Toady caught aristocrat returning (5)
I believe the answer is:
creep
'toady' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'caught aristocrat returning' is the wordplay.
'caught' becomes 'c' (cricket abbreviation).
'aristocrat' becomes 'Peer' (peer is a kind of aristocrat).
'returning' shows that the letters should be reversed in order.
'peer' back-to-front is 'reep'.
'c'+'reep'='CREEP'
(Other definitions for creep that I've seen before include "Slow motion" , "Move slowly with body close to ground" , "narrow passage" , "worm" , "grovel" .)