Crossword Genius

Eagle in whirling descent (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

lineage

'descent' is the definition.
(I know that descent can be written as lineage)

'eagle in whirling' is the wordplay.
'whirling' indicates an anagram.
'eagle'+'in'='eaglein'
'eaglein' with letters rearranged gives 'LINEAGE'.

(Other definitions for lineage that I've seen before include "Ancestry, sequence of descendants" , "Descent from ancestors" , "Descent (from an ancestor)" , "Genealogy" , "The strain" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sun, The Times and the Financial Times.
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