Crossword Genius

Drink can girl briefly holds (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

martini

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'drink' is the definition.
(martini is a kind of drink)

'can girl briefly holds' is the wordplay.
'can' becomes 'tin' (both are metal containers).
'girl briefly' becomes 'mari' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'holds' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'tin' put within 'mari' is 'MARTINI'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for martini that I've seen before include "tipple" , "alcoholic drink" , "James Bond's drink of choice" , "Gin or vodka with dry vermouth" , "In glass, one's dry" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app