Penniless when apartment malfunctioned (4,5)
I believe the answer is:
flat broke
'penniless' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'apartment malfunctioned' is the wordplay.
'apartment' becomes 'flat' (synonyms).
'malfunctioned' becomes 'broke' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'flat'+'broke'='FLAT BROKE'
'when' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Another definition for flat broke that I've seen is " cleaned out".)
I've seen this clue in The Mirror.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution?
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