Crossword Genius

Sex talk almost crucial (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

vital

'crucial' is the definition.
(I know that crucial can be written as vital)

'sex talk almost' is the wordplay.
'sex' becomes 'VI' (VI in Roman numerals - 'sex' is 'six' in Latin).
'almost' means to remove the last letter (almost the whole word is kept).
'talk' with its last letter removed is 'tal'.
'vi'+'tal'='VITAL'

(Other definitions for vital that I've seen before include "Spirited" , "Characteristic of life" , "Highly important" , "Crucial" , "Energetic - displaying life" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sunday Times and The Times.
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