Crossword Genius

Most of the message can have variations (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

themes

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

'have variations' is the definition.
The answer and definition can be both related to communication as well as being plural nouns.
Maybe they are linked in a way I don't understand?

'most of the message' is the wordplay.
'most of' means to remove the last letter.
'message' becomes 'emes' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'the' with its last letter taken away is 'th'.
'th'+'emes'='THEMES'

'can' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for themes that I've seen before include "Subjects or unifying ideas" , "Subjects or repeated musical pieces" , "Motifs, subjects" , "Subjects or repeated melodies" , "Topics, ideas, motifs" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app