Crossword Genius

Reportedly charge nothing to reach American city (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

phoenix

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'american city' is the definition.
(I know this)

'reportedly charge nothing' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'reportedly' could be 'e' (I've seen this in other clues) and 'e' is found in the answer.
'nothing' could be 'nix' (nix can mean nothing) and 'nix' is present in the answer.
The remaining letters 'pho' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'to reach' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for phoenix that I've seen before include "Bird that rose from its own ashes" , "Mythological bird" , "part of Arizona" , "Arizona city (that rose from the ashes?)" , "Mythical bird rising from funeral pyre" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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