The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word ROGET
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
R
O
G
E
T
More clues leading to the result ROGET
- Author who used commas a lot
- Wordsmith, say, raised amid rubbish
- Doctor, physician, medic, author, compiler, lexicographer …
- Initially redacted original great English thesaurus
- Dicky sought treasures in reference book
- Man of words I understand mostly, given time
- Old English masking even parts of proper word organiser
- It could solve rush to get a sure source of synonyms?
- Toro gets to divulge a tool of his trade
- Every cruciverbalist must have his book, perhaps, or get baffled
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Wordsmith" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case wordsmith = roget.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.