Crossword Genius

The lads (but not you) join me for something alcoholic (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

meths

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

'lads but not you join me for something alcoholic' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this defines the answer.

'the' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
an anagram of 'the' is 'eth' which is within the answer.
The remaining letters 'ms' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for meths that I've seen before include "Violet-coloured alcohol" , "Spirit" , "Methylated spirits (colloq.)" , "unsuitable alcohol" , "Fuel" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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