Soldiers on active duty holding back (9)
I believe the answer is:
reserving
'holding back' is the definition.
'reserving' can be an answer for 'holding' ('reserve' can be a synonym of 'hold'). I am not sure about the 'back' bit.
'soldiers on active duty' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'soldiers' could be 're' (Royal Engineers) and 're' is found within the answer.
The remaining letters 'serving' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
Can you help me to learn more?
I've seen this clue in The Daily Express.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution?
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