Crossword Genius

Gruff sailor on Channel seizing power (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

abrupt

'gruff' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'sailor on channel seizing power' is the wordplay.
'sailor' becomes 'ab' (abbreviation for able seaman).
'on' says to put letters next to each other.
'channel' becomes 'rut' (I've seen this before).
'seizing' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'power' becomes 'p'.
'rut' going around 'p' is 'rupt'.
'ab'+'rupt'='ABRUPT'

(Other definitions for abrupt that I've seen before include "Sudden; hasty, curt" , "Terse and sudden" , "Impolite" , "Short in manner" , "Sudden - blunt" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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.