Absent-minded cook almost gave up (5)
I believe the answer is:
vague
'absent-minded' is the definition.
Both the answer and definition are adjectives.
Perhaps they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'cook almost gave up' is the wordplay.
'cook' is an anagram indicator.
'almost' means to remove the last letter (most of the word but not all of it).
'gave'+'up'='gaveup'
'gaveup' with its last letter taken away is 'gaveu'.
'gaveu' with letters rearranged gives 'VAGUE'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for vague that I've seen before include "Hazy" , "Obscure, undefined" , "Imprecise (in thought)" , "not specifically defined" , "Inexact" .)