The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word STARBOARD
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
S
T
A
R
B
O
A
R
D
More clues leading to the result STARBOARD
- Celebrity died catching wild animal, right?
- Astronomical council is right
- Climbing rodents get on ship to leave port?
- Celebrity meets directors where green light is shown
- Celebrity panel situated on the right?
- Do nasty kids hold artist up? That’s right
- Excellent group of directors? Right!
- Best provision of meals right on ship
- Celebrity, showing no interest, we hear? That’s right
- Rodents going over where one serves food, right?
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "to leave port?" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case to leave port? = starboard.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 STARBOARD mean?
STARBOARD noun- The righthand side of a ship, boat or aircraft when facing the front, or fore or bow. Used to unambiguously refer to directions according to the sides of the vessel, rather than those of a crew member or object.
- One of the two traditional watches aboard a ship standing a watch in two.
- To put to the right, or starboard, side of a vessel.