Crossword Genius

Play dead and one's left (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

disport

'play' is the definition.
(disporting is a kind of playing)

'dead and one's left' is the wordplay.
'dead' becomes 'd'.
'and' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'one's' becomes 'is' (roman numeral).
'left' becomes 'port' (left side of a ship - opposite of starboard).
'd'+'is'+'port'='DISPORT'

(Other definitions for disport that I've seen before include "Cavort, lark about" , "to have a good time" , "Play about" , "Amuse" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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