Crossword Genius

Telling niece off for sharpness (12)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

intelligence

'sharpness' is the definition.

'telling niece off' is the wordplay.
'off' indicates an anagram.
'telling'+'niece'='tellingniece'
'tellingniece' with letters rearranged gives 'INTELLIGENCE'.

'for' is the link.

(Other definitions for intelligence that I've seen before include "Mind; news" , "Covertly-gathered info" , "army section?" , "Secret information" , "Covert information" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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