Crossword Genius

Soft-hearted male rooted to the spot! (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

maple

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'rooted to the spot' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.

'soft-hearted male' is the wordplay.
'soft' becomes 'p' (musical abbreviation for 'piano').
'hearted' is an insertion indicator (some letters go to the heart of the word).
'p' put into 'male' is 'MAPLE'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for maple that I've seen before include "Tree with winged fruits" , "Tree of Acer genus" , "Tree associated with Canada" , "Type of syrup" , "Leaves on this" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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