The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 14 letter word CO-RESPONDENTS
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
C
O
-
R
E
S
P
O
N
D
E
N
T
S
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Adulterers" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case adulterers = co-respondents.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.