Crossword Genius

Listen to a number cheer (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

hearten

'cheer' is the definition.
('hearten' can be a synonym of 'cheer')

'listen to a number' is the wordplay.
'listen to' becomes 'hear' (I've seen this before).
'a number' becomes 'ten' (ten is a kind of number).
'hear'+'ten'='HEARTEN'

(Other definitions for hearten that I've seen before include "Make cheerful" , "Inspirit" , "Encourage or cheer in cardiac manner" , "Buoy" , "Encourage in Teheran" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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