Crossword Genius

Working with scalpel, perhaps (11)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

inoperation

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'working with scalpel perhaps' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this definition defines the answer.

'working with scalpel perhaps' is the wordplay.
'working' becomes 'operation' (how something operates).
'with' says to put letters next to each other.
'scalpel perhaps' becomes 'in' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'operation' put after 'in' is 'INOPERATION'.

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I've seen this clue in The Irish News.
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