Less than rancorous exclamation (3)
I believe the answer is:
cor
'exclamation' is the definition.
Both the answer and definition are singular nouns.
Maybe you can see a link between them that I can't see?
'less than rancorous' is the wordplay.
'less' says the answer is hidden in the clue (the clue less some of the letters in it).
'COR' is hidden in the letters of 'than rancorous'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for cor that I've seen before include "Blimey" , "Surprised expression" , "Gosh" , "Expression of surprise" .)