Crossword Genius

Attentive soldier in Yeovil half-ignored another soldier? (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

vigilant

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

'attentive' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'soldier in yeovil half-ignored another soldier?' is the wordplay.
'soldier' becomes 'GI' (term for US soldier).
'in' indicates putting letters inside.
'half ignored' indicates taking half.
'another soldier?' becomes 'ant' (soldier is a type of ant. I am not sure about the 'another' bit.).
'yeovil' cut in half is 'vil'.
'gi' placed within 'vil' is 'vigil'.
'vigil'+'ant'='VIGILANT'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for vigilant that I've seen before include "Keeping careful watch" , "Ever watchful" , "Watchful, on guard" , "On the lookout" , "Carefully observant or attentive" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app