Knocking shop emptied in Reading, with team deployed (13)
I believe the answer is:
disparagement
'knocking' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are singular nouns, I cannot understand how they can define each other.
'shop emptied in reading with team deployed' is the wordplay.
'emptied' means to remove the middle letters.
'in' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'with' says to put letters next to each other.
'deployed' indicates anagramming the letters.
'shop' with its centre taken out is 'sp'.
'reading'+'team'='readingteam'
'readingteam' is an anagram of 'diaragement'.
'sp' going inside 'diaragement' is 'DISPARAGEMENT'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for disparagement that I've seen before include "Slight to reputation - garden pastime (anag)" , "Slight - dig at spearmen (anag)" , "Scornful criticism" , "Condemnation, scorn" , "Belittling words" .)