Crossword Genius

Embarrass person of substance when lot includes forgery (3,5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

fat shame

'embarrass person of substance' is the definition.
(as in fat shaming an overweight person)

'lot includes forgery' is the wordplay.
'lot' becomes 'fate' (synonyms).
'includes' is an insertion indicator.
'forgery' becomes 'sham' (sham is a kind of forgery).
'fate' placed around 'sham' is 'FAT SHAME'.

'when' acts as a link.

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.