Drives out round American towns that have been hollowed out (5)
I believe the answer is:
ousts
'drives out' is the definition.
The definition and answer can be both to do with social activities as well as being verbs in their -s form.
Maybe they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'american towns that have been hollowed out' is the wordplay.
'american towns' becomes 'ous' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'that have' indicates putting letters inside.
'been' becomes 'sat' (sitting is a kind of being).
'hollowed out' suggests removing the centre.
'sat' with its centre removed is 'st'.
'ous' placed around 'st' is 'OUSTS'.
'round' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for ousts that I've seen before include "Throws out" , "Supplants" , "Ejects, expels" , "Forces someone out and takes their place" , "Removes from office" .)