Work with energy - attempt to make soap, say (8)
I believe the answer is:
toiletry
'soap say' is the definition.
The definition and answer can be both man-made objects as well as being singular nouns.
Maybe they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'work with energy attempt to' is the wordplay.
'work' becomes 'toil' (toil is a kind of work).
'with' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'energy' becomes 'e' (physics symbol as in E=mco).
'attempt to' becomes 'try' (I've seen this in other clues).
'toil'+'e'+'try'='TOILETRY'
'make' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for toiletry that I've seen before include "cosmetic" , "Item used in ablutions" , "Such as soap" , "Something for the bathroom" .)