The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 letter word SLAY
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
S
L
A
Y
More clues leading to the result SLAY
- Destroy Scottish island
- Terminate in small place
- Destroy Scottish island — no small island
- Cunning head of abbey concealed butcher
- Knowing about a murder
- Perhaps banks lending capital make a killing
- Dispatch snow vehicle, we hear
- Capital I extracted from Scottish island to make a killing
- Greatly amuse with line in statement of opinion
- Make a killing with capital I extracted from Scottish island
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "make a killing" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case make a killing = slay.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 SLAY mean?
SLAY verb- To kill, murder.
- To eradicate or stamp out.
- (by extension) To defeat, overcome (in a competition or contest).
- To delight or overwhelm, especially with laughter.
- To amaze, stun or otherwise incapacitate by awesomeness; to be awesome at something; to kill (slang sense).
- To have sex with