Crossword Genius

Tar assigned to rear of deck produces instrument (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

pitchfork

'instrument' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'tar assigned to rear of deck' is the wordplay.
'tar' becomes 'pitch' (synonyms).
'assigned' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'to' becomes 'for'.
'rear of' indicates one should take the final letters.
The final letter of 'deck' is 'k'.
'pitch'+'for'+'k'='PITCHFORK'

'produces' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for pitchfork that I've seen before include "Tool for lifting hay" , "Tool for shifting hay" , "multi-pronged tool" , "Tool for tossing hay" , "Thrust into a difficult situation" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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