The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 letter word HAWK
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
H
A
W
K
More clues leading to the result HAWK
- Act as a seller making one cough up
- Offer for sale? You’ve got to cough up!
- Sell fruit cocktail
- Sell hard One Week
- You and I holding means of access had to sit outside, vigilant
- Hard work catching adult bird of prey
- Eccentric hairstyle not taking short time, feathered one
- Bird submerged in bath awkwardly
- Bird that can cough things up?
- Sell one with bill up front
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Bird/cough things up" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case bird/cough things up = hawk.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 HAWK mean?
HAWK noun- A diurnal predatory bird of the family Accipitridae, smaller than an eagle.
- Any diurnal predatory terrestrial bird of similar size and appearance to the accipitrid hawks, such as a falcon
- An advocate of aggressive political positions and actions.
- An uncooperative or purely-selfish participant in an exchange or game, especially when untrusting, acquisitive or treacherous. Refers specifically to the Prisoner's Dilemma, alias the Hawk-Dove game.
- To hunt with a hawk.
- To make an attack while on the wing; to soar and strike like a hawk.
- A plasterer's tool, made of a flat surface with a handle below, used to hold an amount of plaster prior to application to the wall or ceiling being worked on: a mortarboard.
- To sell; to offer for sale by outcry in the street; to carry (merchandise) about from place to place for sale; to peddle.
- A noisy effort to force up phlegm from the throat.
- To cough up something from one's throat.
- To try to cough up something from one's throat; to clear the throat loudly.