Solution for 17 June cryptic crossword clue

Forked out, defeated at college (7,2)

Solution – Stumped up

This clue breaks into 2 main parts both of which lead to the solution.

"Forked out" is a slang expression for paying for something, and so is "stumped up".

If you were defeated by this clue you were "stumped".

So how does "at college" relate to "up". Well this is a UK reference. "Up" is shorthand for "Up to university" – "university" is their word for "college". In fact in NZ "college" refers to a High School or Secondary School. All very confusing.

This is a charades clue. For more explanation of different clue types, see the sidebar under the list of popular posts.