Word Puzzle 145

Word Puzzle 145 – Solution with Explanation 

Theme: Captain bone spur’s wild, wild world 

Clues:  

1. Pawn defense (8) 

Security, DD. 

2. Petty cash kept economy liquid (6,5) 

  Pocket money, petty cash (def), liquid (anagram of) “kept economy” 

3. Fortune of doom, Waikiki’s metal band made the top 50’s list last week (6) 

Kismet, fortune (def), of (hidden), rest is fodder. 

4. How to find a loner sap with goods? (8,7) 

Personal effects, how to find (meta), loner sap (target), goods (def), one way to get the 

  target is via personal anagram (effects) 

5. IBM users break down in depression over the expenditure (12) 

Disbursement, break down (anagram of) IBM users, in (insertion), dent (depression), 

expenditure (def) 

6. Seize the distinguishing feature embodying the old city (5) 

Usurp, seize (def), UPS (distinguishing feature), embodying (container), UR (old city) 

7. How to get to the boogerman with repercussion? (9,6) 

Boomerang effect, how to get to (meta), boogerman (target), repercussion (def), one way to 

   get the target is via boomerang anagram (effect) 

8.  Draft duty (6) 

  Burden, DD. 

9. Odd movie about JD Vance’s wife holding Trump’s head on demand? (4-4) 

  Must-have, odd (odd letters in) movie i.e., “MVE”, about (container), Usha (JD Vance’s 

     wife), holding (container), head (1st letter in) Trump’s, demand (def) 

10. Trump’s lawyer introducing the new age Cuban dance (8) 

    Habanera, Haba (Trump’s lawyer), introducing (juxta), n (new), era (age), Cuban dance 

    (def) 

11. Cathleen Marcos arranged to “get” the corrupt US supreme court judge (8,6) 

   Clarence Thomas, arranged (anagram of) Cathleen Marcos, rest is def. 

12. Sailor’s myth according to hearsay, is about the special counsel (4, 5) 

   Jack Smith, Jack’s (sailor’s), according to hearsay (homophone of) myth, special counsel 

   (def) 

13. The Don is making amends finally, after living a life full of debauchery (8) 

    Hedonism, debauchery (def), of (hidden), rest is fodder. 

14. After commencement, the attitude to welcome the King (lacking any alternative) was that 

   of restraint (10) 

   Temperance, after commencement (delete 1st letter in) stance (attitude), to welcome 

      (container), emperor (King), lacking (deletion of) or (alternative), restraint (def) 

15. Succeeded to get heard (4,3,5) 

   Made the grade, implicit meta, succeeded (def), get heard (target), one way to get the target 

    is via anagram (made) of “the grade” 

16. Dictator’s venture flourished (6) 

    Throve, dictator’s (homophone of) throw (venture), flourished (def) 

17. Lesser of the two evils? As one could easily infer, I ordered the right choice (8) 

     Inferior, lesser (def), of (hidden), rest is fodder. 

18. Mysterious Mandrake hovers over the supremo (5,3,6) 

     Mover and shaker, mysterious (anagram of) “Mandrake hovers”, supremo (def) 

19. Regularly demean after depression, by replacing love with extreme anger on this night of 

     witches (9) 

     Halloween, regularly (alternate letters in) demean, after (positionally after), hollow 

     (depression), by replacing (substitution of) o (love) with extreme (1st letter in) anger, night 

     of witches (def) 

20. Feverish? Then quit the eccentricity by limiting the unfavorable aspect (8) 

      Frenetic, feverish (def), free (quit), tic (eccentricity), limiting (container), n  

      (unfavorable aspect) 

21. Former first lady without an award in battling cancer (8) 

      Melanoma, Melania (former first lady), without (deletion of) i (an), OM (award), in 

      (insertion), cancer (def)