Crossword Genius

Excuse pressure concerning words used for speech (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

pretext

'excuse' is the definition.
(a pretext is an excuse or pretence)

'pressure concerning words used for speech' is the wordplay.
'pressure' becomes 'p' (abbreviation).
'concerning' becomes 're' (both can mean on a particular topic).
'words used for speech' becomes 'text' (text of a speech).
'p'+'re'+'text'='PRETEXT'

(Other definitions for pretext that I've seen before include "Specious excuse" , "False excuse" , "Fictitious excuse" , "Insincere excuse" , "Alleged reason" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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