Crossword Genius

Delay winding wire in shaft (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

stairwell

'shaft' is the definition.
(stairwell is a kind of shaft)

'delay winding wire in' is the wordplay.
'delay' becomes 'stall' (stalling is a kind of delaying).
'winding' indicates an anagram.
'in' indicates putting letters inside.
'wire' is an anagram of 'irwe'.
'stall' placed around 'irwe' is 'STAIRWELL'.

(Other definitions for stairwell that I've seen before include "Part of a tall building" , "Walking route between floors" , "where flight goes" , "flight area" , "Space flight" .)

I've seen this clue in The Daily Express.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app