The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word DRUDGERY
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
D
R
U
D
G
E
R
Y
More clues leading to the result DRUDGERY
- Dickensian bound by tedious slog
- Arid setting for Dickensian chores
- Abstemious Dickensian accepted for dull work
- Barnaby in dull and tedious chores
- Dickens’ protagonist entered into dreary monotonous labour
- Tramp not having time consumed by boring toil
- Urged to reform internally, gone off alcohol, very hard work!
- Dickens character in uninteresting, dull work
- Dickensian character engaged in plain dogsbody’s work
- Doctor urged no drink outside, it's donkeywork
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "dull work" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case dull work = drudgery.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.
What does DRUDGERY mean?
DRUDGERY noun- Tedious, menial, and exhausting work.