Crossword Genius

President observed going around hotel in grand fashion

Ross

I believe the answer is:

washington

'president' is the definition.
(George Washington, first president of the USA)

'observed going around hotel in grand fashion' is the wordplay.
'observed' becomes 'saw' (seen).
'going around' is a reversal indicator.
'hotel' becomes 'h' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'grand' becomes 'g' (G is short for grand as in a thousand).
'fashion' becomes 'ton' (term for style or fashion).
'saw' backwards is 'was'.
'was'+'h'+'in'+'g'+'ton'='WASHINGTON'

(Other definitions for washington that I've seen before include "Old president" , "NW US state" , "See 3" , "First US president" , "Irving" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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