The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 plus 8 letter word LATERAL THINKING
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
L
A
T
E
R
A
L
T
H
I
N
K
I
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G
More clues leading to the result LATERAL THINKING
- Unconventional ideas after family visits foreign parliament
- Taken in, all right, perplexed? Here’s unorthodox route to solution
- Former monarch and family entering Nordic parliament in creative approach to problem
- Creative activity following a line family inserted in article
- This problem-solving method could get one taken in all right
- A way of imagining a bit on the side?
- Imagining a bit on the side?
- Taken in, all right, perplexed? Here's unorthodox route to solution
- Uniting over the altar? Reckless way of solving problems
- Unorthodox ideas after blood found in Icelandic parliament
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Imagining a bit on the side" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case imagining a bit on the side = lateral thinking.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.