The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word SPINOZA
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
S
P
I
N
O
Z
A
More clues leading to the result SPINOZA
- Philosopher’s informal apology including staple answer
- A last note turning up down under, written by a philosopher
- Philosopher to talk up article carrying little weight
- Philosopher takes short drive round South Africa
- Philosopher bites back, cross about article
- One of 26 puts little weight on political interpretation advanced
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Philosopher" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case philosopher = spinoza.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.