Crossword Genius

Complies with boy's poor presentation in English (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

obeys

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

'complies with' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)

'boy's poor presentation in english' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'english' could be 'e' (abbreviation) and 'e' is found in the answer.
'boy's' could be 'obys' and 'obys' is found in the remaining letters.
No letters remain.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for obeys that I've seen before include "Listens to" , "Carries out (instruction)" , "Carries out orders" , "Submits to authority" , "Does as one's told" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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