Crossword Genius

Doctor ruder when a husband's removed pants? (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

underwear

'pants?' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'doctor ruder when a husband's removed' is the wordplay.
'doctor' indicates anagramming the letters.
'husband' becomes 'h' (abbreviation).
'removed' is a deletion indicator.
'ruder'+'when'+'a'='ruderwhena'
'ruderwhena' with 'h' removed is 'ruderwena'.
'ruderwena' anagrammed gives 'UNDERWEAR'.

(Other definitions for underwear that I've seen before include "Vests, knickers etc" , "Possibly slips" , "Smalls,shorts,lingerie etc" , "Clothing nearest the skin" , "Combinations, say" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app