Crossword Genius

He does nothing but just tick over? (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

idler

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'he does nothing but' is the definition.
The answer is a person as well as being a singular noun. This is suggested by the definition.

'tick over?' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'tick over?' could be 'idle' (I've seen this before) and 'idle' is found within the answer.
A single letter 'r' remains which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'just' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for idler that I've seen before include "A lazy loafer" , "One resting" , "One who doesn't want to work" , "Bum" , "comparatively shoddy?" .)

I've seen this clue in The Globe and Mail.
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