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orson

24th July 2021, 23:03
I much prefer "cater for...". It's the standard usage.
"Cater to" does crop up occasionally, especially in the USA, and it has been used by such Victorian writers as Thackeray and Kingsley.
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grunger

27th July 2021, 21:24
BBC Commentator: "This is the lowest key Olympic Games ever."

Surely it should be "These are the most low key Olympic Games ever", whether true or not.
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grunger

28th July 2021, 17:39
Malone

You mentioned on the EV thread that "eggs is eggs", My mum used to say that. Should it be "eggs are eggs"? I am not sure.

I had a great time away thanks. Spent a few days at M5 Services, a good centre for my walking and exploring. Did the Times most days and struggled with a few EVs from recent Sundays. Enjoying Olympics .

What do you think of this clue (not cryptic) in the Mail last week.

Gambling game (5)

I had B-N-O

Obvious answer but gambling???
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malone

28th July 2021, 18:15
Grunger, that was the first time I'd ever used 'eggs is eggs' - I'd seen it recently in a book and decided I'd slip it in somewhere, sometime. I'd never thought of the 'eggs are eggs' being perhaps the better version. I have done some very quick research - online, Collins gave me 'eggs is eggs', my Brewer's gives the singular, then the plural version. I definitely prefer the 'is' - and saw that 'it has been suggested that this is an alteration of the logician's formula " x is x" . I'll stick with that one!

Glad you had a great time away, though I expect that ANY time away is wonderful right now!

The gambling game clue is distinctly odd, though I see that Chambers says it is a '...game, prizes being won by the first to cover...' I think my perception of 'gambling' is a little different.

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jigjag

28th July 2021, 22:18
Grunger

Glad you had a good time on the M5, but isn't it a little crowded?

Malone

I have heard both versions of eggs here. I like both.
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orson

29th July 2021, 13:28
I prefer "eggs is eggs", even though it's ungrammatical, as it introduces a down-to-earth and slightly humorous tone into what may be an earnest conversation or piece of writing. It seems it first appeared in print in Tom Brown's Schooldays (1857).

I'm not convinced by the "x is x" origin. Eggs are used in a number of stock phrases and proverbs so it would be natural to coin another one. The use of "is" is dialectal so I think the phrase was begun by people of little or no education, certainly not people who rubbed shoulders with logicians.
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malone

29th July 2021, 13:44
Thanks, Orson. My personal view of 'Eggs is eggs' was definitely a more mundane version - I saw it coming from a rosy-cheeked American grandma!
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grunger

30th July 2021, 11:48
Thanks Orson, interesting analysis. Nice that you appeared in the Times puzzle yesterday.
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mathprofrockstar

4th August 2021, 03:28
In today’s Guardian cryptic, “allegedly “ is allegedly a homophone indicator.
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jono

4th August 2021, 06:48
MathProf, Chambers gives allege as “to cite or quote in discussion”, so I think it’s ok. I was slightly more disappointed with that clue being yet another schoolboy “Trump” gag. Impressed if you knew the 1970s BBC children’s tv presenter, did Animal Magic show in the US?
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