Crossword Genius

Identifying leading man dismissing deal (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

naming

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'identifying' is the definition.
('name' can be a synonym of 'identify')

'leading man dismissing deal' is the wordplay.
'leading' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'dismissing' indicates anagramming the letters (I've seen 'dismissed' mean this).
'deal' becomes 'ing' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'man' anagrammed gives 'nam'.
'nam' next to 'ing' is 'NAMING'.

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(Other definitions for naming that I've seen before include "Allotting term to" , "Conferring appellation on" , "Titling" , "Identifying, citing" , "Christening" .)

I've seen this clue in the Irish Times.
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