Hooked up with ladies going wild over crossword setter (7)
I believe the answer is:
liaised
'hooked up' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are past participle verbs, I can't see how they can define each other.
'ladies going wild over crossword setter' is the wordplay.
'going wild' indicates anagramming the letters.
'over' indicates putting letters inside.
'crossword setter' becomes 'I' ('I' referring to the person who set the crossword).
'ladies' anagrammed gives 'laised'.
'laised' placed around 'i' is 'LIAISED'.
'with' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for liaised that I've seen before include "consulted together" , "Maintained contact" , "Established contacts" , "Acted as go-between or link" , "got in touch" .)