The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 plus 2 letter word TALKING TO
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
T
A
L
K
I
N
G
T
O
More clues leading to the result TALKING TO
- dressing down?
- Carpeting’s total shambles without ruler
- Lecture chess player taking time over capturing piece
- Finger wagging lecture
- Becoming fond of nursing student in lecture
- Informal discussion got misconstrued as a lecture
- Student sitting in beginning to enjoy lecture
- Addressing some criticism
- Beginning to like catching Latin lecture
- What lecture might be addressing
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Addressing/criticism" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case addressing/criticism = talking to.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 TALKING TO mean?
TALKING TO noun- A scolding or reprimand; a lengthy rebuke.