Crossword Genius

Fickle folk, English, tucking into fruit after tea (10)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

chameleons

'fickle folk' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'english tucking into fruit after tea' is the wordplay.
'english' becomes 'E' (abbreviation).
'tucking into' indicates putting letters inside.
'fruit' becomes 'melons' (I have seen 'Juicy fruit ' mean 'melons' so perhaps 'fruit' could also mean 'melons').
'after' says to put letters next to each other.
'tea' becomes 'cha' (cha is a type of tea).
'e' placed within 'melons' is 'meleons'.
'meleons' put after 'cha' is 'CHAMELEONS'.

(Another definition for chameleons that I've seen is " Fickle folk".)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app