Cool Clues
For the last two years I’ve become an American junkie. Instead of blow, snow, speed, meanies or ludes, I’ve been freebasing on American quick crosswords.
Well, an Australian solver might label them as Quick - to set them apart from Cryptic - but a decent US Quick surely ain’t. For starters, outsider solvers have to hurdle a lot of references to US culture, sport, history and politics. But the real road-block is their creative genius.
Compilers concoct the most bizarre themes, from diagonal rivers hiding in the grid to rap slang. Themes aside, the other Quick trick is what many solvers label the Cute Clue - sly definitions of well-known words.
SIESTA, say, is clued as daybreak. While ANTE is a pot plant. To celebrate the cream of cute clues, I’ll be running a few posts across the next couple of weeks, supplying key letters to see if you can crack the lot. Where possible, I’ve attributed the compiler. Here’s your warmup:
Blessed event? S _ _ E _ _
Off-the-wall reply _ C _ _
Worry beads _ _ E _ T
Refrain from piracy _ O _ _ _ O
Period in English Literature _ U _ _ _ T _ _
They’re used to stress _ _ A _ _ C _
Elbows on the table _ _ C _ _ _ _ I