The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word UNDERWEAR
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
U
N
D
E
R
W
E
A
R
More clues leading to the result UNDERWEAR
- Clothing submerged in northern river?
- Clothing subject to damage through use
- Boxers perhaps controlled by sport
- Rude wean snapping back of kimmer’s knickers, say
- A rude Wren dances in this
- Don’t put on enough lingerie?
- Layer beneath surface subjected to erosion
- Smalls less than flipping fresh, earl admitted
- Boxers perhaps endure raw exchanges
- A new, ruder variety of lingerie
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Pants, perhaps" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case pants, perhaps = underwear.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 UNDERWEAR mean?
UNDERWEAR noun- Clothes worn next to the skin, underneath outer clothing.
- Underpants (boxers, briefs, panties, etc) and often bras.