There are crossword clues that jump out at you, instantly charming you with their wit and elegance. They whisper promises of a clever solution, a delightful ‘aha!’ moment waiting just beyond the veil of their ingenious phrasing. Today’s offering is precisely one of those gems, a crossword clue that, at first glance, paints a vivid picture, almost a mini-story in itself.
Behold: ‘Eccentric never designs posh clothes (7,5)‘.
Isn’t that just wonderful? The image it conjures is immediate: a person decidedly unconcerned with the latest runway trends, perhaps even actively shunning them. You can almost picture them, marching to the beat of their own drum, clad in attire that might raise an eyebrow or two at a high-society gala. It’s a beautifully crafted sentence, flowing so naturally you’d almost miss the fact that it’s not just a description, but a puzzle waiting to be unraveled.
This particular crossword clue presents a classic challenge for any solver who loves a good cryptic. The surface reading – what the sentence literally describes – is utterly compelling, almost a character sketch. But as seasoned solvers know, the true magic of a cryptic crossword clue lies in peeling back that delightful layer to reveal the hidden mechanics beneath. The real answer isn’t about fashion at all, not in the literal sense anyway.
The numbers in brackets, (7,5), are our trusty compass in this voyage of deduction. They tell us not just the length of each word, but also that we’re looking for a two-word answer. This is crucial information, guiding our search and helping us to prune the many possibilities that might spring to mind when considering ‘eccentric’ or ‘never designs posh clothes’.
The brilliance here is in how the setter has woven the definition for an ‘eccentric’ individual into a phrase that also cleverly provides the components or operations needed to build the solution. It’s not about making literal clothes; it’s about cleverly manipulating words and concepts hinted at within that wonderfully descriptive phrase. The journey to the solution is one of careful analysis, a dance between the literal and the abstract, the obvious and the oblique.
For those who delight in the artistry of wordplay, this crossword clue is a treat. It demands a moment of pause, a gentle deconstruction of the seemingly straightforward, urging us to look beyond the immediate imagery to the linguistic trickery at play. It’s a reminder that sometimes the most vivid descriptions are also the most profound puzzles. So, take a moment, let the phrase roll around in your mind, and consider how ‘Eccentric never designs posh clothes’ might truly define an individual in the peculiar, wonderful world of cryptics.
Available Answers:
EVENINGDRESS.
Last seen on the crossword puzzle: –Metro Cryptic Crossword Clues Saturday, 13 September 2025
Metro Cryptic Crossword Clues Wednesday, 3 September 2025