Can bees suffer want? (7)
I believe the answer is:
absence
'want?' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'can bees suffer' is the wordplay.
'suffer' indicates anagramming the letters (I've seen 'suffers' mean this).
'can'+'bees'='canbees'
'canbees' is an anagram of 'ABSENCE'.
(Other definitions for absence that I've seen before include "Seen cab (anag.)" , "Want, lack" , "Non-presence" , "Truancy" , "Lack - it makes the heart grow fonder" .)