Crossword Genius

Slice of tangerine in dead hot drink (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

latte

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'hot drink' is the definition.
(type of coffee)

'slice of tangerine in dead' is the wordplay.
'slice of tangerine' becomes 't' (I can't justify this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'in' indicates putting letters inside.
'dead' becomes 'late' (similar in meaning).
't' inserted into 'late' is 'LATTE'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for latte that I've seen before include "hot drink" , "coffee production" , "See 21" , "Frothy milky coffee" , "Type of coffee" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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