Crossword Genius

Humans eliminate an apiary's sounds (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

hums

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

'apiary's sounds' is the definition.
'hums' can be an answer for 'sounds' (hum is a kind of sound). I'm unsure of the 'apiary's' bit.

'humans eliminate an' is the wordplay.
'eliminate' suggests deleting specific letters.
'humans' with 'an' taken out is 'HUMS'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for hums that I've seen before include "Sings wordlessly" , "Sings with closed lips" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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