My challenge is progressing. The grade of this challenge is so steep, it's almost vertical. Partially, I suspect the cryptic crosswords get harder as the week goes on. Or maybe I got tireder?
Still, I got some clues out.
Q Head brought back gem and spice (6)
A NUTMEG
Q Mine history ends in shame (4)
A PITY
Q Old mathematician reversed half-size curved structures outside (10)
A ARCHIMEDES
(I liked this one: arch + the maths dude in the bath Archimedes + demi backwards)
QFive hundred each? Remainders is the most expensive? (7)
A DEAREST
Q This occasion completed the opening? (5)
A EVENT
Q Certain old town in the southeast (4)
A SURE
(That 'old town' being Ur, the town which the biblical Abraham came from; see? all those years of Jewish education paid off!)
So that's my six successfully answered cyrptic clues. The endorphins effect of getting over-excited about my newly exercised skills can be deceptive - as the crosswords start difficult, stay tricky and grow more cunning by the day. I was right ot stick with only 3 clues a day. Any more is like that extra martini - dangerous!
7 comments:
You know, I have so little idea what you're talking about that I always suspect you of having so many typos in your questions or answers, or not including all of the information, that they are incomprehensible to me. I do not understand these cryptic crossword things at all! Keep posting and maybe I'll figure them out eventually.
Actually, could you go through your thinking in detail on one of the questions so I can try to fathom how you get from one place to the other?
Of Course!
'Head brought back gem and spice' - gem backwards (brought back) is meg. A spice is nutmeg. 'Head' refers to first letter of the word sometimes (ie reverse the word, from its head?!)
Mine history ends in shame...a 'pit' is like a mine; 'pity' synonymous with 'shame'. I don't know why the word 'history' was involved.
'Five hundred each? Remainder is the most expensive'?
I found 'dear' synonymous with 'expensive', and 'rest' with 'remainder. Ignored the bit about 500.
Event - "occasion" + "opening"/vent.
Let the fun continue, but I hope you don't lose more sleep over cryptics!
Wow, that so interesting! What did "head" have to do with NUTMEG? Or was that a red herring?
Wow. Blowing me away with your genius. I like the mine/APITY answer. Clever.
The mine head/ pity clue:
mine- pit
history end - y
Answer - shame.
Sometimes, I get the answers, but for the life of me don't know how the heck they made up the damn' question!
And the D you ignored is the old Roman way of writing 500.
(I'm still struggling with Saturday's puzzle!)
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