Crossword Genius

This planetary inhabitant left in hearing aid? (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

earthling

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

'this planetary inhabitant' is the definition.
'earthling' can be an answer for 'inhabitant' (earthling is a kind of inhabitant). I am not sure about the 'this planetary' bit.

'left in hearing aid?' is the wordplay.
'left' becomes 'l' (common abbreviation).
'in' is an insertion indicator.
'hearing' becomes 'ear' (ear is a kind of hearing).
'aid?' becomes 'thing' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'ear'+'thing'='earthing'
'l' inserted into 'earthing' is 'EARTHLING'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for earthling that I've seen before include "Man of the world" , "Human being (sci-fi)" , "man so to be called from space?" , "sci-fi character" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.