Crossword Genius

He spells truce? (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

warlock

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

'spells truce?' is the definition.
The definition suggests a singular noun which matches the answer.

'he' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'he' could be 'lock' and 'lock' is located in the answer.
The remaining letters 'war' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for warlock that I've seen before include "Wizard, magician" , "Sorcerer" , "Cork law about male witch" , "Necromancer" , "Male magician - British composer, 1894-1930 - low rack (anag)" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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