Crossword Genius

Very forced smile concealing Charlie's gaffe (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

solecism

'gaffe' is the definition.
('solecism' can be a synonym of 'gaffe')

'very forced smile concealing charlie's' is the wordplay.
'very' becomes 'so' (I've seen this in other clues**).
'forced' indicates an anagram.
'concealing' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'charlie' becomes 'c' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'smile' anagrammed gives 'leism'.
'leism' placed around 'c' is 'lecism'.
'so'+'lecism'='SOLECISM'

(Other definitions for solecism that I've seen before include "A mistake in the use of language" , "Absurdity" , "Incongruity" , "Faux pas" , "Error in grammar or manners" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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