Crossword Genius

Fussy one-time desire to tour Arab country (3-8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

old-womanish

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

'one-time desire to tour arab country' is the wordplay.
'one-time' becomes 'old'.
'desire' becomes 'wish' (wishing is a kind of desiring).
'to tour' means one lot of letters goes inside another (to tour can mean to go around).
'arab country' becomes 'oman' (I've seen this before).
'wish' enclosing 'oman' is 'womanish'.
'old'+'womanish'='OLD-WOMANISH'

(Another definition for old-womanish that I've seen is " Fussy (colloq.)".)

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