Crossword Genius

Hard to swallow, 's dubious as a homophone? (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

stodgy

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

'hard' is the definition.
Both the answer and definition are adjectives. Perhaps they are linked in a way I don't understand?

'to swallow 's dubious as a homophone?' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'to' is within the answer.
''s' could be 's' and 's' is found in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for stodgy that I've seen before include "Heavy and sticky" , "Boringly conventional" , "Indigestibly heavy" , "Heavy and unappetising" , "Heavy, starchy and hard to digest" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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