Eloquently appealing for a zero assessment (7)

I believe the answer is:

orating

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

'eloquently appealing' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this defines the answer.

'zero assessment' is the wordplay.
'zero' becomes 'O' (O resembles 0).
'assessment' becomes 'rating' (rating is a kind of assessment).
'o'+'rating'='ORATING'

'for a' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for orating that I've seen before include "sounding off" , "Speaking grandly in public" .)

I've seen this clue in The Globe and Mail.

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