The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word GORSE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
G
O
R
S
E
More clues leading to the result GORSE
- Bush having tip of spine inside to pierce
- Son bloodied, evidently, falling into this?
- Blood around end of fingers caused by this?
- Shrub — small, covered by red stuff
- Regularly grow rushes and furze
- Prickly shrubs draw blood, catching end of fingers
- Blood round end of fingers, after touching this?
- Prickly shrub‘s stick pierced by sun
- Little bit of string wound around prickly plant
- Plant gardener’s first hybrid rose
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Prickly shrub" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case prickly shrub = gorse.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 GORSE mean?
GORSE noun- Evergreen shrub, of the genus Ulex, having spiny leaves and yellow flowers.