BIG MONDAY CROSSWORD
ACROSS
1 Eleventh letter of the Greek alphabet, derived from the Phoenician letter lamed ( 6) 4 Mexican dish consisting of a burrito wrapped around a savoury filling and deep- fried ( 11) 9 Dense cluster of nerve- cell bodies and synapses outside the central nervous system, usually enclosed in a tissue sheath ( 8)
10 Antilocapra americana, family Antilocapridae;
also known as the American antelope ( 9)
11 Formal title of the emperor of Japan (‘ heavenly emperor’), used from the 8th century in place of mikado ( 5)
12 Red- fleshed Pacific salmon also known as the
blueback; Oncorhynchus nerka ( 7)
14 Japanese style of wrestling whose first yokozuna (‘ grand champion’) was Akashi Shiganosuke ( c. 1600- 1649) ( 4)
17 Film named Best Animated Feature at the Oscars, Golden Globes and BAFTAs in 2013 ( 5) 18 South American tree of the genus Euterpe whose blackish- purple berries are valued as a health food ( 4)
19 Unicameral parliament of Finland, established in 1906 to replace the Diet of Finland ( 9)
21 Village of southern Scotland in which Robert Burns was born in 1759, and in which his poem ‘ Tam o’ Shanter’ is set ( 7)
22 Mexican spirit mixed with orange liqueur and
lime juice to make a margarita cocktail ( 7)
25 Museum of art and antiquities attached to
Oxford University, founded in 1683 ( 9)
27 Extinct flightless bird of Mauritius ( Raphus cucullatus) belonging to the order Columbiformes ( pigeons etc.) ( 4)
28 Third- largest island of the Philippines, separated from Luzon to the north- west by the San Bernardino Strait ( 5)
29 ‘ Let me tell you, Cassius, you yourself/ Are much condemned to have an itching ___’ ( Shakespeare Julius Caesar ( 1599) act 4, sc. 3, ll. 7- 8) ( 4)
31 Plant body not differentiated into leaf, stem and
root, as with algae, fungi and lichens ( 7)
33 Third- largest city in Japan, on Honshu island at
the mouth of the Yodo River ( 5)
36 Highest peak of the Andes, in west- central Argentina near the Chilean border ( 9)
37 Of a piano piece, to be played with the soft pedal depressed; Italian, ‘ one string’ ( 3,5)
38 Branch of medical science concerned with the study of blood and blood- producing tissues ( 11) 39 Alternative name for the ‘ monstrous’ type of fighting- machine used by the Martians in H. G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds ( 1898) ( 6)
DOWN
1 In printing, a character, such as æ, formed of two or more joined letters ( 8) 2 Menachem ___, Prime Minister of Israel from 1977 to 1983 ( 5)
3 Capital of Samoa since 1959, located on the
northern coast of Upolu Island ( 4)
4 Second- longest river of Africa, formerly known
as the Zaire ( 5)
5 Cousin and adoptive father of Esther who became chief adviser to King Ahasuerus ( Esther 2- 9) ( 8)
6 2005 biographical sports drama film starring Russell Crowe and Renée Zellweger ( 10,3) 7 Alexandre Dumas character who, along with Porthos and Aramis, made up The Three Musketeers ( 5)
8 Aromatic spice mix used in Indian cuisine, typically including cloves, cumin, coriander etc. ( 5,6)
13 Small group of intriguers; historically, a group of five ministers who served as advisors to King Charles II between 1667 and 1673 ( 5)
15 Scottish- American author whose debut novel,
Shuggie Bain, won the 2020 Booker Prize ( 7,6)
16 Former standard monetary unit of Portugal
replaced by the euro in 2002 ( 6)
18 Son of Zeus and Leto and twin brother of
Artemis ( 6)
20 Largest and southernmost island of the Chagos Archipelago in the central Indian Ocean, part of the British Indian Ocean Territory ( 5,6)
23 Mother of US television’s The Brady Bunch ( 1969- 74), played by Florence Henderson ( 5)
24 and 35 Down German idealist philosopher whose works include the influential Critique of Pure Reason ( 1871) ( 8,4)
26 State of NE India formed in 1962 from parts of Assam and the North- East Frontier Agency; capital, Kohima ( 8)
30 Musical note having the time value of two crotchets or half a semibreve ( 5)
32 In modern law, the practice of loaning money at an illegally high rate of interest ( 5)
34 Finnish name for Finland, also used for the Finnish language ( 5)
35 See 24