Crossword Genius

Cleaner returned around five (3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

vac

'cleaner' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'returned around five' is the wordplay.
'returned' shows that the letters should be reversed in order.
'around' becomes 'ca' (circa).
'five' becomes 'V' (Roman numeral).
'ca'+'v'='cav'
'cav' back-to-front is 'VAC'.

(Other definitions for vac that I've seen before include "short holiday" , "brief holiday" , "which helps with housework" , "Holiday; cleaner" , "Break" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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