Cryptic clues — 27 September 2026

Answers & explanations

1. MATER (5)

   Removal day when the kettle is the first thing packed. Hidden in draws MATER from materially — mum, mother in Latinate shorthand. Cardboard, bubble wrap and a parked van cloak the hide as flat-move banter, not a textbook kinship tag.

2. BOSS (4)

   BOSS, the chief, sits one letter away from ross: only R has to become B. The clue makes ross sound like part of the scene rather than the raw material.

3. GREAT (5)

   Kitchen range when the poker still glows. We hear marks grate as sounding like GREAT. Large is the great sense — sizeable. Soft soot and a bent kettle cloak the ear-play as hearth mutter, not a size chart.

4. ANGLE (5)

   Health-kick praise: spotless habits, carried off nicely. Terminal letters of extra clean living well done, flagged by 'ultimately', give ANGLE. Fish is the verb sense — to angle — while the wellness patter sells the last-letter trail.

5. SLUMP (5)

   Kitchen dawn when the taps still drip. Pound yields L; in slots it into sink (SUMP) — S(L)UMP. Slack is the slump sense, a sag. Soft bleach smell and a bent brush sell the container as scullery aside while the letter finds its quiet nest.

6. BERRY (5)

   Orchard stall when the crates still creak. Soft fruit is a berry; perry after one letter change swaps P for B — PERRY to BERRY. Soft juice smell and a bent punnet sell the rename as harvest chatter.

7. LEAR (4)

   Dress circle when the curtain still sticks. Rolled flips RAEL to LEAR — tragedy, the king’s dark play. Programme rustle and a cooling glass sell the reversal as first-night weather, odd name kept exact.

8. WARE (4)

   Travel diary scolding a wasteful riverside day. At the outset, water assist rio expert supply W+A+R+E = WARE, archaic for squander. Outset phrasing replaces 'first of all'; rio stays lowercase as given; definition and answer share no three-letter run.

9. RACY (4)

   Sports-page colour after a pair era epic jersey finish. Last of all clips pair era epic jersey to R-A-C-Y. Lively is the racy sense — spicy, lively prose — while the match report covers the terminals.

10. DOMINANT (8)

    Rehearsal room under a bare bulb. Perform then hour then insect give DO + MIN + ANT. Supreme is the dominant sense — top of the pile — and sheet music, a sticky piano and rain on the skylight cloak the join as practice-room gossip.