The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 2 plus 3 plus 5 letter word ON THE HOUSE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
O
N
T
H
E
H
O
U
S
E
More clues leading to the result ON THE HOUSE
- Free way to travel from York to Goole astride horse?
- Roof may be paid for by hotelier?
- How mortgage may be secured free of charge
- Free satellite dish here?
- Where one might find a satellite dish for free?
- Where there may be slates free
- Not charging, in a position like York’s welcoming hotel
- No charge relating to the bingo
- Where television aerial is usually free
- Where the roofer may be working for no money
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Roofer may be working here/as an act of generosity" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case roofer may be working here/as an act of generosity = on the house.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.