Clear sailor to get answer (7)
I believe the answer is:
absolve
'clear' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'sailor to get answer' is the wordplay.
'sailor' becomes 'ab' (abbreviation for able seaman).
'to get' says to put letters next to each other.
'answer' becomes 'solve' (**).
'ab'+'solve'='ABSOLVE'
(Other definitions for absolve that I've seen before include "Let off the hook" , "Excuse" , "Declare (someone) guilt-free" , "Clear of blame or guilt" , "Free (a person) from guilt" .)