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ACROSS
1 Lowdown sign of fish split most of the way (4,4)
5 Lies back in his bifocals (4)
9 Kid turning over is still in bed (3,2)
10 Need tulip arrangement in abundance (9)
11 Fornication doesn’t begin at 50, yes? Yes! (7)
12 In the midst of sheep, he bickers like a Greek youth (7)
13 Determined the man will live, and not without love (4-4)
15 Smile and circle end-first (4)
16 Celsius device used by rock band in temporary accommodation (4)
17 Tryout is improbable, like the Leaning Tower of Pisa (8)
20 Made a poker play that’s deceptive and polished while accepting loss (7)
22 Stick among rampaging Huns—that’s one way to catch some heat (7)
24 Famous Timothy embraces baby boomers’ offspring 50 times? (9)
25 Southern college news agency to stop coverage? (5)
26 To show devotion, Republican cuts salary (4)
27 Herb claims to possess a bit of hope, declining any one of various entries in the completed grid (8)
DOWN
1 On TV, Archie’s fortification (6)
2 Raising creative expression with our group’s scripture (5)
3 California Senate’s chief leaving gun in government building (7)
4 My pet is wild: You shouldn’t run on it (5)
5 “Belief in Freedom,” originally a smash hit (5)
6 Absurdly, bury rebel with fruit (9)
7 Democrat replaces Roosevelt’s train carriage (8)
8 Guiding light has bad advice for a lib? (6)
13 Returned some more grub: mahimahi and Big Mac, say (9)
14 The commercial theater world initially invested in a dude delivery program, perhaps? (8)
16 Pave an Afghan city, by the sound of it (6)
18 Broken-down sauna captivates East Coast state and Puerto Rican municipality (3,4)
19 Where you might get married with a man in front of a couple of elders (6)
21 Bum is boosterish? (5)
22 Authority should always yield skillful opposition leaders (3-2)
23 CIA’s mixed up with incomplete computer standard (5)
SOLUTION TO PUZZLE NO. 3413
ACROSS 1 “sigher” 3 A BELT AS MAN 10 E + S(CHEW)ING 11 rev. 12 T + EPEE 13 EGGS A LAD 16 & 21 END + EAR 18 SU(PERM + ARK)ET 20 REST + ORATION 21 & 28D EAR + THY 22 S(ELF)HEL + P 24 LE + PEN 27 D + RAIN 28 THE ME PARK 29 A + POC AL + YPSE (rev.) 30 S + KID
DOWN 1 anag. 2 rev. 4 B(OILER)P + LATE 5 & 16A LEG END 6 ASP + CA 7 MIL(W)AUKEE (leukemia anag.) 8 NOT E 9 RE(FE)RSTO (resort anag.) 14 anag. 15 STA(RKNA)KED (rank anag.) 17 D[i]ES + PER + ADO 19 ANN + U + LLED (rev.) 23 FOND + A 25 PLAN K 26 alternate letters
Joshua Kosman and Henri PicciottoJoshua Kosman and Henri Picciotto are The Nation’s puzzlers. To read more about Kosman, click here. To read more about Picciotto, click here. Kosman and Picciotto explain what they’re up to in “Solving The Nation’s Cryptic Crosswords” (also available as a PDF). Check out The Nation’s Current Issue page each week for the latest puzzle.