The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word EXITS
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
E
X
I
T
S
More clues leading to the result EXITS
- Leaves to be with son at the end
- Departures could be set about eleven
- Leaves are not imaginary, with tons to pick up
- … leaves old husband over sex frolics finally
- Ways out exist in conversion
- Set out to cover team departures
- Old and new technology’s outlets
- More than one way to leave lover, once getting possessive
- Leaves work site around ten
- Leaves building site around ten
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Departures" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case departures = exits.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 EXITS mean?
EXITS noun- An act of going out or going away, or leaving; a departure.
- A way out.
- The act of departing from life; death.
- To go out or go away from a place or situation; to depart, to leave.
- To depart from life; to die.
- To end or terminate (a program, subroutine, etc.)
- (originally United States) To depart from or leave (a place or situation).
- Income, returns, revenue.