Crossword Genius

A hairdo, say, to wear down (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

abrade

'wear down' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)

'a hairdo say' is the wordplay.
'hairdo' becomes 'braid' (braid is a kind of hairdo).
'say' shows a homophone (sound like).
'braid' sounds like 'brade'.
'a'+'brade'='ABRADE'

'to' is the link.

(Other definitions for abrade that I've seen before include "Wear away by friction" , "Scratch" , "Scrape away, erode" , "Shave" , "Rub off or scrape away" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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