The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word SPIRAL
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
S
P
I
R
A
L
More clues leading to the result SPIRAL
- American city rents about to rise out of control
- 17 across edges up to protect artists’ group
- In recession, US city rents increase continually
- Wind giving rise to the French tears
- Paris shuffled last off mortal coil
- Twist succeeded — April fool!
- April’s novel corkscrew
- It goes round but doesn’t join up
- Girl entertains couple without a corkscrew
- Tears over article anticipating pound’s decrease in value
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "17 across" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case 17 across = spiral.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does SPIRAL mean?
SPIRAL noun- A curve that is the locus of a point that rotates about a fixed point while continuously increasing its distance from that point.
- A helix.
- A self-sustaining process with a lot of momentum involved, so it is difficult to accelerate or stop it at once.
- To move along the path of a spiral or helix.
- To cause something to spiral.
- To increase continually.
- Helical, like a spiral