One growing in the family for generations? (4)
I believe the answer is:
tree
'one growing in the family for generations?' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are singular nouns, I can't see how one could define the other.
'one growing in the' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'the' could be 't' (the is pronounced as a 't' sound in some dialects) and 't' is found within the answer.
The remaining letters 'ree' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for tree that I've seen before include "Plant with a main trunk and branches" , "plane, say?" , "Plane possibly" , "embraced by environmentalist?" , "Birch, say" .)