4110 Contractions by Hubris

The sad news that this would be Hubris’s final appearance in the Listener series was tempered somewhat by the pleasant puzzle that we were given. Twelve clues contained two definitions, the shorter answer being derived from the longer one by treating it as a cryptic indication. Thus, STRING could be derived from STRANDING by parsing it as “STR and ING”, and so on. Discovering what the theme was, and which answers were thematic, provided an enjoyable evening’s entertainment for Gregson. Vale, and thank you, Hubris.

In the thematic clues, the link between the two definitions is indicated by []. In each case, the shorter of the two answers is the grid entry, thus explaining the title.

Across
1 Tie up, leaving without hope (6)
STRING [STR and ING] STRANDING
5 Be besotted with alumnus’s letter (6)
OBSESS OB’S (Old Boy’s ie alumnus’s) + ESS (letter)
10 A force failing for one (3)
ACE A FORCE less FOR
12 Comprehensive flap about top modelling (8)
PANOPTIC PANIC (flap) containing OPT (anagram of TOP)
13 Plodding students keeping hot in short leggings (5)
SHAPS SAPS (Plodding students) containing H (hot)
14 Special (but not special) weaves for pleats (6)
PLICAE Anagram of SPECIAL less S (special)
16 Part of spiral is left-handed thread (5)
LISLE Hidden in spiraL IS LEft-handed
17 Leaderless congregation’s local stubble field (5)
ARISH PARISH (congregation), less first letter
18 For a song, old-fashioned boot (6)
PROFIT PRO (For) + FIT (song)
20 Rude lazy daughter replaced by son (8)
INSOLENT INDOLENT (lazy) with S (son) for D (daughter)
22 Small torch nurse found in good condition, though old (8)
PENLIGHT EN (nurse) inside PLIGHT (old word for “good condition”)
28 Fish among tiddlers at pleasure (6)
FREELY EEL (Fish) inside FRY (tiddlers)
29 Military standard type of payment (5)
EAGLE [L in EAGE] LINEAGE
32 Chap with plenty’s content: Jonathan perhaps (5)
APPLE Hidden in chAP + PLEnty
33 Excellent drink right round this historical province (6)
RAETIA AI (ie A1, excellent) + TEA (dring) + R (right), all reversed
34 Sprite’s name is Sue (not a title of respect!) (5)
NISSE N (name) + IS + SUE less U (a title of respect)
35 Like some formal clothes taken off (8)
PINSTRIPED [P in STRIPED] STRIPPED
36 Type of microscope — it’s used by two people? (3, abbrev)
TEM [T and EM] TANDEM
37 Peregrine possibly taking part in Easter celebration (6)
TERCEL Hidden in EasTER CELebration
38 Monkey (or Spanish) puzzle trees you finally start to scale (6)
RHESUS R H E S U (Last letters of oR SpanisH puzzlE treeS yoU) + S (first letter of Scale)
 

Down
1 Glide, for example, going around quiet area (6)
SASHAY SAY (for example) containing SH (quiet) + A (area)
2 Insignia’s no good as teaching aids (6)
REALIA REGALIA (Insignia) less G (good)
3 A little naughty beggar (6)
IMPISH [IMP over ISH] IMPOVERISH
4 Gun inventor is sound as a bell (7)
GATLING [T in GALING] TING-A-LING
6 A robber with a short jacket (6)
BANDOLERO [B and OLERO] BOLERO
7 Design part of a course (straight but not straight) (4)
ETCH STRETCH (straight part of a course), less STR (straight)
8 Old country house epic, in a film every so often (4)
SIAM Every fourth letter of houSe epIc in A filM
9 Rising paper trail (5)
SCANDENT [SC and ENT] SCENT
11 Siren from Switzerland with a sound like beaver, say (7)
CHARMER CH (Switzerland) + ARMER (homophone of ARMOUR, see beaver(2) in Chambers)
15 The same old start to lover’s fantasy (4)
IDOL ID (The same) + O (old) + L (first letter of Lover)
19 Fence in field like this can be silly (7)
INCLOSE IN + CLOSE (field like this can be silly)
The reference is to the fielding position in cricket, silly, which is close to the batsman
21 Seashore crustacean: one found in a fishmonger’s perhaps (7)
SANDHOPPER [S and HOPPER] SHOPPER
23 Old obstruction choking a trench in some places (4)
LEAT LET (Old word for “obstruction”) containing A
24 Source of oil found in soluble pill, if retrograde (6)
ILLIPE Hidden, reversed, in solublE PILL If
25 Wreck an overnight bag (6)
VANDALISE [V and ALISE] VALISE
26 Gets rid of, say, headless vermin (6)
EGESTS EG (say) + PESTS (vermin), less first letter
27 Adorns spaces under the front of balconies, for example (6)
BEGEMS EMS (spaces) under B (first letter of Balconies) + EG (for example)
28 Leading group of scientists in a huff (5)
FIRST RS (Royal Society, ie group of scientists) in FIT (huff)
30 Power to act on behalf of another ship’s officer (4)
MANDATE [M and ATE] MATE
31 Machine used to wash, press together (4)
RINSER [R in SER] SERR