| DEMOTIVATE | Eve to admit muddle and reduce enthusiasm (10) |
| ABBREVIATE | Shorten and reduce, holding one part of speech back |
| LOVELETTER | Excitedly tell Eve to start to read romantic communication (4,6) |
| STITCHESUP | Cheats and reduces the rent (8,2) |
| MESS | Word whose etymology reveals a journey from a served portion of food to a communal meal and ultimately to disorder, muddle and untidiness (4) |
| TAKEDOWN | Allow yourself to be dictated to and reduce it (4,4) |
| SPOILER | A device fitted to an aircraft wing to increase drag and reduce lift (7) |
| SUNBLOCK | A cream applied to the skin to protect it from ultraviolet rays and reduce the danger of burning (8) |
| SHUTUP | Imprison and reduce to silence (4,2) |
| CREMATE | Burn up and reduce to ash (7) |
| STRAITEN | Reform a crook, we hear, and reduce to poverty |
| RIT | Pull it up and reduce it to a shell (3) |
| ENLIGHTEN | Inform men to remove lead and reduce the load (9) |
| GEARDOWN | Warden to go off and reduce speed with cogs (4,4) |
| MARKDOWN | Workman managed to save pennies and reduce price (4,4) |
| GUT | Pull it up and reduce it to a shell (3) |
| AULDLANGSYNE | Scottish phrase meaning "old long since" that was popularised by Robert Burns as the title and refrain of a song in 1788 and is sung on New Year's Eve to bid farewell to the old year ever since (4,4,4 |
| IGNITE | I get in a muddle and start burning! (6) |
| BEMUSE | Muddle and mystify (6) |
| DEVISE | Concoct, to get Sid and Eve to make up (6) |
