Crossword Genius

Tension after grandmother joins "men only" party going nowhere (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

stagnant

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

'party going nowhere' is the definition.
Both the answer and definition are adjectives. Maybe they are linked in a way I don't understand?

'tension after grandmother joins men only' is the wordplay.
'tension' becomes 't' (this could be a standard abbreviation of which I'm unaware).
'after' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'grandmother' becomes 'nan' (nan can informally mean a grandmother).
'joins' says to put letters next to each other.
'men only' becomes 'stag' (I've seen this in another clue).
't' after 'nan' is 'nant'.
'nant' after 'stag' is 'STAGNANT'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for stagnant that I've seen before include "Showing no activity like stale water" , "Having no current or flow" , "(Water) not flowing" , "Still and foul" , "Without vitality" .)

I've seen this clue in The Irish Times.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app