Crossword Genius

UK native heard the French can be sensitive (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

brittle

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'sensitive' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'uk native heard the french' is the wordplay.
'uk native' becomes 'brit' (I've seen this in another clue).
'heard' becomes 't' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'the french' becomes 'le' ('the' in French).
'brit'+'t'+'le'='BRITTLE'

'can be' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for brittle that I've seen before include "Fragile" , "Hard but easily broken" , "Type of toffee made with nuts" , "Easily cracked or snapped" , "Easy to break" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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