Crossword Genius

'Shut up!', said the philosopher (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

locke

'philosopher' is the definition.
(John Locke)

'shut up said' is the wordplay.
'shut up' becomes 'lock' (synonyms).
'said' indicates a 'sounds like' (homophone) clue.
'lock' sounds like 'LOCKE'.

'the' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for locke that I've seen before include "John -, seventeenth to eighteenth century English philosopher" , "English empiricist philosopher, d. 1704" , "A philosopher; sounds like strand of hair" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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.