Cryptic crossword clue
Discomfort with provocative dance reported as an act of touching up? 9

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word PAINTWORK

I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
P
A
I
N
T
W
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R
K

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "act of touching up" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case act of touching up = paintwork.
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 PAINTWORK mean?

PAINTWORK noun
  1. The painted surface of a car, building, etc.

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