Crossword Genius

Take away from, by deed, half the land (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

detract

'take away from' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'by deed half the land' is the wordplay.
'by' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'half' indicates taking half.
'the land' becomes 'tract' (I've seen this in other clues**).
'deed' cut in half is 'de'.
'de' put next to 'tract' is 'DETRACT'.

(Other definitions for detract that I've seen before include "Take away (from worth)" , "Slight" , "Take away (from value of something)" , "Take away, character perhaps" , "Derogate" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.