| SPIRACLE | A respiratory opening, such as a blowhole in whales (8) |
| NOSTRILS | Respiratory openings |
| GAP | An opening, such as a breach in a fortification's wall; a col; or, a space between a train and a platform (3) |
| ORIFICE | Opening, such as a nostril (7) |
| SLIT | Thin opening, such as a buttonhole |
| GILLS | Fish’s respiratory openings |
| BELUGAS | Bulge, as possibly seen in whales (7) |
| BALEEN | Bristly filter feeding system in whales |
| BLOWHOLES | Breathing organs in whales, eg |
| NONEVENT | Nobody opening such a disappointing turnout (3-5) |
| KRAALING | Fencing almost landed in whale carcass |
| SPIRACLES | Small openings, such as the blowholes of whales |
| WHALE | Any of the larger mammals with a streamlined body and a horizontal tail, breathing through a blowhole on the head |
| HUMPBACKWHALE | Big sea mammal with a blowhole (8,5) |
| ENGLISH | Play Nigel Short's hardest openings - such as this one? (7) |
| VIALS | Almost lavish, in a way, opening such bottles? (5) |
| SLITS | Narrow openings such as buttonholes |
| GILL | A respiratory organ of a fish; a female ferret; or, a small ravine (4) |
| WHALES | Large marine mammals with streamlined bodies and horizontal tails breathing through a blowhole on the head |
| ASTHMA | A respiratory disorder characterised by difficulty in breathing, wheezing and a sense of constriction in the chest (6) |
