The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word LOESS
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
L
O
E
S
S
More clues leading to the result LOESS
- Deposit nothing, there being not so much around
- A deposit which gets blown — not so much about nothing
- Nothing found in smaller deposit
- Child leaves Loch Ness, ignoring new geological feature
- To recondition some wheels, get the felt ripped off
- Deposit diminished, hole appearing in it
- Loses blowing soil
- Fertile stuff not so packed with oxygen
- Foolish candidates ultimately lose deposit
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "deposit" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case deposit = loess.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 LOESS mean?
LOESS noun- Any sediment, dominated by silt, of eolian (wind-blown) origin