The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 3 plus 5 letter word OLD FLAME
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
O
L
D
F
L
A
M
E
More clues leading to the result OLD FLAME
- Former lover's unemotional, caught leaving insulting message
- Female in metallic fabric, but not good for ex?
- Letting down front, crease fabric and squeeze once
- Female in metallic fabric not good for ex?
- Former lover of model dancing round unfinished apartment
- A burning passion no longer?
- Lover subsequently put out?
- Touring Florida, look up woman, a previous love
- Ex-moll, almost faded away
- Female in metallic fabric not good for ex
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Former lover" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case former lover = old flame.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.