Crossword Genius

Animal meat back in short supply? (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

hamster

'animal' is the definition.
(hamster is a kind of animal)

'meat back in short supply?' is the wordplay.
'meat' becomes 'ham' (ham is a kind of meat).
'back' becomes 'stern' (stern is a kind of back).
'in short supply?' means to remove the last letter (I've seen 'in short supply' mean this).
'stern' with its final letter taken away is 'ster'.
'ham'+'ster'='HAMSTER'

(Other definitions for hamster that I've seen before include "Furry pet" , "Little beast" , "Pet rodent, may be golden" , "Small pet rodent with pouched cheeks" , "The arms (anag)" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sun.
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