Crossword Genius

GP moves cautiously and cleans out bed (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

dredges

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

'cleans out bed' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.

'gp moves cautiously' is the wordplay.
'gp' becomes 'dr' (I've seen this in other clues).
'moves cautiously' becomes 'edges' (I can't justify this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'dr'+'edges'='DREDGES'

'and' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for dredges that I've seen before include "Clears waterway" , "Remove material from a riverbed" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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