Crossword Genius

Wages: penny a year (3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

pay

'wages' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'penny a year' is the wordplay.
'penny' becomes 'p' (**).
'year' becomes 'y'.
'p'+'a'+'y'='PAY'

(Other definitions for pay that I've seen before include "Salary, wages" , "Screw" , "Profit" , "stop possible leaks on board" , "Earnings" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app