Crossword Genius

Hard soil broken by daughter (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

solid

'hard' is the definition.
(similar in meaning)

'soil broken by daughter' is the wordplay.
'broken by' indicates an anagram (a broken form of the letters).
'daughter' becomes 'd' (genealogical abbreviation).
'soil' with letters rearranged gives 'soli'.
'soli'+'d'='SOLID'

(Other definitions for solid that I've seen before include "Not hollow or liquid" , "Weighty" , "continuous" , "Hard; three dimensional" , "thick" .)

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