Crossword Genius

Try and stop E and smack when out of head (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

endeavour

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

'try' is the definition.
(I know that try can be written as endeavour)

'stop e and smack when out of head' is the wordplay.
'stop e' becomes 'ende' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'and' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'smack' becomes 'savour' (synonyms).
'when out of head' means to remove the first letter.
'savour' with its initial letter taken off is 'avour'.
'ende'+'avour'='ENDEAVOUR'

'and' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for endeavour that I've seen before include "Try - Cook's ship" , "Attempt by employing effort" , "Determined attempt" , "Make a serious effort" , "Undertaking" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times and The Sunday Times.
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.