Crossword Genius

The condition of one who is apologising? (5,5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

sorry state

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

'the' is the definition.
I know nothing about this answer so I cannot tell whether this works.

'condition of one who is apologising?' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'condition' could be 'state' (the state something is in) and 'state' is located in the answer.
'of' could be 'o' and 'o' is located in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

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I've seen this clue in The Irish News.
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