Crossword Genius

Clerk an assistant in swan-upping? (3-6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

pen-pusher

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

'clerk' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'an assistant in swan-upping?' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'assistant' could be 'usher' (usher is a kind of assistant) and 'usher' is located in the answer.
'swan' could be 'pen' (pen is a kind of swan) and 'pen' is present in the answer.
A single letter 'p' remains which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Another definition for pen-pusher that I've seen is " Clerical worker with a boring job".)

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