State of affairs before man fell - good edge on stair (6)
I believe the answer is:
nosing
'state of affairs before' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.
'man fell good edge on stair' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'man' could be 'si' and 'si' is found in the answer.
'good' could be 'g' (abbreviation) and 'g' is found in the answer.
'on' is present in the answer.
A single letter 'n' remains which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for nosing that I've seen before include "like bloodhound on trail" , "Moving slowly" , "Moulding edge; prying" , "Sign on (anag)" , "Being inquisitive; advancing slowly" .)