The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 3 letter word SLY
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
S
L
Y
More clues leading to the result SLY
- Oddly silky and insidious
- Cunning owl leaving leisurely
- Drunken tinker appearing as lord? Just first character in today’s play ultimately
- Manipulative adverts left lady sad and upset
- Gradually the night bird flies away. That's cunning
- Begin suspecting like you're clever
- Knowing someone like you for starters
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "insidious" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case insidious = sly.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 SLY mean?
SLY adjective- Artfully cunning; secretly mischievous; wily.
- (having a positive sense) Dexterous in performing an action, so as to escape notice
- Done with, and marked by, artful and dexterous secrecy; subtle
- Light or delicate; slight; thin.
- Slyly.