0:04:33
Hi, Horace here! Today's theme of misreading words by breaking them up into smaller words is not new, but it's still kind of fun. As usual, some are better than others. CASTANET (Do some trawling at sea?), for example, works pretty much perfectly, as do METAPHYSICIAN (Was introduced to the doctor?) and, to a slightly lesser extent, PROPAGATE (Support the pasture entrance?), but CARDAMOM (Check someone's parent to make sure she's of drinking age?) and PANASONIC (Criticize Sega's hedgehog design?) are both a bit of a stretch. Still, I always enjoy this kind of absurdist exercise.
Aside from theme entries, there was plenty to like, especially in the longer Downs. ROADRAGE (Driver's furious fit), ATTIRE, ARABIC, ABUNDANT - lots of A words... - and the other TACIT (Not stated directly). It seems we've seen the "tacet" spelling more often lately, but maybe that's just me. They both come from tacēre, and are very similar. It's one of those crossword words that I've started to enter with one letter missing, like ALI_, and L_S. Luckily, today it was pretty obvious which one we needed.
That *is* a fun clue for CAIRO and I *didn't* know the Pyramid was the only one still pretty much intact -- thank you!
ReplyDeleteTACIT and TACET are similar, but not the same word. The latter is a musical direction.
You know, I had written much more about the difference between those two words, but then - for once! - decided to cut it because I thought, maybe people don't need to hear all that... but I misunderestimate my audience! :)
DeleteLOL, Horace! I'm sorry...of COURSE you knew! :-)
Delete3:24
ReplyDeleteI note a Dungeons and Dragons subtheme today, with DRUID and CLERIC.
7:47 (FWOE)
ReplyDeleteI entered an "m" at the JOAN/JUG cross, as I'd read the down clue and it worked fine for an answer, but there are not many women named mOAN, so I should have caught it. Our five-year-old neighbor has been catching quite a few CRAWDADs on our beach (well, just from under small rocks in the water). We call them "crayfish" around here, but they're the same thing: freshwater crustaceans. They are not part of my DIET. Boy, the Colossus of Rhodes was short-lived! And the Lighthouse of Alexandria almost made it to our time, but alas.
I know what you mean by "stretch" but my favorite is still PANASONIC. Maybe just because of the connection to genetics. Which I could explain, but I'll just say there is a connection to genetics.
ReplyDeleteJim, I'd be interested in the connection! ~ Frannie.
DeleteI finally broke the 5-minute barrier with my fastest Monday solve ever: 4:56. PROPAGATE ABUNDANT LUAUS!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! These are heady days, indeed.
Delete