Crossword Genius

Fat American soldier bachelor knocked up (3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

big

'fat' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'american soldier bachelor knocked up' is the wordplay.
'american soldier' becomes 'GI' (informal term for a US soldier).
'bachelor' becomes 'B' (abbreviation e.g. BA=Bachelor of Arts).
'knocked up' says the letters should be written backwards.
'gi'+'b'='gib'
'gib' in reverse letter order is 'BIG'.

(Other definitions for big that I've seen before include "Huge" , "London bell" , "Large; generous" , "oversized" , "Circus tent" .)

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