Nearly clean before microscopic analysis (8)

I believe the answer is:

scrutiny

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

'analysis' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'nearly clean before microscopic' is the wordplay.
'nearly' means to remove the last letter.
'clean' becomes 'scrub' (scrub can mean to clean).
'before microscopic' becomes 'tiny' (I've seen this before. I am not sure about the 'before' bit.).
'scrub' with its last letter taken off is 'scru'.
'scru'+'tiny'='SCRUTINY'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for scrutiny that I've seen before include "From close inspection" , "Close survey" , "Intense study" , "Close, careful examination" , "Close investigation" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sunday Times and The Sun.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.