Crossword Genius

Small cut followed by a royal laugh (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

snicker

'laugh' is the definition.
(snicker is a kind of laugh)

'small cut followed by a royal' is the wordplay.
'small' becomes 's' (abbreviation - e.g. clothes size).
'cut' becomes 'nick' (nick is a kind of cut).
'followed by' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'a royal' becomes 'er' (I've seen this in other clues).
's'+'nick'+'er'='SNICKER'

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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