Crossword Genius

To get ahead, the dirty fellow will betray! (3,2)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

rat on

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

'betray' is the definition.
(synonyms)

'to get ahead the dirty fellow' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'to' is within the answer.
The remaining letters 'ran' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'will' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for rat on that I've seen before include "grass up" , "Betray" , "shop" , "Give away" , "desert" .)

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