Saw Chile without leaders for a short time (6)

I believe the answer is:

awhile

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'short time' is the definition.
(I have seen 'short time' mean 'awhile' so perhaps 'time' could also mean 'awhile'; 'short' asks for an abbreviation)

'saw chile without leaders for a' is the wordplay.
'saw' becomes 'w' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
'without leaders' means to remove the first letter (I've seen 'without leader' mean this).
'for' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other) (I've seen this in other clues).
'chile' with its initial letter taken away is 'hile'.
'w'+'hile'='while'
'while' after 'a' is 'AWHILE'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for awhile that I've seen before include "For a short time" , "briefly" , "a brief period" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.

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