Crossword Genius

Frequently of tender years (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

often

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

'frequently' is the definition.
('often' can be a synonym of 'frequently')

'of tender years' is the wordplay.
'tender years' becomes 'ten' (I can't justify this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'of'+'ten'='OFTEN'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for often that I've seen before include "Frequently, many times" , "Perhaps daily" , "on numerous occasions" , "Frequently, not seldom" , "Repeatedly, many times" .)

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