Missing allowance discovered and returned (4)
I believe the answer is:
awol
'missing' is the definition.
(military abbreviation for absent without leave)
I cannot understand how the remainder of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for awol that I've seen before include "Not present when supposed to be" , "Truant (or just missing)" , "gone missing" , "Missing without permission" , "On the lam" .)