… which may not be what it sounds like (9)
I believe the answer is:
homophone
'it sounds like' is the definition.
The definition suggests a singular noun which matches the answer.
I don't understand the remainder of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for homophone that I've seen before include "material for punster" , "A word that sounds like another" , "Word with same sound as another" , "Mite might possibly be such" .)