in the words that followed but rather in a word/phrase that you must derive from those words. On rereading and checking it, I scrapped it because I thought it was not a done thing. Sorry, I don't remember it so I am unable to quote.

Now I am beginning to rethink!

Finally, an average individual has no time to solve all the puzzles in the world. Or he or she may be sticking to one favourite puzzle all his/her life. I had not seen any of these clues, so this was a chance to become acquainted with these. I didn't have to find the answer but only work out how the answer is got. An exercise for the brain but without taxing it too much. So a big 'thank you'.