The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word IMPALAS
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
I
M
P
A
L
A
S
More clues leading to the result IMPALAS
- African runners a source of mischief, sorry to say
- Everyman’s ‘friends’ seen to include a group of antelopes
- Animals lacking in strength left out sadly
- Antelope sadly overcome by devil
- This writer’s joining chum, because they are beasts
- Monkey unfortunately gets African antelopes
- Wild animals naughty child sits on unfortunately
- Antelopes, regrettably, following little rascal
- Little brat leading dear African antelopes
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Animals" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case animals = impalas.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does IMPALAS mean?
IMPALAS noun- An African antelope, Aepyceros melampus, noted for its leaping ability; the male has ridged, curved horns.