Ray secures lid on new cocktail (9)
I believe the answer is:
manhattan
'cocktail' is the definition.
(I know that Manhattan is a type of cocktail)
'ray secures lid on new' is the wordplay.
'ray' becomes 'manta' (manta is a kind of ray).
'secures' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'lid' becomes 'hat' (synonyms).
'on new' becomes 'n' (common abbreviation eg NT for New Testament. I am not sure about the 'on' bit.).
'manta' going around 'hat' is 'manhatta'.
'manhatta'+'n'='MANHATTAN'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for manhattan that I've seen before include "It blended with spirit" , "NY borough" , "intoxicating drink" , "Island of New York - cocktail" , "New York City borough" .)