Crossword Genius

The present time? (8)

Ross

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8

9

christmas

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'the present time?' is the definition.
(time for giving and receiving presents)

'the present time?' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'the' could be 't' (the is pronounced as a 't' sound in some dialects) and 't' is found in the answer.
'time?' could be 'hr' (I've seen this in other clues) and 'hr' is present in the answer.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for christmas that I've seen before include "Not in general use" , "Winter feast" , "The festive season harms tics, oddly" , "Dickens's seasonal song" , "Seasonal surprise!" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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