Despondent men didn't show up at work (4,2,3,5)
I believe the answer is:
down in the dumps
'despondent' is the definition.
I don't know anything about this answer so I cannot tell whether it can be defined by this definition.
'men didn't show up at work' is the wordplay.
'at work' indicates an anagram.
'men'+'didnt'+'show'+'up'='mendidntshowup'
'mendidntshowup' anagrammed gives 'DOWN IN THE DUMPS'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for down in the dumps that I've seen before include "feathers among the rubbish?" , "Blue" , "depressed" , "Scavengers may be" .)