Crossword Genius

Soldier in a raincoat for a spell, perhaps (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

magic

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'spell perhaps' is the definition.
'magic' can be an answer for 'spell' (thesaurus). I am not certain of the 'perhaps' bit.

'soldier in a raincoat' is the wordplay.
'soldier' becomes 'GI' (GI can mean a US soldier).
'in' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'a raincoat' becomes 'mac' (macintosh is a type of raincoat).
'gi' inserted within 'mac' is 'MAGIC'.

'for a' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for magic that I've seen before include "Brilliant -- deception" , "Conjuring trick, legerdemain" , "Sorcery - conjuring" , "Marvellous" , "Necromancy" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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