Crossword Genius

Area north of Italian islet (3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

ait

'islet' is the definition.
(both can mean a small island)

'area north of italian' is the wordplay.
'area' becomes 'a' (maths abbreviation).
'north of' says to put letters next to each other (in a down clue, some letters go above others).
'italian' becomes 'it' (abbreviation for Italian).
'a'+'it'='AIT'

(Other definitions for ait that I've seen before include "Small island in river or lake" , "isle" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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