Crossword Genius

Wife leaving weakling for trouble-maker (3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

imp

'trouble-maker' is the definition.

'wife leaving weakling' is the wordplay.
'wife' becomes 'w' (abbreviation).
'leaving' suggests deleting specific letters.
'weakling' becomes 'wimp' (wimp is a kind of weakling).
'wimp' with 'w' removed is 'IMP'.

'for' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for imp that I've seen before include "Small mischievous sprite" , "Naughty child" , "Little mischief-maker" , "Mischievous monkey" , "Naughty demon" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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