By the French, little time is allowed (3)
I believe the answer is:
let
'is allowed' is the definition.
(to let is to allow or permit)
'by the french little time' is the wordplay.
'by' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'the french' becomes 'le' ('the' in French).
'little time' becomes 't' (abbreviation for time).
'le' put next to 't' is 'LET'.
(Other definitions for let that I've seen before include "Allow; permit" , "Allow; tennis fault" , "Was inclined to ignore" , "Won't stop you" , "& 15 Triple (anag.)" .)