Crossword Genius

Mother of a Latin scholar (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

mater

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

'mother' is the definition.
(old-fashioned term for mother)

'latin scholar' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'scholar' could be 'ma' (Master of Arts) and 'ma' is present in the answer.
The remaining letters 'ter' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'of a' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for mater that I've seen before include "Mother (Latin or old slang)" , "mum's the word" , "having children" , "The alma . . . . . Is the old school (5)" , "parent" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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