Crossword Genius

Old lady seen with a bloke in the shade? (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

magenta

'the shade?' is the definition.
(magenta is a shade of purple)

'old lady seen with a bloke in' is the wordplay.
'old lady' becomes 'ma' (both can mean mother).
'seen with' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'bloke' becomes 'gent' (I've seen this in another clue).
'in' is an insertion indicator.
'ma'+'a'='maa'
'maa' enclosing 'gent' is 'MAGENTA'.

(Other definitions for magenta that I've seen before include "puce" , "Reddish-purple colour" , "fuchsia" , "Bright purplish red or magnate" , "this might be an ink" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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