The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word ALOOFNESS
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
A
L
O
O
F
N
E
S
S
More clues leading to the result ALOOFNESS
- Haughty nature of knight entering plant with sons
- Distant state in which fleas soon spread
- Cold air, almost -18C, disrupts a swimming lesson
- A jackass brought up point, displaying hauteur
- Distance from a kid climbing headland
- A simpleton raised head in distance
- Distant character?
- Lack of warmth of seals on rocks
- A regressive idiot often incenses keeping a distance
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "distance" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case distance = aloofness.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.