The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word OVALS
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
O
V
A
L
S
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "figures" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case figures = ovals.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 OVALS mean?
OVALS noun- An elongated round shape resembling an egg or ellipse.
- A thing having such a shape, such as an arena.
- In a projective plane, a set of points such that no three are collinear and there is a unique tangent line at each point.