Crossword Genius

Beginning to grow pale over worry (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

gnaw

'worry' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'beginning to grow pale over' is the wordplay.
'beginning to' says to take the initial letters.
'pale' becomes 'wan' ('wan' can be a synonym of 'pale').
'over' shows that the letters should be reversed in order.
The first letter of 'grow' is 'g'.
'wan' written backwards gives 'naw'.
'g'+'naw'='GNAW'

(Other definitions for gnaw that I've seen before include "Bite and wear away" , "Nibble; cause anxiety" , "Nibble like a rodent" , "Prey on one's mind" , "Chew persistently at, say a bone" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.