Minute amount of cocaine involved in misdeed at work by associate (9)
I believe the answer is:
scintilla
'minute amount' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'cocaine involved in misdeed at work by associate' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'cocaine' could be 'c' (drugs abbreviation) and 'c' is found in the answer.
'involved' could be 'in' (to be involved in something is to be 'in' it) and 'in' is present in the answer.
'work' could be 'till' (to till is to work the land) and 'till' is present in the answer.
The remaining letters 'sa' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
'of' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for scintilla that I've seen before include "A spark; a trace" , "Tiniest bit" , "Slight amount" , "Tiny, scarcely detectable amount" , "flash" .)