Cryptic crossword clue
Dreadful fools recoiling before sovereign 8

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word STINKING

I've seen this crossword clue in The Sunday Telegraph
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Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Dreadful" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case dreadful = stinking.
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 STINKING mean?

STINKING verb
  1. To have a strong bad smell.
  2. To be greatly inferior; to perform badly.
  3. To give an impression of dishonesty or untruth.
  4. To cause to stink; to affect by a stink.
STINKING adjective
  1. Having a pungent smell.
  2. Very bad and undesirable.
  3. An intensifier, a minced oath.
STINKING noun
  1. The emission of a foul smell.

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