Muscle builder, cuddly giant no more by the sound of it? (8)

I believe the answer is:

expander

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

'muscle builder cuddly giant' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.

'no more by the sound of it?' is the wordplay.
'no more' becomes 'ex' (I've seen this in other clues).
'by the sound of it?' becomes 'pander' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
'ex'+'pander'='EXPANDER'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Another definition for expander that I've seen is " Muscle exerciser".)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.

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