The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 letter word OARS
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
O
A
R
S
More clues leading to the result OARS
- Ordinary Seaman crosses a river — boat may need these
- Indirectly, they make waves in uproar sometimes
- Males losing head are contributors to rows
- Tips of oversized and really sharp blades
- Blades trio Arsenal bound
- They move a boat across water or round a point
- These could make you row as wind initially drops
- Rows generated by unprotected husky
- Rows of pigs with no head
- Removed from case, crude blades
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The straight part
We know that "boat may need these" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case boat may need these = oars.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 OARS mean?
OARS noun- A type of lever used to propel a boat, having a flat blade at one end and a handle at the other, and pivoted in a rowlock atop the gunwale, whereby a rower seated in the boat and pulling the handle can pass the blade through the water by repeated strokes against the water's resistance, thus moving the boat .
- An oarsman; a rower.
- An oar-like swimming organ of various invertebrates.
- To row; to travel with, or as if with, oars.