Crossword Genius

Gentleness keeping idiot in line (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

lenity

'gentleness' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'idiot in line' is the wordplay.
'idiot' becomes 'nit' (nit can mean a stupid person).
'in' is an insertion indicator.
'line' becomes 'ley' (as in ley lines).
'nit' inserted inside 'ley' is 'LENITY'.

'keeping' is the link.

(Another definition for lenity that I've seen is " Quality of being mild and merciful".)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.