The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word ASPERITY
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
A
S
P
E
R
I
T
Y
More clues leading to the result ASPERITY
- Bitterness of a professional lacking in good fortune
- Pirates punished with variable harshness
- Sharpness of spy I rate poorly
- Rough state of tripe cooked in, say, nuts
- Yet pairs splitting up may lead to acrimony
- Sharpness as each one turned yellow, initially
- Way in which pity overcomes the Queen’s severeness
- Bitterness seen since shame engulfs Her Majesty
- When the Queen, in sorrow, shows such a harsh quality
- Harsh mood, according to financial centre dumping leader
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Bitterness" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case bitterness = asperity.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 ASPERITY mean?
ASPERITY noun- Roughness as of stone or weather.
- Harshness, as of temper.
- Something that is harsh and difficult to endure.
- A part of a geological fault line that does not move.