The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word WOOER
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
W
O
O
E
R
More clues leading to the result WOOER
- With one’s own enthusiastic Romeo, first of all — this one?
- Bertie’s no saint? He was to Lady Florence
- Chap pressing suit with expression of alarm
- One trying to gain love of woman with alarmed expression
- Suitor with reaction to innuendo
- He wants a hand
- Couple having shaken leader getting over, one after another?
- Lover without love — ever without heart
- Suitor runs after love in agony
- One charming dog, not loud
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "He wants a hand" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case he wants a hand = wooer.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.