Crossword Genius

US nerd, dumb, heartless, taking the piss? (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

dweeb

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

'us nerd' is the definition.
'dweeb' can be an answer for 'nerd' (I've seen this before). I'm not certain of the 'us' bit.

'dumb heartless taking the piss?' is the wordplay.
'heartless' means to remove the middle letters.
'taking' indicates putting letters inside.
'the piss?' becomes 'wee' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
'dumb' with its centre taken out is 'db'.
'db' enclosing 'wee' is 'DWEEB'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for dweeb that I've seen before include "Geek" , "Insignificant student" , "techie bore?" , "Boringly studious student" , "Antisocial guy" .)

Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app