Crossword Genius

Quality and skill rising with it (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

trait

'quality' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)

'skill rising with it' is the wordplay.
'skill' becomes 'art' (both can mean a talent).
'rising' shows that the letters should be reversed in order (going up in a down clue).
'with' says to put letters next to each other.
'art' back-to-front is 'tra'.
'tra'+'it'='TRAIT'

'and' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for trait that I've seen before include "Mannerism" , "A characteristic of straitened kind" , "Feature of personality" , "Decorative band" , "Attribute, characteristic" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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.