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Timber not turning β€” it's drifting in the water (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

plankton

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'drifting in the water' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are singular nouns, I don't understand how one could define the other.

'timber not turning' is the wordplay.
'timber' becomes 'plank' (plank is a kind of timber).
'turning' shows that the letters should be reversed in order.
'not' back-to-front is 'ton'.
'plank'+'ton'='PLANKTON'

'it's' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for plankton that I've seen before include "food for school, possibly" , "drifting masses" , "Simple marine life" , "Whale's staple diet" , "Food source for aquatic creatures" .)

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