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Lumen - usual Little Woman [well, one of two].

Opposite of cocky is sub-pantomime/Christmas cracker in sophistication, but is as literal an interpretation as you'll ever get.

34D - Hostel - in the US - uses only the first initial of a very well-known four letter abbreviation.

A previous post suggested that the answer to 4d is a common word. I think I have this answer and I suppose this is modified before entry. Is the entry a common word? If it is the letters that I have from the across clues must be wrong.
I have a mostly complete grid but am getting nowhere with the theme.

Thanks HW.
Yes catkin, I'm with you, baffled on 4d, not a real word surely?

And HW7, I'm still not seeing 38. Only one sister has an e....what is the definition? Fellow?

Yes to definition. Two-letter LW with energy missing from the remaining part of wordplay - five letter reduces to four to give word for fellow.

Sort of opposite of doggy is catty.

Catkin - I suspect that you're doing just fine - as per preamble, some clues have to be treated before entry.

It may be that in your case you end up treating at least one clue after entry...

Puzzle complete, but I have not been able to find the definition for the answer to the third clue in the second thematic set. For the sake of completeness, it would be nice to know where it is.

17.

Google the proper nouns (well, not Cairo…)

Still haven't cracked this, full grid, but not getting it.
5a, is pregnancies an extra word? Parsing?
15a, is this thematic? Can't see how prize comes into it.
Think this may become only the second Listener I've failed on in recent times.

5, pregnancies is the definition. A type of gas around EYES (anag)

15, not thematic ,a double def. Look up the bird in Chambers.