The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word TANTALUS
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
T
A
N
T
A
L
U
S
More clues leading to the result TANTALUS
- He’s tormented us, but beat a Chess Champion first
- Mythical king who never quite got what he wanted
- Container of spirits from sultanate mostly destroyed
- Wicked king‘s army destroyed sultan
- Wicked king beat voluntary soldiers and left country briefly
- Cheers with depraved sultan becoming victim of hellish punishment
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Container of spirits" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case container of spirits = tantalus.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 TANTALUS mean?
TANTALUS noun- A stork of the genus Mycteria (formerly Tantalus), especially the American wood stork, Mycteria americana.
- A stand in which to lock up drink decanters while keeping them visible.
- Something of an evasive or retreating nature, something consistently out of reach; a tantalising thing.