Crossword Genius

English maiden full of energy is showing obsession with self maybe (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

egoism

'obsession with self maybe' is the definition.
(egoism is obsession with one's self)

'english maiden full of energy is' is the wordplay.
'english' becomes 'e' (abbreviation).
'maiden' becomes 'm' (cricket abbreviation).
'full of' indicates putting letters inside.
'energy' becomes 'go' (I've seen this in other clues).
'e'+'m'='em'
'go'+'is'='gois'
'em' enclosing 'gois' is 'EGOISM'.

'showing' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for egoism that I've seen before include "Excessive self-regard" , "sense of superiority" , "Exaggerated sense of one's own importance" , "principle of self-interest" , "Self-centredness, vanity" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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