Crossword Genius

Charlie left in bed (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

clot

'charlie' is the definition.
(both can mean a foolish person)

'left in bed' is the wordplay.
'left' becomes 'l' (common abbreviation).
'in' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'bed' becomes 'cot' (cot is a kind of bed).
'l' inserted into 'cot' is 'CLOT'.

(Other definitions for clot that I've seen before include "Fool; solidified blood" , "Coagulate - fool" , "Thick lump - thick person" , "A lump in a blood vessel" , "3 [DUMMY]" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app