Independent on Sunday 1305 Commoner

(Please click here for this same blog but with a picture quiz added. Please do NOT post hereinbelow any comment relating to the picture quiz. Thank you.)  A slow start, but it turned out all right. Thank you to Commoner. Definitions are underlined in the clues.

Across

1    The editor sent back excellent piece of writing about sex (8,7)

DEFINITE ARTICLE : Reversal of(… sent back) ED(abbrev. for “editor”) + FINE(excellent) ARTICLE(a piece of writing, in the newspaper, say) containing(about) IT(a euphemistic term for sexual intercourse).

Answer: An example of which is “the”.

9    Ringleader possibly tidied party mess (9)

SPYMASTER : Anagram of(tidied) PARTY MESS.

Defn: Reference to a spy ring.

10    A form of rock surrounding northern point (5)

PRONG : PROG(short for “progressive rock”, a subgenre of rock music originating in the UK) containing(surrounding) N(abbrev. for “northern”).

Defn: … like one on a pitchfork.

11    Writer‘s sudden appearance I ignored (7)

EMERSON : “emersion”(an emergence;a sudden appearance) minus(… ignored) “I “.

Answer: Ralph Waldo, American essayist, lecturer and poet.

12    Hit man‘s stomach initially, then nose (7)

SHOOTER : The 1st letter of(… initially) “stomach ” plus(then) HOOTER(slang for the body part, the nose, … or some other body part if in the plural).

13    Wisdom shown in story by London, say (8)

SAGACITY : SAGA(a story, stretching over a long period or family generations) plus(by) CITY(an example of which;say, is London).

15    Boy and girl getting tense, resulting in curses (6)

BLASTS : B(abbrev. for “boy”) plus(and) LASS(a young girl) containing(getting) T(abbrev. for “tense” in grammar).

19    Receptacle husband dropped the wrong way (6)

ASTRAY : “ashtray”(a receptacle for tobacco ash) minus(… dropped) “h”(abbrev. for “husband”).

Defn. and Answer: Could be used interchangeably, as in “… went astray/the wrong way”.

20    Contract law protects a society (8)

DECREASE : DECREE(a law) containing(protects) [A + S(abbrev. for “society”)].

22    Collapse having consumed a fine eastern food item (7)

FALAFEL : FALL(a collapse) containing(having consumed) [A + F(abbrev. for “fine”) + E(abbrev. for “eastern”) ].

… Middle Eastern, actually.

24    Become entangled, attached to twig (5,2)

CATCH ON : CATCH(to become entangled;hooked, as in “my sleeve caught the door handle”) + ON(attached to).

Defn: To understand;to perceive something.

26    Air retains gases, primarily Oxygen, Nitrogen and ___? (5)

ARGON : The 1st letters of, respectively,(…, primarily) “Air retains gases ” + O(the chemical symbol for the element, oxygen) + N(likewise for nitrogen).

Defn: Fill in the blank with a naturally occurring component of the air around us, together with oxygen, nitrogen and some other gases.

27    Kitchen appliance made of wood by sink failing to start (9)

TEA KETTLE : TEAK(a type of hardwood) plus(by) “settle”(to sink to and rest on the bottom) minus its 1st letter (failing to start).

28    Momentous, or alternatively heart-breaking? (5-10)

EARTH-SHATTERING : Anagram of(alternatively) HEART + SHATTERING(breaking into little pieces).

Down

1    Pepys is troubled by day with a digestive complaint (9)

DYSPEPSIA : [ Anagram of(… troubled) PEPYS IS placed below(by, in a down clue) D(abbrev. for “day”) ] plus(with) A.

2    Move swiftly, and perhaps pound boxer (9)

FLYWEIGHT : FLY(to move swiftly) plus(and) WEIGHT(a unit of which could be;is perhaps, the pound, equal to 16 ounces, in the avoirdupois system).

Defn: … who does not weigh more than 112 pounds.

3    Bears down south, south of Nebraska and Arkansas (5)

NEARS : S(abbrev. for “south”) placed below(south of, in a down clue) [NE(abbrev. for for the US state of Nebraska) plus(and) AR(abbrev. for for the US state of Arkansas) ].

4    Bird one consumed with salt (8)

TITANATE : TIT(any of various small songbirds of the titmouse family) + AN(like “a”, one in number) + ATE(consumed).

Defn: … of titanic acid, containing the element, titanium.

5    Catch a break, say (6)

ARREST : A + homophone of(…, say) “rest”(a break;a breather).

6    The highest sum paid for toll road constructed around capital of Poland (3,6)

TOP DOLLAR : Anagram of(… constructed) TOLL ROAD containing(around) the 1st letter of(capital of) “Poland “.

7    Appropriate time to follow chicken home (5)

COOPT : T(abbrev. for “time”) placed below(to follow) COOP(a shed housing chickens).

Defn: To commandeer, eg. to serve on a committee, or to adopt someone else’s idea for one’s own use.

8    Showing keen interest in Stone Age relics (5)

EAGER : Hidden in(in) “Stone Age relics “.

14    Refuse to move slowly to see bird (9)

CHAFFINCH : CHAFF(refuse;rubbish, from the mass separated from grain during threshing) + INCH(to move slowly towards, perhaps inch by little inch).

16    Pasta‘s prepared past eight (9)

SPAGHETTI : Anagram of(prepared) PAST EIGHT.

17    Conductor‘s rest being disturbed (9)

STEINBERG : Anagram of(… disturbed) REST BEING.

Answer: William, German-American conductor.

18    Willingness to write song (8)

PENCHANT : PEN(to write) + CHANT(a song).

21    Handbag collection (6)

CLUTCH : Double defn: 1st: … type without handles; and 2nd: … commonly, of eggs.

 … or a murse in male hands.

22    Batter put in iron mould (5)

FRAME : RAM(to batter;to pound) contained in(put in) FE(the chemical symbol for the element, iron).

23    Drag queen’s 12 (5)

LUGER : LUG(to drag along, especially something heavy) + ER(abbrev. for “Elizabeth Regina”, the Queen).

Answer: A German-designed and manufactured pistol or shooter;answer to 12 across.

25    That woman’s appearing in upcoming film, that’s the point (5)

THERE : HER(pronoun for “that woman” there) contained in( …’s appearing in) reversal of(upcoming, in a down clue) ET(the Steven Spielberg movie featuring an extra-terrestrial being).

Defn: At that moment or at that place or in that respect or at/on that point, as in “stop there”, “I disagree with you there”, and so on.

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