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

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is #2 a type of tinned fish?

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:26 (fifteen years ago)

Potter = snooker player

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:26 (fifteen years ago)

Wow!

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:27 (fifteen years ago)

#2 fa= chemical symbol for tin (don't think I've seen that before. Nice.)

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:28 (fifteen years ago)

Wow!

Never mind get these right, I don't think I could ever even independently deduce half of these from the solutions.

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:31 (fifteen years ago)

Can someone explain #3?

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:31 (fifteen years ago)

but fa doesn't appear in answer? (am i being dumb here?)

i read the four central letters of the answer as the fish

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:31 (fifteen years ago)

i think no 3 is almost not cryptic, unless i'm missing another *level* mayne

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:32 (fifteen years ago)

tinned fish = type of fish inside chemical symbol for tin (sn)

spain one quite funny.

shout in the sense of 'it's your shout.'

koogs, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:32 (fifteen years ago)

xposts

koogs, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:33 (fifteen years ago)

oh FA why didn't you say!

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:33 (fifteen years ago)

i'm meh on the shout aspect tbh

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:34 (fifteen years ago)

"it's your treat"?

not cryptic clues always throw me, are they actually allowed?

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:34 (fifteen years ago)

xps

Sorry, maybe sticking in rot13 is confusing things, fa=sn, so the fish is 'in' tin.

#5 horseplay = n ent + in progress = ba

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:34 (fifteen years ago)

xp it's a double definition, that's legit.

ledge, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:35 (fifteen years ago)

yes, when buying rounds in pubs. it's my shout - i'm buying these, these are my treat.

koogs, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:36 (fifteen years ago)

Spain - think of a student ___ week, the main surviving example of this usage - like that one more than the rest but then it's the only one I got

(xposts, oh well)

rah rah rah wd smash the oiks (a passing spacecadet), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:37 (fifteen years ago)

Still hate #3.

#5 amazing work!

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:39 (fifteen years ago)

dropping 6 at a time turns this thread into some kind of piranha word puzzle frenzy, i love it.

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:41 (fifteen years ago)

Ok new lot coming!

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:42 (fifteen years ago)

Fashionable dress-silk (7)
Old watchman to hang fire (4)
Exceptionally bright light at the front (4)
Indeed name a hundred, already named! (9)
A drop of water that mars one's view (8)
Obliged to worry constantly about a wild horse (7)

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:48 (fifteen years ago)

nynzbqr
jnvg
irel
qrabhaprq (this is the now-obligatory one I get as soon as I type it)
pngnenpg
zhfgnat

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:50 (fifteen years ago)

#1 is double definition

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:52 (fifteen years ago)

As is #2

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:53 (fifteen years ago)

pretty archaic first def tho.

ledge, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:54 (fifteen years ago)

i know, it says "old"

ledge, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:54 (fifteen years ago)

these ones i'll admit to struggling with- i've tried looking up types of silk but only getting a similar spelling to the answer for the first one.

rest of em? baffled

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:54 (fifteen years ago)

don't get #3, #5 is nice - double def basically.

ledge, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:54 (fifteen years ago)

xps

Yeah it's listener/azed level arcane vocab - last definition in Chambers.

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:55 (fifteen years ago)

indeed = in 'deed'

ledge, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:55 (fifteen years ago)

i get the last one alright, i would not have seen the last three letters standalone before though?

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 14:56 (fifteen years ago)

Is the idea that pngnenpg's are caused by drops of water?

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:58 (fifteen years ago)

nah, cataract = waterfall

ledge, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:59 (fifteen years ago)

i would not have seen the last three letters standalone before though?

not sure what you mean here?

ledge, Friday, 30 July 2010 14:59 (fifteen years ago)

drop of water is just a double def - word comes from the Greek and then the Latin for water flowing downwards, think it meant "waterfall" in English too before it became a somewhat less pleasant thing

xp again dammit

rah rah rah wd smash the oiks (a passing spacecadet), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:00 (fifteen years ago)

must -ang?

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:00 (fifteen years ago)

many xps

Chambers (again) has that spelling for the kind of silk.

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:00 (fifteen years ago)

xp, ang = nag anag? (lol.) 'worry constantly' = nag, 'about' = anag.

ledge, Friday, 30 July 2010 15:01 (fifteen years ago)

christ #3 is more ridic vocab double def, irel = signalling or illuminating flare

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:03 (fifteen years ago)

So 1 and 2 are obscure vocabulary for 'silk' and 'watchman' respectively?

But what is 'hang fire' doing?

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 15:03 (fifteen years ago)

hadn't seen 'about' used to signify anagram before- it's always 're' in crosaire. fair enough

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:04 (fifteen years ago)

xp
hmmm. Indirect anagrams usually considered unfair.

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:04 (fifteen years ago)

But it does seem to be the best explanation.

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:05 (fifteen years ago)

true, but the rest of it was easy enough so.

about as anag indicator is pretty standard, (move the letters) about.

hang fire = wait!

pretty sure i wouldn't have got 1 2 or 3 meself.

ledge, Friday, 30 July 2010 15:06 (fifteen years ago)

3 is kind of a crummy clue in that case - it's either completely impossible or literally the first thing you'll try if you've memorised chambers somehow.

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 15:06 (fifteen years ago)

Hang on - nag isn't a wild horse, so 'wild' must be the signifier? So what's 'about'?

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 15:08 (fifteen years ago)

nag anag

Happy with "about" for anag, but surely the "wild horse" is being the whole-word definition?

I got the -stang as being "angst" about but then was stuck on "mu", and while it's used for various sciencey things I don't think any of them are "constant"s

am I barking up the wrong tree?

rah rah rah wd smash the oiks (a passing spacecadet), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:08 (fifteen years ago)

mustang is a wild horse, nag is ang 'about', must is the 'obliged'

"It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:08 (fifteen years ago)

OH RIGHT

Gravel Puzzleworth, Friday, 30 July 2010 15:10 (fifteen years ago)

xps

Could maybe get 1, might need checked letters. The other two, not if it was a regular xword. Don't expect lunatic dictionary digging tests outside barred grids.

tetrahedron of space (woof), Friday, 30 July 2010 15:10 (fifteen years ago)


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