The official bored-at-work cryptic crossword pass it on thread.

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the zero gravity bit at the end gave it away

Ratt in Mi Kitchen (Neil S), Monday, 1 December 2014 14:26 (nine years ago) link

^^^ yeah I worked backwards too. Here's an easy one I made up:

Singer staples most of map and half of visa. (5)

Deliciously hard yet very accessible (Dan Peterson), Monday, 1 December 2014 16:21 (nine years ago) link

Ah, crap, make that 'most of map and most of visa.'

Deliciously hard yet very accessible (Dan Peterson), Monday, 1 December 2014 16:22 (nine years ago) link

nice def. 'most' tends to be frowned upon, too vague (not really a problem in this case but...) - you could go for last letter deletion instead, incomplete visa or something.

Kelly Gang Carey and the Mantels (ledge), Monday, 1 December 2014 17:20 (nine years ago) link

I was happy to work this one out in today's Grauniad

Weapon offering promise of American woman? (10)

Ratt in Mi Kitchen (Neil S), Saturday, 13 December 2014 22:46 (nine years ago) link

Not 100% sure this works, but I wrote one for Merriam-Webster's 2014 word of the year:

Huge rut luckily consumes backward social group and its beliefs. (7)

The Thelonius Monk of nu-ki? (Dan Peterson), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 19:28 (nine years ago) link

^ Culture, yeah that works fine.

Little bleeder's reported break in to Electronic Arts' outpost in Devon (8,3)

ledge, Saturday, 20 December 2014 13:24 (nine years ago) link

No idea!

Is there a prize xword in today's guardian? It isn't on their (increasingly shit & buggy) iPhone app.

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Saturday, 20 December 2014 18:15 (nine years ago) link

yes, it's two grids so the app wouldn't be able to handle it.

koogs, Saturday, 20 December 2014 18:27 (nine years ago) link

Ah ok, worth getting the paper for or no? I have a train journey later but ample reading...

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Saturday, 20 December 2014 18:34 (nine years ago) link

it looks a bit convoluted "however, one letter must be added to one of each pair of solutions before entry into the grid"...

koogs, Saturday, 20 December 2014 19:08 (nine years ago) link

Oh I hate those ftmp

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Saturday, 20 December 2014 19:17 (nine years ago) link

"Forge the mine path". Primarily used in Minecraft when building a path into a mine.

ledge, Saturday, 20 December 2014 22:16 (nine years ago) link

It's tough but I'm enjoying it, clues are pretty straightforward and the instructions are clear and not a huge stumbling block.

ledge, Saturday, 20 December 2014 22:18 (nine years ago) link

I mean I'm like less than a quarter done.

ledge, Saturday, 20 December 2014 22:18 (nine years ago) link

Director of films to include head of penis? Almost - pianist

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Saturday, 20 December 2014 22:49 (nine years ago) link

(4,4)

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Saturday, 20 December 2014 22:49 (nine years ago) link

nope... gonna add an extra hint to mine.

Little bleeder's reported break in to Electronic Arts' south Devon seaside office? (8,3)

--d--t--/---

ledge, Monday, 22 December 2014 13:41 (nine years ago) link

I'm stumped

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Tuesday, 23 December 2014 15:10 (nine years ago) link

Got it. (not sure why it's office though?)

oppet, Tuesday, 23 December 2014 15:29 (nine years ago) link

Oh, 'outpost in Devon' makes sense though.

oppet, Tuesday, 23 December 2014 15:31 (nine years ago) link

I threw a question mark in there to indicate something fishy but I think it's ok, if EA had an office in T------ you'd just call it EA T------. Like errrrrr DKNY?

ledge, Tuesday, 23 December 2014 17:40 (nine years ago) link

r-d--t--/k--

ledge, Tuesday, 23 December 2014 17:45 (nine years ago) link

Guardian prize now the usual war of attrition, was hoping the parents would help but they'd completed less than me.

ledge, Tuesday, 23 December 2014 18:30 (nine years ago) link

Omg just got it

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Tuesday, 23 December 2014 20:41 (nine years ago) link

radiator key!

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Tuesday, 23 December 2014 20:42 (nine years ago) link

:)

ledge, Tuesday, 23 December 2014 20:53 (nine years ago) link

That kind of cryptic definition would normally have me decrying the compiler as a scoundrel.

ledge, Tuesday, 23 December 2014 20:54 (nine years ago) link

It gets by because we like "little bleeder"

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Tuesday, 23 December 2014 20:56 (nine years ago) link

Did you get mine?

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Tuesday, 23 December 2014 20:56 (nine years ago) link

Nope, give us letters!

ledge, Tuesday, 23 December 2014 22:03 (nine years ago) link

Given up on the guardian in a huff, if anyone can explain how "comrade - stan's" is at all cryptic for "oliver" - well it probably won't change my mind.

ledge, Wednesday, 24 December 2014 20:45 (nine years ago) link

yeah but like

idgi

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Wednesday, 24 December 2014 21:43 (nine years ago) link

btw

--n-/-a--

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Wednesday, 24 December 2014 21:45 (nine years ago) link

those chuckleheads were the first thing I thought of, that still ain't no cryptic clue.

ledge, Wednesday, 24 December 2014 21:48 (nine years ago) link

Yeah unless "Oliver" is another word for "comrade" or sth

tl;dr, gukbar, morbis detrius (wins), Wednesday, 24 December 2014 21:49 (nine years ago) link

sth to do with the Song of Roland or...?

(don't even know if I'm overreaching here; did not attempt said crossword as the gimmick was beyond me, by which I don't even mean adding letters but the whole not knowing where to split the clues thing)

club mate martyr (a passing spacecadet), Wednesday, 24 December 2014 22:04 (nine years ago) link

Cromwellian perhaps, but that kind of "guess which Stan this refers to" isn't unheard of in cryptics

Noodle Vague, Wednesday, 24 December 2014 22:05 (nine years ago) link

not especially hard but i always appreciate arachne and her politics:

Ends of Rice, Brown and Garner? Time for anger (6)

lex pretend, Thursday, 1 January 2015 15:10 (nine years ago) link

nice

Gombeen Dance Band (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 1 January 2015 15:32 (nine years ago) link

(talking of hard, i don't think i've ever been as irritated with a crossword as that maskarade prize one from the other week)

lex pretend, Thursday, 1 January 2015 15:38 (nine years ago) link

There was a pop at ukip voters in the Boxing Day one, can't remember the setter

Gonna post this once more & then give solution

Director of films to include head of penis? Almost - /pianist/ (4,4)

--n-/-a--

bife claro (wins), Thursday, 1 January 2015 23:52 (nine years ago) link

Oops zing

Director of films to include head of penis? Almost - pianist(4,4)

--n-/-a--

bife claro (wins), Thursday, 1 January 2015 23:53 (nine years ago) link

Lang Lang

Thread could do w some more cryptic penile insertions

joe selfie (qiqing), Friday, 2 January 2015 07:11 (nine years ago) link

Took me a little while to come up with this one

Cheeky old man, measure with huge one out and give head direction, faint ring of a one hit wonder? (4,5)

joe selfie (qiqing), Friday, 2 January 2015 08:53 (nine years ago) link

Bit long i know but here's a clue a la wins

--n-/--u--

joe selfie (qiqing), Friday, 2 January 2015 23:17 (nine years ago) link

Objective: refuse to be heard in a thriller about a duck? (9)

I couldn't get this one for the life of me. Homonym AND a double definition!

The Thelonius Monk of nu-ki? (Dan Peterson), Monday, 5 January 2015 18:24 (nine years ago) link

Damn that is a tough one. All I can think is "equitable" fitting if the solution is another word for "objective", but I can't see how that works. Is refuse homonym something like nix/nicks or waste/waist? Still doesn't really help. Is duck referring to a type of duck eg pekin?

No bites for my clue so can I just

Wang Chung

joe selfie (qiqing), Monday, 5 January 2015 23:05 (nine years ago) link

>>> Is refuse homonym something like nix/nicks or waste/waist?

Neither. And part of my problem was the way I pronounce said word is not exactly a homophone with the word they're seeking, so I just didn't hear it.

Hint: G_L _ _ _ _ _ _

The Thelonius Monk of nu-ki? (Dan Peterson), Monday, 5 January 2015 23:19 (nine years ago) link


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