Crossword Genius

Some ladies kiss in sloppy fashion (3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

lax

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'some ladies kiss in sloppy fashion' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.

'some ladies kiss in' is the wordplay.
'some' becomes 'a'.
'ladies' becomes 'l' (this could be a standard abbreviation which I don't know about).
'kiss' becomes 'x' (X can represent a kiss).
'in' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'l'+'x'='lx'
'a' put into 'lx' is 'LAX'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for lax that I've seen before include "Not sufficiently strict" , "Not strict or conscientious" , "without tension" , "Not taut" , "Not sufficiently careful" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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