Crossword Genius

Offer true love, not at first to be trifled with (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

volunteer

'offer' is the definition.
('volunteer' can be a synonym of 'offer')

'true love not at first to be trifled with' is the wordplay.
'at first' says to take the initial letters.
'to be trifled with' is an anagram indicator (trifle can mean 'play with' or 'fiddle with').
The first letter of 'not' is 'n'.
'true'+'love'+'n'='trueloven'
'trueloven' with letters rearranged gives 'VOLUNTEER'.

(Other definitions for volunteer that I've seen before include "Willing (or unpaid) worker" , "Unpaid helper" , "One works in an unpaid capacity" , "Opposite of conscript" , "One enlisting of own free will" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.