Standard deviation in tricky ads (9)
I believe the answer is:
yardstick
'standard' is the definition.
(I know that yardstick is a type of standard)
'deviation in tricky ads' is the wordplay.
'tricky ads' anagrams to 'YARDSTICK'.
However, I am not sure how the anagram is indicated.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for yardstick that I've seen before include "Criterion - means of measuring" , "Standard of measurement" , "General measure for comparison" , "Ruler or tape, three feet long" , "Benchmark" .)