Cryptic crossword clue
Criticism wears down characters — but these really hurt? 6,3,6

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 17 letter word STICKS AND STONES

I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
S
T
I
C
K
S
Â
 
A
N
D
Â
 
S
T
O
N
E
S

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "these really hurt" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case these really hurt = sticks and stones.
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.

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