Crossword Genius

Make clear the condition (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

state

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'condition' is the definition.
(the state something is in)

'make clear the' is the wordplay.
'make' becomes 'sta' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'clear' means to remove the middle letters (I've seen 'cleared' mean this (the inside letters are cleared out)).
'the' with its centre taken out is 'te'.
'sta'+'te'='STATE'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for state that I've seen before include "Condition of country." , "Declare - political unit" , "Civil government of a country" , "Government; say" , "eg Alaska" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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