A little out of practice after time but still dependable (6)
I believe the answer is:
trusty
'dependable' is the definition.
(associated in meaning)
'a little out of practice after time but still' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'time' could be 't' (abbreviation) and 't' is found in the answer.
'out of practice' could be 'rusty' (synonyms) and 'rusty' is present in the answer.
No letters remain.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for trusty that I've seen before include "Reliable (prisoner)" , "Reliable, faithful" , "Reliable, well-behaved prisoners with privileges" , "Devoted" , "Reliable, honest and firm" .)