Sew freely lid with flourishes (6)
I believe the answer is:
wields
'flourishes' is the definition.
The definition and answer can be both to do with contact as well as being verbs in their -s form.
Perhaps there's a link between them I don't understand?
I cannot understand how the remainder of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for wields that I've seen before include "Holds and brandishes, say a weapon" , "Holds and uses, say weapon, with the hands" , "Exercises (power)" .)