Crossword Genius

Cruel person lives in depressed time (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

sadist

'cruel person' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'lives in depressed time' is the wordplay.
'lives' becomes 'is' ('be' can be a synonym of 'live').
'in' is an insertion indicator.
'depressed' becomes 'sad'.
'time' becomes 't'.
'sad'+'t'='sadt'
'is' going inside 'sadt' is 'SADIST'.

(Other definitions for sadist that I've seen before include "An amalgam, made up of two or more parts" , "One deriving pleasure from inflicting pain on others" , "One enjoying hurting others" , "Tormentor" , "One who enjoys making others suffer" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.