The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 plus 3 letter word AFTER ALL
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
A
F
T
E
R
A
L
L
More clues leading to the result AFTER ALL
- In spite of everything, being behind American lines
- Bringing up the rear, despite one's efforts?
- Real flat bombs, essentially
- Trying to get everything in spite of expectations
- In pursuit of the total amount in spite of everything
- A newspaper with energy slowing in the end
- Nevertheless, is not to be satisfied with just part
- A fellow’s half-sister has everything, contrary to expectations
- Large flat, not grand, requiring renovation nevertheless
- Last, despite expectations
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "contrary to expectations" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case contrary to expectations = after all.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.