Crossword Genius

Help sailor meeting death on a regular basis (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

abet

'help' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'sailor meeting death on a regular basis' is the wordplay.
'sailor' becomes 'ab' (abbreviation for able seaman).
'meeting' says to put letters next to each other.
'on a regular basis' indicates alternate letters.
The alternating letters of 'death' are 'et'.
'ab'+'et'='ABET'

(Other definitions for abet that I've seen before include "Encourage or assist (someone) to commit crime" , "Assist (in wrongdoing)" , "Beat (anag.)" , "Aid - connive with" , "Make good" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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