The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word IDLES
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
I
D
L
E
S
More clues leading to the result IDLES
- Does nothing with days in French islands
- Does nothing with papers in case, in short
- Daughter taken in by devious lies stays unengaged
- Reportedly, they get 29 loafs
- Does no work – did less after blowing cover
- Fateful day in which learner does nothing
- Lounges of first-class people being announced?
- Has little to do around delis
- Woman up — man below does nothing
- Runs in place without a top--without a top OR bottom
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "loafs" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case loafs = idles.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 IDLES mean?
IDLES verb- To spend in idleness; to waste; to consume.
- To lose or spend time doing nothing, or without being employed in business.
- Of an engine: to run at a slow speed, or out of gear; to tick over.