Crossword Genius

Hardy girl takes a long time to find password (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

tessera

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

'hardy girl takes a long time' is the wordplay.
'hardy girl' becomes 'tess' (**).
'takes' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'a long time' becomes 'era' (I've seen this before).
'tess'+'era'='TESSERA'

'to find' is the link.

(Other definitions for tessera that I've seen before include "Small mosaic piece" , "Small stone for mosaics" , "Small square tile used in mosaics" , "Bit of mosaic" , "Mosaic stone" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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