Crossword Genius

Intimacy of quiet road by a loch (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

closeness

'intimacy' is the definition.
(synonyms)

'quiet road by a loch' is the wordplay.
'quiet road' becomes 'close' (close is a type of street).
'by' says to put letters next to each other.
'a loch' becomes 'ness' (Loch Ness in Scotland).
'close'+'ness'='CLOSENESS'

'of' is the link.

(Other definitions for closeness that I've seen before include "State of being very near" , "sense of unity" , "Proximity" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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