Crossword Genius

Astuteness of a copper with labourers (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

acumen

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'astuteness' is the definition.
(I know that acumen is a type of astuteness)

'a copper with labourers' is the wordplay.
'copper' becomes 'cu' (chemical symbol).
'with' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'labourers' becomes 'men' (I can't justify this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'a'+'cu'+'men'='ACUMEN'

'of' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for acumen that I've seen before include "intuition" , "Sharpness, penetration, quickness of perception" , "Ability to judge quickly and well" , "Kind of sagacity, good for business" , "Astuteness, penetration" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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